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Maryland Football: Nobody wins with decision to retain DJ Durkin

By Dana Becker

COLLEGE PARK, MD - NOVEMBER 25: Head coach DJ Durkin of the Maryland Terrapins watches from the sidelines during the closing moments of the Terrapins 66-3 loss to the Penn State Nittany Lions at Capital One Field on November 25, 2017 in College Park, Maryland. (Photo by Rob Carr/Getty Images)
COLLEGE PARK, MD - NOVEMBER 25: Head coach DJ Durkin of the Maryland Terrapins watches from the sidelines during the closing moments of the Terrapins 66-3 loss to the Penn State Nittany Lions at Capital One Field on November 25, 2017 in College Park, Maryland. (Photo by Rob Carr/Getty Images) /
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In the end, nobody – not Maryland football, not the McNair family and not college football – wins with the decision by the school to reinstate DJ Durkin.

For those that might have missed it, Jordan McNair, a 19-year-old football player for Maryland, died this summer due to heatstroke. The university put Durkin on leave immediately afterward, but elected earlier this week to return him to his role as head coach.

The news was met with plenty of backlash, as members of the Terp football team exited a press conference where Durkin was addressing the situation.

The University System of Maryland board of regents and the commission investigated the matter and the culture of the program as a whole before bringing Durkin back. Yes, you read that correct. The university hand-picked its own members of a commission to make this decision – of course, with the best interest of the student-athletes in mind.

According to information obtained by ESPN, the investigation into Maryland football found “abuses within the program,” but maintained the culture was not “toxic.” James Brady, the board of regents chair, echoed those sentiments during a press conference returning Durkin to his leadership role.

How does this do anybody involved any good? The McNair family is still left without their son to try and carry on with their every day lives, always wondering what could have been changed to keep Jordan alive.

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As someone who covers high school and junior college football for a living, I find it very, very difficult to think there are everyday people out there seriously looking at attending Maryland with the current staff in place after this decision by the school.

All involved should have made a statement with the decision and took a stand. Instead, a blind eye was turned to the loss of a student-athlete at Maryland.

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