For Danny O’Brien, the quest to be Chris Turner’s replacement began before his name ever appeared on the Terrapin football roster.
That best explains the redshirt freshman quarterback’s commitment to being around the team as much as possible during the five weeks of Terp practice last spring.
The then-high school senior made the six-hour trek from North Carolina each Friday night. O’Brien, who could only watch the workouts, would spend the night with one of his future teammates so he’d be ready for the team’s 7:30 a.m. meetings to begin his Terp football education.
Apparently, the chance to eventually succeed a three-year starting quarterback is a powerful motivator.
O’Brien’s hectic weekend schedule wasn’t that unusual. Offensive coordinator James Franklin encourages his young signal-callers to take advantage of the head start.
Last year, C.J. Brown, who had his own trek to College Park from Western Pennsylvania, joined O’Brien in the Terps’ football crash course. Incoming recruit Tyler Smith, who might be the Terps’ best quarterback prospect, was also in attendance Saturday to start getting a feel for life as a Terp.
Instead, it underscores the fact that O’Brien, who coach Ralph Friedgen already classifies as one of the hardest-working quarterbacks he’s ever coached, has done almost everything right early in his Terp career.
That approach nearly earned O’Brien game action during the disastrous close to the Terps’ season. And if the 6-foot-3 quarterback is going to see significant playing time next season, it’s going to be because of his willingness to go the extra mile, or in the case of last spring, roughly 330 miles.
“I think it was more actions than words,” O’Brien said of his efforts to earn the respect of his veteran teammates. “It’s cool to like pump your teammates up and everything, but they have to see a guy at quarterback that’s the first one there, the guy who’s always asking them to watch film, stay out after practice to work on something.”
It’s near impossible — not to mention ill-advised — to try to evaluate the quarterback race this spring, thanks to the decision to close spring practice to the media.
But it’s important to understand the Terps’ quarterback options going forward. Franklin has an incredibly athletic stable of quarterbacks at his disposal. Friedgen recently pegged O’Brien as his most immobile quarterback, “but still five times more athletic than Chris.”
The 10th-year coach has said Robinson, O’Brien and Brown have separated themselves this spring.
It’s clear Friedgen values Robinson’s ability to turn broken plays into big ones with his legs and arm strength. But his game management skills and ability to command a huddle have always been question marks.
Those are areas where O’Brien, who Friedgen called “very, very, very bright,” thrives.
At this point, it’s certainly Robinson’s job to lose thanks to his tough play down the stretch with Turner out, but expect the quarterback battle to heat up in fall camp.
Don’t consider it an endorsement, but O’Brien’s work last season did impress the guy whose former job he wants. Turner, who started 30 career games and ended up second on the career passing yards list, appreciated O’Brien’s active interest in breaking down game film and constant stream of questions. Turner said the youngster’s enthusiasm probably sparked his remarkably quick command of Franklin’s offense.
“He already has the tools that I never had,” said Turner, who sat for nearly two and a half seasons before earning his first start. “He has the quickness. The arm strength will come. Most importantly, what he has is he has the brain. He has the mind of a quarterback. … I wish I had the things that he has.”
Luckily for the Terps, O’Brien, tagged by Rivals.com as the 36th-best quarterback prospect in the country last season, has four more seasons to keep improving.
How close was O’Brien’s Terp debut? After Turner went down with a knee injury, O’Brien warmed up on the sideline just in case he was needed. He even removed his headset and put on his helmet at other times during Robinson’s stint as Terps’ starter.
Ultimately, Friedgen worried that if O’Brien struggled, it might hurt his long-term development. O’Brien said he trusted Friedgen and Franklin to make the best decision, but in a recent interview, he was clearly happy to have held onto his redshirt season.
Now, he’s embracing the quarterback competition that he says will only make the Terps better. His offseason goals include quickening his footwork and lengthening the stride on his release to gain more velocity and accuracy.
His last goal for his first spring practice this season was more general: “Establish myself as a legitimate starting competitor.”
By all accounts, check.
“I’ve come a long way since last year — mechanically, athletically, football-smarts-wise,” O’Brien said. “I wanted to compete early and I think I’m doing that right now.”
Like any good quarterback, O’Brien is saying all the right things, too.
edetweiler@umdbk.com
