My favorite food in the world is hard shell crabs from Maryland.
– David Benioff, writer
Every year, new names emerge in the spring as players to watch headed into fall camp. This year was no exception. Those of you who were following along with the spring game recaps over at VolumePigs will recall this segment from the Terrapins spring game coverage:
If you’ve been reading along here, you know redshirt freshman running back Nolan Ray has been generating hype since last season despite having a total of three career carries.
Give credit to former offensive coordinator Dan Enos for sticking with Ray through an injury that cost him his senior year of high school in Detroit and caused Iowa, Stanford and others to back off.
Perhaps the fastest player on the roster added to that buzz with an impressive showing at the spring game. I won’t be surprised if he pushes entrenched starter Roman Hembythis fall.
“Nolan Ray is ‘him.’ He’s fast, he has that one-cut-and-go ability, he’s strong. He can make people miss,” a source said.
But it wasn’t just this game—Ray’s had himself a great spring. From the sounds of it, he was not at full go last year but is healthy now. That’s welcome news for a team replacing its QB and many of the WRs, not to mention last year’s starting TE.
While we know that this year is probably Roman Hemby’s offense, and Colbie McDonald still lurks in the shadows, Ray could get some major spin, too. At the very least, he looks like an exciting prospect for 2025 when Hemby (and possibly McDonald) moves on. But first, let us take a look at the system in place.
Coaching & System
RB1 PPG AVERAGE — HC: 13.3 — OC1: 13.6 — OC2: 14.2 (half ppr)
Maryland’s staff is unique; they have three coaches involved in play-calling duties: head coach Mike Locksley, OC1 Josh Gattis, and OC2 Kevin Sumlin. They’re also unique in that it is an all-African American staff through that trio. Of the three coaches, Sumlin is the best regarding RB1 carry volume (see Table 1. below).
Sumlin’s numbers are bolstered from his time with the Arizona Wildcats in 2018 and 2019. JJ Taylor accumulated 1,000 yards total under Sumlin in the 2019 season, which was a hefty step down from his 1,560 total yards the year prior in 2018. During that 2018 season, Taylor was given 255 carries and received 16 passes. During Sumlin’s six seasons at A&M (2012-2017), his Aggies had three 1,000-yard rushers (including QB Johny Manziel in 2012).
Gattis’s time at Miami in 2022 yielded a committee in the backfield, but he did hold the title of OC at Michigan in 2021 when Hassan Haskins ran for 1,327 yards on 270 carries. Freshman runner Zach Charbonnet briefly reached #VolumePig status during the 2019 season, but the aggregate numbers are that of a committee as well with Haskins. In Gattis’ one year as co-OC at Alabama, Damien Harris was the leading rusher with 150 carries for 876 yards.
The OC of that 2018 Alabama team—Locksley, also spent one year as the co-OC in 2017, when Harris hit 1,000 rushing yards on the dot on only 135 carries. That stat line is more of an anomaly than anything. Locksley was also the OC of Maryland between 2012 and 2015; however, none of these seasons yielded a notable runner. Looking at Locksley’s time as head coach of Maryland (2019-present), the patterns are similar. They have yet to produce a 1,000-yard rusher, but Hemby, as mentioned, had a strong year in 2022 and a solid year in 2023.
Maryland returns 21.7% of the OL snaps from a year ago. They were above average in terms of the pace of playcalling last year, checking in at 36th in the FBS with 24.8 seconds per play. The three average under Locksley is 26.4.
Nolan Ray — 6’0″, 195 lbs.
Ray is entering his second year of collegiate football in 2024. He appeared in only one game and had a fairly forgettable stat line, but he maintained his redshirt.
The former three-star from Michigan was injured in his senior year of high school. Typically, a P5 school would drop the player’s scholarship and use it elsewhere in that instance, but the Terrapins chose to stick with Ray, and it seems like that decision might pay off in the long term.
Here is head coach Mike Locksley earlier this offseason on standouts in camp:
We’ve got some guys on the offensive side of the ball. A young running back who was really bright all spring, Nolan Ray.
Asked to expand on that answer, Locksley said this:
I mean, 25 is a guy that I have just, I mean, every week I say this, and there’s always guys that pop up. And a year ago, he would have been able to, been one of those guys in the mix, but he dealt with some health issues that we got fixed. And it’s a testament to our medical staff to be able to work with his parents and figure out how to get him back on the field.
And to see him out on the field today – and you guys finally got a glimpse of what we have seen from the day he’s got here. He’s a big play threat. He’s got great vision, balance, body control, looks like a few of these Big Ten running backs that we’ve had around here that I think will be a guy that people take notice to this year.
Closing
Ray is a player who will probably be buried on the depth chart this fall. However, in 2025 and beyond, he could be a very productive CFF asset. At 6’0″ and 195 lbs., he also has the requisite frame to add on weight and become and NFL prospect.
He currently has no ADP in CFF, DEVY, or C2C formats.
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