Aazaar Abdul-Rahim, who coached both cornerbacks and safeties during his three seasons at Maryland, confirmed Thursday that he is going to Massachusetts as defensive coordinator.
Abdul-Rahim, 42, will join former Maryland offensive coordinator Walt Bell, who got his first head coaching job at UMass after spending one season as offensive coordinator at Florida State.
Many thought Abdul-Rahim would be retained by new Maryland coach Michael Locksley, considering the relationship they built when Locksley was previously in College Park and Abdul-Rahim was head coach at Friendship Collegiate Academy in Washington.