University System of Maryland regents meet about football culture

The University System of Maryland’s governing body held a closed-door, marathon meeting in Baltimore on Tuesday to discuss the findings of an independent investigation into the University of Maryland’s football culture.

An eight-person commission was tasked with probing allegations of a toxic culture within the team after the death of 19-year-old offensive lineman Jordan McNair, who died after suffering heatstroke during practice in College Park.

Members of that commission — including former Gov. Bob Ehrlich, former U.S. congressman Tom McMillen and attorney Charlie Scheeler — either sat in or phoned into Tuesday’s sevenhour meeting. While the commission members left the meeting after roughly two hours, the regents carried on their private discussions for much of the afternoon.

The report was not made public Tuesday, and a spokesman for the board said no one would be made available to comment on the regents’ deliberations. The board met in closed session, a move allowed under the Open Meetings Act because they will be discussing potential litigation and personnel matters.

A thick binder containing the draft report sat in front of each member of the Board of Regents at the start of the meeting. One of the regents estimated it was roughly 200 pages long — but beyond that tidbit, the regents remained tight-lipped about any other details included in the report. The regents had been previously briefed on the findings during a regularly scheduled meeting Friday, but delved deeper during the special session this week, which was devoted solely to discussing the report and the future of the football program.