How Maryland's tight end room evolved with 2021 class
Heading into the 2021 cycle, Maryland identified tight end as a position of need with just two scholarship players on the roster heading into fall. Though an initial wide net was casted, early visits from January into March helped tight end coach Mike Miller lock down the position for the future. Following the pair of commitments last weekend from Lakeland (Pa.) athlete CJ Dippre and Venice (Fl.) tight end Weston Wolff, the Terps now bring in four tight ends with a class that'll help replenish the depth for years.
A late January visit kicked off the good news as St. Frances tight end Joseph Bearns visited campus with several teammates. Bearns became the first commit just days later, opting to go public with his pledge on February 5, but it didn’t take long for the Terps to keep the good news rolling. Tight end coach Mike Miller stayed close with current Flowers tight end Leron Husbands and the athletic prospect gave his verbal in the final week of February.
Their early commitments allowed Maryland to narrow their focus on two tight ends during February as they centered on March 7-8 weekend. While Dippre made his way to campus on the 7th with his family, Wolff enjoyed the two-day visit with his brother, Old Dominion Quarterback Hayden Wolff, as they took note of the proximity between each other.
It also gave both Dippre and Wolff a chance to meet as their relationship just started.
“We got each other’s info, got each other’s Snapchat and talked a bit leading up to it. We didn’t really know until about the day before. I told him I was going there and then he told me, so it was exciting, so we’re going to be a good duo up there,” Wolff told AllTerrapins. “Both of our lists, Maryland was definitely in the top schools. Maryland was top three for me once I got the offer for them, and then obviously the same thing for Wes. We keep in contact. When we both visited, we visited on the same day so we were talking there and obviously, we’ve been talking on social media since we’ve committed, so we’re becoming close friends,” Dippre added.
As the duo acquainted themselves on a personal level during the visit, Miller’s specific role for each commit gave them a clear plan as to what the vision was.
“He kind of sees me as more of a receiving threat and CJ would be more of the blocking, flex out when he has to,” Wolff told AllTerrapins. Dippre, however, knows that his size and athleticism could give the Terps a boost as a blocking tight end. “I know I’m in a more specific spot than the other ones. Obviously, I have a big frame, I’m big, I hit the weights a lot so I’m going to put my hands in the dirt a lot more than some of the guys that are the receiver-type. So the way I’ll be blocking me, we’re just going to feed off each other.”
Wolff knew that he was coming into a crowded tight end room, but with the plan in place, he put his faith in the staff. “We’re going to have a good opportunity to all have our niche in the offense. We all get to kind of complement each other in the run and pass game and I think it’ll be good to have that group come in together, be around each other for four years, helping each other out and making each other better,” he added. “The role that coach Miller had me playing, kind of as that receiving-type tight end. and the academics, having the opportunity for business being there in the DC-Baltimore area, that was huge for me. Then also my brother plays at Old Dominion and it’s only three hours away, which is convenient for my family and obviously, for me being close.”
Sprinkle in the physicality that Bearns gives the offense in more of a H-back role and the offense has a revamped look. “I’m very versatile as an H-back type of tight end, I can really get a block in the run scheme and I’m sneaky in the passing game. I feel like it was a good fit because they really wanted me,” the St. Frances product told AllTerrapins. “I think this year, we’re going to have a very explosive and diverse tight end room. Maryland usually runs a two tight end set, so with us alternating on the field, I think it’ll be really crazy,” Husbands added.
Husbands’ last visit to campus gave him an opportunity to sit down more with the coaching staff as he talked about preparing for his specific role.
“When they brought me in before the dead period, we were looking at my film, different block techniques that we can use. Or if I split out wide and have to block a corner, or at tight end and blocking someone in their gap, there’s different tactics that I can use. He said I will put my hands in the dirt, but I’ll play receiver and split out wide if I’m needed to, kind of like a mismatch.”
The connection that the group had with Miller, though, played a prominent factor in their decisions to suit up in College Park. “They were all extremely nice to me, to my family and they all check in with me daily. They’ve always been super nice with me and talking with my parents,” Bearns told AllTerrapins.
“He’s taught me a lot already and I’m not even there at Maryland. He’s a really nice guy and my whole family likes him. We have a connection that’s not coaching related, like a friend,” Husbands added. “I chose Maryland and the biggest reason was because of coach Miller. He was down at both Alabama and Clemson so, obviously, he knows how it’s done at the top programs. I think he’s going to put me in the best position to play and do the best in college and rebuild the program and maybe after college,” Dippre recalled just days after his decision.
Wolff is fired up about the future in College Park.
“I’m really excited about where we’re going. I’m going to continue to recruit big time players and see that we can put together a good squad moving forward and eventually national champions, that’s the goal.”
