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Will a coaching change help get Maryland Football back on track?

The 2016 Big Ten Preview continues with a look at Maryland and first-time head coach DJ Durkin

Ed Mulholland-USA TODAY Sports

Our preview of the Big Ten continues with a look at Maryland, who is also undergoing a regime change with DJ Durkin at the helm. As a former defensive coordinator at Michigan and Florida, this will be Durkin's first experience as a head coach. If you missed our last preview on Rutgers, click here.

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Program Resume

Maryland endured some success in the ACC in the early 2000's under former head coach Ralph Friedgen with three straight 10-win seasons and an ACC championship in 2001. After getting off to a hot start, Friedgen's tenure soured over time as he posted a 44-42 record over the course of the next seven seasons. He was fired in 2011 after a 9-win season. Since joining the Big Ten in 2014, Maryland is 10-15 with a 5-12 record in conference play -- including a 3-9 (1-7) campaign last year.

Head-to-Head Matchups w/ Illinois

The Illini and Terrapins have never played, and the pair won't make their initial acquaintance until 2018. Maryland leads 6-5 all-time in men's basketball, though, since this section should probably be longer than one sentence.

2015 Schedule and Results

Record: 3-9 | Adj. Record: 6-6 | Final F/+ Rk: 76 | Final S&P+ Rk: 65
Date Opponent Opp. F/+ Rk Score W-L Percentile
Performance
Win
Expectancy
vs. S&P+ Performance
vs. Vegas
5-Sep Richmond N/A 50-21 W 92% 100% +15.1
12-Sep Bowling Green 25 27-48 L 51% 7% -30.7 -28.5
19-Sep South Florida 44 35-17 W 95% 97% +5.2 +11.0
26-Sep at West Virginia 31 6-45 L 11% 0% -19.8 -22.0
3-Oct Michigan 8 0-28 L 15% 0% -12.2 -12.0
10-Oct at Ohio State 3 28-49 L 46% 1% -3.1 +12.0
24-Oct vs. Penn State 47 30-31 L 68% 45% +13.8 +5.5
31-Oct at Iowa 38 15-31 L 34% 1% +5.6 +1.0
7-Nov Wisconsin 32 24-31 L 81% 58% +7.2 +4.5
14-Nov at Michigan State 9 7-24 L 29% 1% -3.4 -2.0
21-Nov Indiana 61 28-47 L 36% 6% -19.9 -21.5
28-Nov at Rutgers 101 46-41 W 66% 69% -2.2 +4.0

2016 Outlook

Despite winning just three games in a tumultuous 2015 campaign, the advanced statistics ranked Maryland as the 65th best team in the country -- ahead of Purdue and Rutgers, according to S&P. DJ Durkin is a guy that deserves a head coaching gig, with impressive stops on his record at Stanford, Florida, and Michigan. He should help a Maryland defense that was torched for 34.4 points per game last year. Maryland brought in the seventh-best recruiting class in the conference, according to 247. They'll need more consistent play from their quarterbacks, as Perry Hills and Caleb Rowe combined to cough up 28 interceptions last year. That's not ideal.

Their nonconference schedule features an opener against Howard, then on the road at Florida International (S/O Ron Turner) and at Central Florida, followed by a Big Ten opener against Purdue. Maryland will have to get off to a fast start if it wants to make a bowl game in 2016.

2016 Schedule
Date Opponent Proj. S&P+ Rk Proj. Margin Win Probability
3-Sep Howard NR 49.7 100%
9-Sep at Florida International 113 12.0 76%
17-Sep at Central Florida 99 6.4 64%
1-Oct Purdue 88 9.5 71%
8-Oct at Penn State 28 -11.8 25%
15-Oct Minnesota 42 -0.6 49%
22-Oct Michigan State 22 -7.1 34%
29-Oct at Indiana 56 -4.4 40%
5-Nov at Michigan 6 -19.9 13%
12-Nov Ohio State 14 -9.9 28%
19-Nov at Nebraska 26 -12.1 24%
26-Nov Rutgers 87 9.5 71%
Projected wins: 5.9