Quince Orchard Standout Looking to Enroll Early at Maryland

Elite defensive tackle Marcus Bradley talks how fall cancellation impacts his long-term goals.

Montgomery County announced the cancellation—not postponement—of fall and winter sports as they move forward with virtual-only learning for the first semester as the county. While the county will reexamine the plan for second semester in November, a large contingency of 2021 recruits have now had their senior seasons cancelled—including Maryland commit Marcus Bradley.

The 6-foot-2, 285-pound defensive tackle committed to Maryland back on May 1 to join coveted teammate Demeioun Robinson in a loaded defensive haul for the Terps this cycle, but in light of the news, Bradley may have played his last down as a Cougar.

“I’m trying to enroll early and get to Maryland as soon as possible,” Bradley told All Terrapins. “I think I can play immediately, so I just feel like my biggest thing will be lifting weights. If I’m able to get there in January, that’s six good months of lifting with the team and that’s a lot of time to make gains.” The offseason has been spent working on his technique as he works on conditioning and his pass rush moves and he joined a growing local workout on Monday.

“Trying to stay in shape as much as possible and just staying persistent is the biggest thing. One, I don’t know if we’ll have a season so if I am getting ready to go to school in January, I’ve been working on a lot of pass-rushing moves. I worked out with Cam Spence. I’m usually with my guy Tank, but I worked out with Cam and Cavon [Walker] last week too. Last week was the first time I went up there to see Cam, Zion [Shockley] was with me [on Monday].”

Bradley and Shockley become the latest of a growing list of high caliber prospects to train in College Park this offseason as Jermaine Carter, Javon Kinlaw and Yannick Ngakoue are among the long list to pair up. That experience with veteran pass-rushers rubbed off on Bradley, a byproduct of the creative workout planned by the aspiring defensive line coach. “It’s always good to workout with older people because you get to see new stuff.”

When he’s not working out, Bradley has spent ample time reconnecting with his future coaching staff as he feels rock solid about his decision. “It’s been great, really great. I talked to everybody, talked to coach Helow a lot, coach Brawley, coach [Brian] Williams, coach Brooks. I talked to coach [Jon] Hoke the other day, the defensive coordinator.” When he gets to College Park, he’ll be joined by his high school teammate Demeioun Robinson as they hope that established chemistry ensures a smooth transition at the next level. “I feel like us being on the field together, we have chemistry already so we play well together. We know what we like to do when we line up together, so I think getting to do that will help a lot.”

If Bradley’s high school career is done, one of his final accolades came when the Montgomery County standout was recognized as a Sports Illustrated All-American. While he’s grateful to be recognized at the high school level, he’s focused on applying his teachings in College Park.

“It’s always good to be recognized for your talent. I think about it all the time, my film is alright but I don’t think it shows how good I am. I don’t think coaches know how good I am, so it’s good to always be recognized for your talents, but I have great things in store for me.”