Maryland Football: Terps Lose out on Defensive Tackle

It only took one official visit for defensive tackle Tyson Chandler to decide what school he was going to attend next year.  

Unfortunately for Terps fans, that visit was not to College Park.  Chandler was on hand this weekend in Raleigh, N.C. to watch the Wolfpack defeat the Miami Hurricanes 38-28.  

Chandler saw enough in his visit to give Tom O’Brien has his staff a verbal commitment for next year.  Chandler is a 6′6", 344-pound defensive tackle from North Plainfield, N.J. and is a Rivals.com three-star recruit. 

Chandler held offers from N.C. State, Maryland, South Florida, Cincinnati, Temple, and New Mexico State.   Here is his evaluation from ESPN.com:

“It is not tough to click on the film and find Chandler, as he is a mammoth kid. He is a space eater and a tough object to move as a defensive tackle.

He has a solid get-off. Will display the ability to get good hand leverage and when he gets some positioning on a blocker, he can physically move him back.

He needs to play lower as he often gets high, but even with poor pad level he is a tough guy to get moving backwards. When he gets a head of steam and keeps decent pad level, he can cause some problems in the backfield.

He has solid lateral movement and is able to engulf the ball carrier and the blocker when need be if run at. For a kid his size, he gives good effort to get the ball and does not run too poorly.

Displays very adequate short-area change-of-direction skills. He will surprise you some with his ability to try and be a factor on the perimeter.

At the college level, though this kid will be a two-gapper who could possibly give you a good play now and again. As a pass rusher, he can drive a blocker back and collapse the pocket.

If he can get free off the ball, he will quickly get in the quarterback's face. Chandler is a solid defensive tackle prospect, but also might end up on offense in college as possibly a right tackle or more likely a guard.

He has the size and displays the ability to be able to drive defenders off the ball and be a tough obstacle to get around in the short area in passing situations. Chandler is a big boy who in the right fit can be a solid player at the college level.”