Maryland hires Mike Locksley, owner of a 3-31 record, to save the program

Maryland hired a coach with a 3-31 career record to coach the football team.

Maybe the third time will be the charm?

On the same day he won the Broyles Award as the nation’s top assistant, Alabama offensive coordinator Mike Locksley was tabbed as the new head coach at Maryland, his third stint at the university.

Stadium’s Brett McMurphy was the first to report the news.

Locksley, 48, returns to Maryland where he worked as an assistant from 1992-2002 and 2012-2015 that ended with him going 1-5 as the interim coach after Randy Edsall was fired.

He carries a 3-31 career record that including a 2-26 stretch at New Mexico that ended in his third season. Locksley has baggage beyond the win-loss record after a string of off-field incidents, including age and sex discrimination allegations and assaulting an assistant coach.

The move isn’t a surprising one as Locksley was ear-marked as the natural pick to be the next coach after D.J. Durkin was fired mid-season after his involvement in the death of Jordan McNair who died after a workout. Matt Canada served as the interim coach this season and was a finalist for the job along with Michigan quarterbacks coach Pep Hamilton.

Locksley was hired because of his ties to Maryland and the hope that he can stabilize the program that has been under a black cloud since McNair’s death and the ensuing investigation and firing of Durkin.

Wins and losses will be secondary as Locksley tries to rejuvenate the recruiting that fell off dramatically after the year’s events and rebuild the culture and win over the players in the locker room. He previously recruited Shawne Merriman and Vernon Davis to Maryland, Arrelious Benn and Vontae Davis to Illinois and briefly held the commitment of Heisman finalist Dwayne Haskins while at Maryland. Haskins de-committed and went to Ohio State where he shattered numerous Big Ten passing records this year.

Locksley offers the hope and promise he can find those impact players and make them Terps. He also has an endorsement from Nick Saban, the greatest college football coach of all time.

Spending the last two years on Saban’s staff should be invaluable. He began as an offensive analyst in 2017 before being promoted to offensive coordinator this year, the greatest offensive season in Alabama history.

He oversaw an offense that finished second in points per game with Heisman finalist quarterback in Tua Tagovailoa. He will stay on with Alabama through the College Football Playoff, according to ESPN’s Chris Low.

Locksley will be able to win over the fans, administration and powerful boosters in the short-term.

The chances of a happy homecoming hinge on Locksley recruiting Top 20 classes and putting to practice what he learned from Saban to avoid the failures that doomed him at New Mexico.

If he couldn’t win at New Mexico, playing in the Big Ten East with Ohio State, Michigan, Michigan State and Penn State every year is a daunting task, especially since he won’t have Alabama’s personnel.

Sorry to rain on the homecoming parade.