Maryland gets its first look at life without Taulia Tagovailoa in the Music City Bowl

Maryland is playing in a third-straight bowl game for the first time in 15 seasons, and a Music City Bowl win Saturday over Auburn will give the Terrapins three-straight postseason victories for the first time in school history.

The author of those previous two wins, Taulia Tagovailoa, will be absent, however, providing an opportunity to assess the quarterback’s legacy in College Park while Maryland gets its first look at what the program will look like without him under center.

“You know, you kind of look at this game almost like a preseason game leading into next year,” said Maryland coach Mike Locksley. “It gives us an opportunity to evaluate our quarterback situation.”

After coach and quarterback both intimated after the regular season finale that he would play, Locksley announced Dec. 19 that Tagovailoa instead chose to opt-out of the game, ending his Maryland career after as arguably the greatest player to play the position in school history.

“It wasn’t easy for him to say, ‘Coach, I’m not gonna play in the game,’” Locksley said of his conversation with Tagovailoa. “He handled it the right way. Great family, great people. He’s got some decisions to make and I’m excited for him. But, look across the country, man, This is happening to everybody. So Maryland fans, understand this happens to everyone.”

Tagovailoa’s opt-out does take some of the air out of Maryland’s balloon as they prepare in Nashville for their first Music City Bowl appearance and try to keep their bowl winning streak going. But backup QB Billy Edwards Jr., the Burke, Virginia, native who developed a close relationship with Tagovailoa over the last few seasons, is ready to take the reins.

“We see him every day in practice. Usually he takes about 40% of the reps as the backup with the starter taking 60%,” Locksley said. “So he’s got a lot of banked reps, a lot of banked experience that has shown us that he’s capable of operating our stuff, and he still has a bunch of the weapons available to him on the outside.”

Edwards performed well in place of Tagovailoa twice in 2022, directing a game-winning drive at Indiana after Tagovailoa departed with a knee injury and leading Maryland to a homecoming win over Northwestern the following week to reach bowl eligibility.

“I don’t think Billy and Lia are as more different than what people think,” Locksley said. “They’re different stature and size, in terms of their measurables, but both guys throw the RPO stuff really well. Both guys have great movement skills. I think Billy runs and plays with a little more power obviously because of his size.”

Still, expect Maryland’s offense against the Tigers to look and feel somewhat different for the first time since Tagovailoa’s arrival. Edwards saw action in six games this season and has only thrown 10 passes, with his most notable usage coming on short yardage QB shove plays. His six rushing touchdowns, including a three-score performance against Michigan, are tied with receiver Tai Felton for the most by any Terrapin this season.

“I think sometimes because of how we use Billy, that maybe you guys think that, oh, Billy is just a runner. But Billy throws the ball really, really well,” Locksley said. “He’s a traditional pocket quarterback, but he also has some sneaky athleticism that I think catches people off guard. So I’ve got all the confidence in the world.”

There will be an “open competition” to be Tagovailoa’s successor next season, Locksley said, with redshirt freshman Cameron Edge also expected to see time in the bowl. The other contender is North Carolina State transfer MJ Morris, who started five games as a true freshman in 2022 before a knee injury ended his season. He started four games for the Wolfpack this season after a midseason quarterback change, going 3-1, but redshirted the rest of the season to preserve an extra year of eligibility. Morris has been practicing with Maryland ahead of the Music City Bowl but is not eligible to play in the game.

“Everybody has to earn what they get around here. I talk about that a lot. So yeah, nobody’s been promised the starting position. It’s gonna be a competitive position. The competition probably will go all the way in through the summer,” Locksley said. “I think I do have a decent track record that if I go get a quarterback, they’re usually capable of helping us.”

As for Tagovailoa, his achievements in a Maryland uniform cannot be questioned. The Ewa Beach, Hawaii, native leaves College Park with every single-season and career passing record the program has to his name. The cherry on top of his statistical sundae came in his final Terrapins appearance, eclipsing the Big Ten’s all-time passing yards mark with a season-high 361-yard performance Nov. 25 at Rutgers, finishing his Maryland career with 11,256.

“For some people around here, I don’t think you’ll understand the impact of what ‘Lia coming to Maryland will have probably for about 10-15 years. Because I’ve been around here a long time where we’ve struggled at quarterback,” Locksley said.”

Upon his arrival soon after Locksley in 2020, Tagovailoa helped resurrect a Maryland program that was still slowly wading its way out of the aftermath of the 2018 death of offensive lineman Jordan McNair during an outdoor workout and the missteps by then-coach D.J. Durkin and others surrounding McNair’s treatment.

After glimpses of what could be possible in a pandemic-truncated 2020 season, including only the third Maryland win over Penn State in the 106-year history of the series, Tagovailoa announced his presence in 2021. He powered Maryland with 3,860 yards, 26 touchdowns and the Terrapins’ first bowl win in 11 years, setting a Pinstripe Bowl scoring record in a 54-10 rout of Virginia Tech.

2022 represented a bit of a fall off — 3,008 yards and 18 touchdowns — but the result was the same, another bowl win, with Maryland holding on over N.C. State 16-12 in the Duke’s Mayo Bowl.

An achievement Tagovailoa leaves Maryland without, though, is a signature win or even a signature moment. This season represented both the best and worst of his Terrapins tenure, with his 3,377 yards and 25 touchdowns back near 2021 levels. But so too were his interceptions: 11 total, the same as his 2021 campaign, with some costing Maryland chances at victory against Ohio State and Michigan.

Speaking of those schools, the Terrapins narrowed the gap but never triumphed over the Buckeyes, Wolverines or Penn State in a full season with Tagovailoa. The only ranked win of Tagovailoa’s career? The aforementioned Mayo Bowl, as N.C. State barely cracked the rankings at No. 23 before the game.

Certainly, many will recall his rainbow deep balls to the likes of Rakim Jarrett, Dontay Demus, Jeshaun Jones and Kaden Prather, among others, and the palpable energy and toughness he brought to a position that, for Maryland, was unstable for the better part of a decade due to injuries. Yet there’s still a tinge of “what might have been” if he and Maryland was able to slay one of the Big Ten’s best.

“You know, we had a guy that played for four years here and had great success, and some people still, he leaves here a little bit kind of an enigma. People love him or hate him,”  Locksley said.

Though devoid of a magnum opus, Tagovailoa’s Terrapin career will likely be remembered more as a songbook — its pages filled with statistical superlatives that were the ignition for a new era, with both Maryland and its fans able to collectively sing their praises again after a decade to forget. 

“I sure love the kid because of what he’s been able to do to elevate Maryland football,” Locksley said. “Didn’t do it by himself, and I know he gets a lot of credit because of [our] relationship, but a pretty special kid.”