It hasn’t exactly been your typical offseason for Maryland men’s basketball.
After the most successful season in the short-lived Kevin Willard era, in which the Terps reached the Sweet 16 for the first time since 2016, Maryland watched Willard bail for Villanova and its entire starting five depart via graduation, the NBA Draft, or the transfer portal. But it didn’t take the Terps long to hit the reset button and begin building for the 2025-26 season behind new head coach, Buzz Williams.
Williams has a track record of success from his time at Marquette, Virginia Tech, and Texas A&M. He has a substantial rebuild on his hands, but early returns indicate he’s the right man for the job. It’s a clean slate for Williams, which adds to the sense of urgency this offseason, but it also gives him autonomy to build a roster that fits his coaching style.
Starting in April, Williams led an aggressive and swift attack on the recruiting landscape and transfer portal. Between the 2025 recruiting class and the transfer portal, the Terps have already added 13 new players to their roster:
Transfers from Texas A&M (where Williams coached last year):
● Pharrel Payne: Three years of college experience between Minnesota and Texas A&M. Payne is a 6′9″ forward/center who adds shot‑blocking and interior size to Maryland’s roster after averaging 10.4 PPG, 5.1 RPG for the Aggies last season.
● Solomon Washington: Playing for the Aggies for the past three seasons, Washington started 23 games for Williams last year. He’s a defensive-minded 6′7″ forward/wing who has averaged nearly a block and a steal per game for his career.
● Andre Mills: A 6’4” combo guard who was a redshirt freshman last season for the Aggies, Mills was a Top 100 recruit entering college, per 247Sports.
● George Turkson Jr.: A 6′7″ wing and a former four-star recruit, Turkson also redshirted for the Aggies as a freshman last season.
Transfers from Other Programs:
● Myles Rice: A 6’3” point guard from Indiana, who brings points and poise. His scoring ability and natural leadership helped him earn Pac‑12 Freshman of the Year honors while playing for Washington State in 2022. Rice started 25 games for the Hoosiers last season and averaged 10.1 PPG, 2.8 RPG, and 2.8 APG.
● David Coit: A former Kansas guard who can get buckets, even at 5’11”. Coit averaged 20.8 PPG two seasons ago at Northern Illinois and 15.5 PPG the season before. He started three games for the Jayhawks last season and received solid coaching and high-major program experience while in Lawrence.
● Isaiah Watts: Former Washington State guard who has averaged 35.8% from three in his two-year collegiate career. The 6’3” shooter also showed last season that he could track down some missed shots, averaging 3.7 RPG.
● Collin Metcalf: A 6’9” shot-blocking center from Northeastern, who ranked top 10 nationally in blocks (2.4 BPG) last season. Like Rice and Coit, he already has three years of college experience under his belt.
● Rakease Passmore: A 6’5 guard, from Kansas. Will be a Sophomore after averaging just 5 minutes a game in 23 games as a Jayhawk. Was a 4 star, Top 50 recruit before joining KU.
● Elijah Saunders: A 6’8” forward who has 47 starts in his college career. He brings size and experience to Maryland’s frontcourt, having held down the paint at Virginia and San Diego State before College Park.
2025 Freshman Class
● Darius Adams: A five-star combo guard from La Lumiere School in Indiana, Adams is a McDonald’s All‑American and 247Sports Composite #23-ranked recruit in the 2025 class. At 6’5”, Adams has ideal size and athleticism for his position.
● Aleks Alston: A 6′9″ forward from Chicago, interior depth and toughness is what Alston can bring to the table right away.
● Jaziah Harper: A 6′7″ wing with a 7-foot wingspan. Harper is from Don Bosco Prep in Indiana and was an unranked recruit commit, but he has interesting upside and versatility on the court.
● Guillermo Del Pino: A 6’5 International from Spain. All-Star at the NBA’s Basketball Without Borders Camp in February 2024. MVP of the FIBA Under-16 European Championship team in 2023.
● Nick Blake: Son of Terps legend Steve Blake and a 6′2″ guard from Orlando. Blake is a shooter who saw nearly 76% of his shots in high school come from beyond the arc.
These additions expand the scholarship count to 13: 10 transfers and 3 freshmen.
2025-26 Season Outlook
Some exciting new guards and a slew of Texas A&M additions who have familiarity with Williams have some college hoops experts bullish on Maryland in their early rankings. CBS Sports’ Jon Rothstein already placed the Terps at No. 32 nationally in his rankings.
Somewhere between Top 25 and the tournament bubble seems like a reasonable expectation for Williams’ first year in College Park. He has built stability already by bringing several assistants and players over with him from A&M. That continuity and perhaps some star power from a five-star guard could make the Terps an interesting team to follow next season.
Integrating a roster of transfers and freshmen while acclimating to a new setting will be no easy task for Williams, but he’ll have a better chance of finding success the quicker he can identify the right starting five.
Rothstein has a projected starting five of Rice, Watts, Washington, Saunders, and Payne. Coit figures to get plenty of time, with the Coaching staff already saying as much. Perhaps Adams emerges at some point. Watts averaged double figures for Washington State. Would think him, and Metcalf are regular parts of the rotation.
There is talent and depth here. Practices should be tough, and minutes will be earned.
Regardless of how the starting five shakes out, Williams appears to have strong depth in both the backcourt and frontcourt to choose from, and he’ll need to use as many capable players as possible to make it through what is sure to be a grueling Big Ten schedule.
Williams’ first offseason in College Park marks one of the boldest rebuilds in college basketball. The incoming talent includes scoring, defense, shooting, and experience, so there’s a lot to be excited about. But time will tell if the pieces fit.
What’s clear is that the 2025–26 Terps will look and feel nothing like the 2024–25 Sweet 16 squad. With size, depth, and fresh leadership, the program enters a new era—one built on Buzz Williams’ blueprint for transformation, continuity, and competitiveness.
Terps Analyst
Pat has been covering sports in the DMV area since 2012. He is a former Washington Redskins beat reporter for PressBoxDC.com and has been covering University of Maryland football and basketball recruiting and daily beats for Rivals.com’s Terrapin Sports Report since 2013. Pat graduated from College Park with his master’s degree in journalism and has received bylines in publications such as USA TODAY Sports, The Philadelphia Inquirer, SB Nation, and Yahoo! Sports. A Philadelphia native, Pat enjoys fishing, golfing, and playing fantasy sports when he’s not covering or watching a game.