If you are reading this, you undoubtedly know by now the allegations levied against the coaching staff of the University of Maryland Football program by various sources and reported in several media outlets, most notably ESPN. These allegations encompass both negligence by the training staff in treating offensive lineman Jordan McNair for a heatstroke following (and perhaps during) a workout that ultimately led to his untimely death, as well as a “toxic culture” throughout the program spearheaded by Head Coach DJ Durkin ever since his arrival in December 2015. BSL’s Zack Kiesel summed up the allegations and some of the initial public reaction to them here. At the time Zack published his article, athletic trainers Wes Robinson and Steve Nordwall, along with Strength & Conditioning Coach Rick Court had been placed on administrative leave. Later that same day, the University placed Head Coach DJ Durkin on administrative leave.

(Discuss this article on the BSL message board here)

Where Things Stand

As the press release from AD Damon Evans stated, Offensive Coordinator Matt Canada is the interim Head Coach. The decision to elevate him makes sense. As Canada was only hired in January of this year, he is the most senior member (in terms of position) of the staff that has also been with the program the shortest amount of time. As such, both the school and Canada can somewhat distance him from the accusation that the coaching staff fostered an environment for the past 2 1/2 years where players were belittled and humiliated if they did not perform up to expectations.

Canada’s came to MD with a mixed reputation There is little doubt he is one of the better offensive coordinators in college football today, and the on-field results he has consistently achieved back that up. The centerpiece of his resume was in 2016 at Pitt, where the Panthers boasted the #4 ranked offense in S&P+ in college football. In his only recent multi-season stint, 2013-2015 at NC State, the Wolfpack ranked #90 in offensive S&P+ in Canada’s first season, and improved to #35 by his third and final season.

On the other side of the coin, the narrative on Canada, deserved or not, is that he can be very difficult to work with. That MD is his seventh different school over the past nine seasons doesn’t help dispel that narrative. At his last stop before MD, LSU, he not-so-secretly butt heads with head coach Ed Orgeron and allegedly with other assistant coaches as well. And despite the improvements and success at NC State, he and Head Coach Dave Doreen (with whom Canada also worked under at Northern Illinois) curiously agreed to part ways. Upon hiring him, DJ Durkin (who had never worked with Canada prior) stated that he looked into his background and felt very confident that the circumstances surrounding Canada’s many short stays were explainable and understandable, and Durkin was confident that he’d be a good fit on his staff. Like any accomplished assistant coach, Canada wants to be a head coach eventually. Now, he will have his chance to at least audition. I’ll address the obvious challenges he faces in that audition later. Right now, I want to discuss how long his audition might last.

The Immediate Future

The University commissioned an external investigation into the death of Jordan McNair. The final report on that investigation is due on September 15th. For now, I will assume that MD does not receive the report before that date. On that day, the Terps will host the Temple Owls in their third game of the season. Assuming what I stated above, Matt Canada will almost certainly be the Terps’ head coach that day.

Barring the unearthing of more concrete and indisputable evidence that backs up the allegations regarding both the program and the McNair incident, I think it is very unlikely that UM makes any decisions regarding the fate of DJ Durkin before receiving the final results of the investigation. As we saw with former AD Kevin Anderson’s “sabbatical” of nearly seven months, UM is fine with taking a very patient and deliberate approach when it comes to the dismissal of high-profile employees. Which is understandable….they have the same rights as any other state employee, and the procedures for removing someone (especially if UM attempts to do so “with cause”) are pretty stringent. I really don’t want to say whether I believe DJ Durkin will be back or not….but with what has been reported, I comfortable saying that I think it is going to be very difficult, if not impossible, for UM to convince the court of public opinion that Durkin deserves to return. And I think that is a factor the school must weigh.

As for what faces the team these next several weeks, MD has a football game to prepare for that is just 20 days away. And yes, MD will play football this fall, despite a couple random calls I’ve seen advocating that the Terps should shut down the football program for a year (not happening, nor should it). I do wonder about the mental and emotional state of the team right now. I have to imagine at least some of the players are still grieving and trying to come to terms with the death of their teammate. If the allegations are true that McNair was exhibiting clear signs of physical distress and heatstroke before he completed the workout, and the training staff failed to diagnose and treat him properly, that can only add a whole different element to their grief.

Now the team also faces a very uncertain future as far as where their program is headed. The head coach they committed to is currently gone and may never return. Based on what has been reported, some players may consider that a good thing….others not. Will their position coach survive if the allegations prove mostly true and the axes begin to fall? Should they stay at UM or look to find a more stable situation elsewhere?

Most coaches that take over as an interim head coach are thrust into a difficult situation. For Matt Canada, that seems like an understatement. He has zero head coaching experience. He has yet to coach a single game with MD in any capacity. Who knows if he has even remembered all the names of the players on the defensive side of the ball yet? And the players, plus the assistants, have just 20 days to figure out and prepare for what Canada expects from them as the man in charge. And what was shaping up to be a relatively quiet 4 weeks of preparation for the season suddenly will be loaded with potential distractions and scrutiny. Oh, and the first game of the season is against a talented Texas squad that is hell bent on getting revenge for last season’s humiliating opener.

I’ve always said that adversity like this can go either way with college teams full of young people, many of whom have likely never experienced something on this level. It can bring them closer together and they achieve results no one but they themselves could have imagined, or it can drag them into the abyss. Here’s hoping it’s the former. I think these kids deserve a good break right now.

Mike Lowe
Mike Lowe

College Football Analyst

Mike is a Baltimore native living in Portland, OR since 2007. He currently runs his own business specializing in video production and online marketing. Prior to that he was a legal technology consultant, worked for 9 years at Johns Hopkins University and served 6 years in the Air Force. He also enjoys travel, food, beer, and is a volunteer at the Oregon Humane Society.

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