Two years ago, a three-star running back prospect from suburban Philadelphia verbally committed to play for the Terrapin football team. Later, he found out coach Ralph Friedgen rescinded the scholarship offer.
That running back, Steve Slaton, then committed to West Virginia, and proceeded to rack up 17 touchdowns and 1,128 yards as a freshman last year. Tonight, Slaton starts against the team he originally thought he’d be playing for. And he wants to make it count.
“I just want to show them what they missed out on,” Slaton told reporters Sunday. “Hopefully, every carry is a touchdown against them.”
Clearly there are hard feelings toward the Terps from Slaton’s point of view, but the feeling certainly isn’t mutual. Friedgen didn’t have a bad word to say about the budding star as he explained his reasoning behind the decision and openly expressed remorse.
“He’s a great kid. There’s nothing negative about the kid: He’s a good student, good character, good football player,” Friedgen said.
Friedgen said this week that in the recruiting process, coaches have to set quotas for how many players at each position they can sign. He simply had too many running backs on scholarship to keep Slaton after sticking with local running back prospect Morgan Green – a four-star prospect.
Slaton said he got a call from a reporter who told him the scholarship offer had been rescinded.
“I called my recruiter and asked him what was going on,” Slaton said. “[The Terps] felt they had a guy who had more stars than me and that he’d be a better fit for the program.
“It shows recruiting is nothing but a business.”
After spending a season at Hargrave Military Academy, Green is finally on the Terp roster, but nowhere near the top of the depth chart. Slaton’s resume includes Sugar Bowl MVP and Big East rookie of the year honors. Friedgen praised Green during spring practice, but admitted he made a mistake by not keeping Slaton.
“Do I wish he was here? Yes I do,” Friedgen said. “Did I screw up? Yes I did.”
Lamenting how recruiting isn’t an exact science, Friedgen recalled having to sign another lineman in place of Slaton. But straying away from an athletic prospect like Slaton is something he never likes doing – even with a full stable of running backs.
“I kick myself,” Friedgen said. “Because I have mandated myself: Anybody who has good grades and can run fast, take them regardless of what he plays. God only made so many of them.”
Freshman Da’Rel Scott, who went to high school not far from Slaton, is a perfect example of Friedgen wanting to make the most of a player’s athleticism. Scott was ranked as a top “athlete” recruit and had rushed for 2,523 yards as a high school senior. With at least four running backs in front of Scott, Friedgen has temporarily moved Scott to wide receiver, where he is gradually making progress.
Slaton is still improving too, a scary thought after developing into the Mountaineers’ leading rusher so quickly. Terp senior cornerback Josh Wilson shares Friedgen’s beliefs about what could have been.
“He’s a hell of a player. I kinda wish he was on our team,” Wilson said. “That would’ve been great to have him here.”
Junior running back Keon Lattimore said he doesn’t want to think about what the team would have been like with Slaton, adding he would have to earn his position like all the current Terp backs.
With Lattimore’s view that the Slaton saga is in the past, the Terps now have the task of stopping Slaton tonight.
“He’s there and we’re here and [tonight] he’s our opponent,” Lattimore said.
This season, Slaton has put up staggering numbers: 308 yards on only 41 carries and four touchdowns. He’s the No. 1 weapon in one of the nation’s most explosive offenses.
“If you let him get loose, he’ll kill you. He’ll end the game real quick,” Wilson said. “Don’t let him get to the corner, or you might as well strike up the band.”
Contact reporter Stephen Whyno at whynodbk@gmail.com.
