Coach Randy Edsall observes the game from the sideline during the Terps’ 49-28 loss to then-No. 1 Ohio State on Oct. 10, 2015 in Columbus, Ohio. 

Maryland threw away $500,000.

What have we found out about Terrapins football coach Randy Edsall through the first six games this season that we didn’t know over the summer, when the athletic department gave him a three-year extension?

When the extension was announced June 30, he was still winless against ranked teams in College Park. He still had a sub-.500 record with the Terps. And he was looking at a rebuilding year after losing 12 starters.

But here we are 103 days later, with the Terps owing a guy millions to not be the coach of their team anymore.

READ MORE: Offensive coordinator Mike Locksley named interim head coach

Edsall should be out of the job, but the timing of the decision makes no sense.

It’s rare for a coach at a Power Five school to be fired midseason without some sort of scandal involved. For it to come on the basis of performance months after granting him an extension is a head-scratcher.

Sure, the school protected itself with a smart $500,000 buyout clause. But why invest in a guy you intend to fire six games into a season when he’s doing exactly what everyone expected?

Yes, the Terps were supposed to beat Bowling Green, but did anyone really think they were going to beat West Virginia, Michigan or Ohio State? Entering the season, a 3-3 start seemed the most likely scenario six games into the Terps’ season. So why, at 2-4, is the athletic department waving the white flag and surrendering the buyout along with the millions it’s already guaranteed Edsall this season and next?

In the grand scheme of things, $500,000 isn’t a ridiculous chunk of money for a program to eat, but for a university that had to leave its former conference of 61 years for financial reasons, it’s a bad look.

At the time, the extension had its merits. It gave Edsall a bit of stability while recruiting, and it didn’t commit much extra money from the university.

But the school’s decision simply doesn’t make sense if it always intended to have Edsall on such a short lease.

The counterargument, of course, is that the Terps have played worse than the athletic department could’ve imagined. They were blown out by 21 points at home by a team in the Mid-American Conference and lost to West Virginia and Michigan by a combined 67 points.

This year was destined to be an uphill climb, though. While the rest of the Big Ten’s East Division got better in the offseason, the Terps lost experience and replaced it with inferior talent.

The Terps showed their coach rare fight in the early going Saturday. After allowing No. 1 Ohio State to score three straight touchdowns, they knotted the game at 21 early in the third quarter. The game eventually got out of hand late for another blowout, but the Terps didn’t fold in Edsall’s waning moments at the helm.

Before the contest, Edsall walked to every player during stretches and shook their hand. It was nothing new, but this time it seemed different, as though he were thanking them for their time.

When a local reporter asked about the pregame routine after the Terps’ 49-28 loss to Ohio State, it seemed to mark the last straw for the embattled 57-year-old coach.

“If you would notice, I do that every single game,” Edsall said. “Every single game, out of the respect that I have for these kids and what they go through. Every single game.”

There was supposed to be one more question asked, but Edsall stormed out, disappearing behind closed doors for the final time as head coach of the Terps.

He won’t be shaking their hands before a game again.