By TJ Chapman
When describing the current quarterback situation of the Maryland Terrapins, there is one word that comes to mind: inexperienced. While there are currently five quarterbacks on the roster, only three are legitimately vying for the starting role.
Redshirt junior Justyn Martin transferred in from UCLA, where he had attempted a total of 35 passes in his career. Redshirt freshman Khristian Martin did not see the field at all for the Terps in 2024 and has no collegiate attempts. And four-star true freshman Malik Washington has only seen action in Maryland’s 2025 Spring Game.
It is a bit concerning that the most experienced quarterback in the battle to be the starter has thrown only 35 passes. Needless to say, this will probably be a race that not only lasts throughout fall camp, but at least a few weeks into the 2025 season.
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Unlocking QB Potential
Maryland head coach Mike Locksley is a brilliant offensive mind who has coached some of the best quarterbacks in the last 10 years. As Alabama’s offensive coordinator in 2018, Locksley had a quarterback room with Jalen Hurts, Tua Tagovailoa and Mac Jones. In 2020 Tua’s brother Taulia Tagovailoa joined Locksley at Maryland and became the all-time leading passer for both Maryland and the Big Ten Conference.
Last season’s starter, Billy Edwards III, transferred to Wisconsin leaving the quarterback room in Maryland unsettled. Justyn Martin transferred in from UCLA and Locksley landed the commitment of the highly recruited Washington, filling the room with that most dangerous of words: potential.
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Potential is such an icky word. It is spun to make someone who did great at the high school level look like a superstar at the college level. The player may be special, but until they prove it with in-game experience the player’s potential is just a guess.
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Unfortunately for Maryland’s trio of quarterbacks potential is all they have to work with. There is limited film on Justyn Martin and the only film for Khristian Martin and Washington comes from the Maryland Spring Game.
3-Way Race for QB1
While the defense is obviously vanilla in that game, there were a lot of good things to take away from the Maryland Spring Game. Each quarterback shined in their reps with the first and second team offenses.
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Washington showed why he was a four-star recruit, going 12-of-18 for 168 yards and two touchdowns. While he missed on a few throws, it was apparent the true freshman has the ability to be a starter this season.
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Justyn Martin had the least productive day, going 6-of-14 for 69 yards and one touchdown. He was at times off with his throws and had one tipped at the line of scrimmage that was intercepted. He showed flashes of his abilities, but there were some mistakes that need corrected.
The star of the day was also the game’s MVP and that was Khristian Martin. The redshirt freshman went 16-of-23 for 269 yards and four touchdowns. He was on target with most of his deep passes and seems to have built chemistry with wide receiver Mekhi White. The pair hooked up for two touchdown passes.
While Justyn Martin was the least productive in the spring game he is still a viable choice to be the opening game starter. As is the true freshman, Washington. Both showed they have the ability and understanding of the offense to be the starter. All three quarterbacks have some similar traits: good size, accurate passers, good zip on their throws and athletic.
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But Khristian Martin stood out among the group. He took advantage of his reps from spring practice and his knowledge of the receivers, particularly White. If I’m a betting man, look for Khristian Martin to be the leader heading into fall camp.
A positive spin on the “potential” of all three quarterbacks is that the future looks very bright for Maryland. But Khristian Martin is the one who showed me he can do it better than the other two. I won’t get too excited over a spring game performance, but that is the first building block in being able to show what he can do to be named QB1.
