Maryland interim head coach Mike Locksley continued to conjure up ways to energize his team during practice Tuesday morning, blaring music and giving an unconventional opportunity to a group of unheralded players. Locksley placed the ball at the 10-yard line and created a hypothetical third-and-goal situation, telling his scout-team offense it had two downs to score on the scout-team defense.
“And they got excited about that,” Locksley said later, grinning about the uncoiled energy the team has released in recent days. The past 10 days have been difficult for the program in the wake of Randy Edsall’s firing, which has led to one of the most difficult tasks in Locksley’s long career as football coach: rally a stunned group of players who have lost three straight games by 21 points or more and prepare them for this weekend’s game against Penn State in Baltimore.