Maryland announces three new roster additions, including son of local D-I head coach

Terps coach Mark Turgeon has made walk-ons an important part of the program, and he could need to rely on them more than usual -- at least in practice -- next season with only 10 players currently on scholarship.

After revealing jersey numbers for its scholarship newcomers yesterday, Maryland announced the addition of three preferred walk-ons for the upcoming season on Friday.

The list of non-scholarship players is headlined by Connor Odom, the son of UMBC coach and the architect of the Retriever's historic upset over top-seeded Virginia, Ryan Odom. He’s joined by Jade Brahmbhatt, a 5-foot-11 junior guard who began his career at Pacific, and Aidan McCool, a freshman guard from Charleston, SC.

Connor Odom witnessed 16th-seeded UMBC’s upset over top-seeded Virginia first-hand and committed to the Terps in February after finishing his senior season at Archbishop Spalding (Md.). He spent a year at prep powerhouse Oak Hill Academy (Va.) as well. The Annapolis native is listed at 5-foot-11, 155 pounds and played alongside fast-rising junior wing Cam Whitmore at Archbishop Spalding, one of the Terps’ top targets in the 2022 class.

Brahmbhatt is another local player who spent two years as a walk-on at Pacific after he led Bethesda Chevy-Chase (Md.) to a 23-6 record and the top seed in the 2018 MPSAA Class 4A state championships as a high school senior. The 6-foot-0, 165 pound guard appeared in one game for the Damon Stoudamire-led Tigers, attempting a three-pointer in his college debut against Stanislaus State in November 2018.

McCool is a South Carolina native who averaged 15 points, six rebounds and two steals during his senior season at Bishop England (SC). The 6-foot-3, 155 pound sharpshooter committed to the Terps in February after he led his team to a 26-3 record and a regional championship and scored more than a 1,000 points over the course of his prep career.

Since his arrival at Maryland, Terps coach Mark Turgeon has made walk-ons an important part of the program, and he could need to rely on them more than usual -- at least in practice -- next season with only 10 players currently on scholarship. Senior guard Reese Mona is the only walk-on returning from last year following the graduation of guard Travis Valmon and forward Will Clark, and he became the latest Maryland walk-on to make noise in a game when he hit back-to-back threes against Oakland last November. Turgeon has relied on other walk-ons over the course of his 10 years at Maryland too, including former point guard Varun Ram who secured the Terps’ first NCAA Tournament win in five years with a last-second strip against Valparaiso in 2015.

Maryland is set to begin practice next Monday, the first day college coaches can begin mandatory team activities.