Tight end might no longer be a forgotten man on Terps offense

COLLEGE PARK — First-year Maryland football coach Michael Locksley got one wish fulfilled in Saturday’s Red-White spring game.

“Going into the game, we had a couple of goals we wanted to reach, and one was to stay healthy,” Locksley said. “And for the most part, as far as I know, we were able to get out of there with [only] a couple of bumps and bruises. Nothing major, knock on wood.”

As is usually the case in these annual intrasquad scrimmages, there were no major surprises in the Red team’s 28-17 victory at Maryland Stadium. Still, there were a couple of interesting revelations. Here are three takeaways.

1. Tight end might finally be used as an offensive weapon, especially with Chigoziem Okonkwo.

A year after catching just 10 passes for 82 yards in 12 games, Maryland’s tight ends accounted for 125 yards and four touchdowns on 17 receptions Saturday, including seven receptions for 63 yards and two of the touchdowns by Okonkwo, a 6-foot-2, 235pound rising sophomore.

It was one more catch than Okonkwo had last season as a freshman, when he had six receptions for 69 yards and a touchdown. Okonkwo also had a 54-yard touchdown run last season against Illinois.

When a reporter joked that his overuse of the tight ends in the spring game might be a smoke screen for using them little come fall, Locksley said, “Maybe call Irv Smith from Alabama and ask him if we threw to the tight end. I think the Minnesota Vikings drafted him in the second round.”

Some have compared Okonkwo to Smith, who in Locksley’s one season as the Crimson Tide’s offensive coordinator caught 44 passes for 710 yards and seven touchdowns.

“The tight ends and running backs in most of the offenses I’ve coordinated, they always play a role in it because they’re the