Maryland Names Its Head Coach for the 2026 Big 33 Classic

Fresh off a blowout win over Pennsylvania in 2025, Maryland looks to win two straight in the 'Super Bowl of High School Football'

Mount St. Joseph head football coach Donald Davis has been named the head coach of Team Maryland for the 2026 Big 33 Classic. / Derek Toney

Mount St. Joseph coach Donald Davis will lead Team Maryland for its 2026 meeting with Pennsylvania in the Big 33 Football Classic. The announcement was made at the Baltimore Touchdown Club (BTC) Coaches and Captains Luncheon, on Wednesday.

A New Era for Team Maryland

“It’s an honor of a lifetime,” said Davis. “Having the opportunity to be a part of the staff with Coach Abel, who led us this year, just did a tremendous job. He really reset the bar for the state of Maryland.”

Maryland’s Breakthrough Victory in 2025

Team Maryland, under Northern-Calvert coach Tom Abel, dominated Pennsylvania, 42-21, two months ago. It was the Free State’s first win since 2018 and third overall since Maryland returned to one of the nation’s longest high school football all-star games in 2013. 

Maryland previously played 1985 to 1992. The 21-point win was Maryland’s largest all-time in the series (previous three Maryland wins were by a combined 25 points). 

Maryland nearly doubled Pennsylvania in total yards (447-225) and led 35-7 early in the second half.

Turning All-Stars Into a Brotherhood

“What a special group, with all of the demands that kids have right now with NIL and all the other pressures, trying to play early, for that group of young men to come together the way they did and the staff to make that all-star group of players into a team was special,” Davis said. “It didn’t end after the game, there’s a group chat with the players and coaches and we’re talking everyday.”

A Proven Winner on the Sidelines

Davis is entering his third season at Mount St. Joseph. The Gaels reached the Maryland Interscholastic Athletic Association (MIAA) A Conference playoffs in 2024 and 2023. 

Davis had a successful 13-year run at his alma-mater Calvert Hall College. The 1996 Hall grad went 97-56, winning the MIAA A crown in 2010 and the Maryland Independent Schools tournament title in 2018. The 2010 team finished No. 1 in the Maryland state media Top 25 poll. 

To the delight of Cardinal alums, he won 10 of 13 Turkey Bowl matchups with Loyola Blakefield. Davis won 10 of the last 11 Turkey Bowls he coached including the 100th meeting in 2019.

After stepping down in the spring of 2020, Davis went to Sidwell Friends School (D.C.), going 12-10-1 over three seasons. His first coaching opportunity was at now-defunct Cardinal Gibbons in Baltimore where he went 30-14 in four seasons (2003-2006).

Davis, who played alongside Maryland Governor Wes Moore at Johns Hopkins University, understands the importance of keeping the momentum for Team Maryland.

Building the Right Roster for 2026

“It’s not finding extremely talented players but extremely talented players that fit together,” said Davis, “that’s the task for myself and the staff…finding a group of young men that can come together and become a great team who are good enough football players and got all the characteristics necessary to go back out to Pennsylvania and perform at a high level.”

Ray Rice Delivers Candid Message at BTC Coaches and Captains Luncheon

With the start of Maryland high school football preseason practice less than two weeks away, the Baltimore Touchdown Club held its Coaches and Captains Luncheon on Wednesday. 

More than 70 players representing 30 schools attended. Former NFL running back Ray Rice was the keynote speaker. 

Former Baltimore Raven great Ray Rice, who lost his career after a high profile domestic violence case, gave a candid and inspiring message at the BTC Coaches and Captains Luncheon. / Mark Vergari/The Journal News / USA TODAY NETWORK

Rice played his entire six-year professional career with the Baltimore Ravens and won Super Bowl XLVII. His career effectively ended in the 2014 offseason when a video surfaced of him hitting his then-fiancee (now wife) in an Atlantic City hotel elevator. 

Rice, who was indicted for aggravated assault (charges were later dropped after he agreed to court-supervised counseling), was released by the Ravens and suspended indefinitely by the NFL. He successfully appealed the suspension, but no team signed him in free agency. 

Rice Has Rebuilt His Reputation Through Education and Mentorship

Rice has been mentoring and coaching youth since his career came to an abrupt end a decade ago.

“Too much too fast I didn’t stay rooted…I went back to the place where every coach can make a difference,” said Rice, who will be the junior varsity coach at Milford Mill Academy this season.

The Baltimore Touchdown Club (BTC), which oversees Team Maryland for the Big 33 Classic, is the largest high school coaches association in Maryland representing 85 high schools covering Allegany County, Anne Arundel County, Baltimore City, Baltimore County, Carroll County, Cecil County, Frederick County, Harford County, Howard County,  Washington County and private schools from the Maryland Interscholastic Athletic Association (MIAA). 

Captains from 36 teams gathered for a group photo at the 2025 BTC Coaches and Captains Luncheon. / Derek Toney