A Thought on the Return of Ralph Friedgen

The questions are still making their way through Internet news wires and the blogosphere, but Ralph Friedgen is still the head football coach of the Maryland Terrapins and rightfully so .

But it just occurred to me that Maryland has more incentive for Friedgen to stay, independent of the $4 million dollars the State of Maryland would be on the hook for should he be fired.

What exactly is the expectation for Maryland football?

An ACC championship? Friedgen can coach with the best of them, but Virginia Tech, Georgia Tech, Clemson, and Boston College are clearly ahead of them as recruiting destinations.

National ranking? The Terps, without an annual upset of a Top-15 team, or 10 wins just won’t get the kind of respect from the pollsters.

It’s not a national championship, and so long as the SEC is the other side of the equation in the Chik-Fil-A Bowl, Terps fans can’t reasonably expect a win in that game.

This ain’t Charlie Weis and Notre Dame. You can’t expect a Top-10 ranking and a BCS berth every year out of a football program stationed smack in the middle of basketball country. Gary Williams, while hamstrung by the ghosts of Lefty Dreisell and Bob Wade in his recruiting, still makes out 10 times better than most basketball coaches in SEC country? Why? Because more kids, more parents, and more high school coaches care about football in those parts.

From New York to Arlington, Va., you are in basketball country. That’s why Gary catches the blues when he can’t win 12 in a row to start the season. Too much talent in the area not to do it.

But Friedgen is supposed to be different? Please. Let the Fridge go recruit and let’s all get cracking on our “What’s Wrong With Terrapins Basketball?” posts.

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