With the Olympics in full swing, Maryland football’s media day gave me a chance to speak with Maryland’s student-athletes and coaches about the action that’s been happening in Rio.
With no football in the Olympics, one thing I wanted to know was what sport people would have wanted to compete in at the Olympics.
If it were up to quarterback Perry Hills, he’d be an Olympian for shooting.
“I’d have to say, it’s something I didn’t even know was an Olympic sport,” he said. “Where they’re shooting those laser guns. I think that’d be pretty neat.”
Meanwhile, quarterback Max Bortenschlager opted for a sport his home state is known for. “I’d probably say basketball,” He said. “I grew up playing basketball, being from Indiana and everything.”
Unsurprisingly, Maryland’s running backs would all like to compete in track. Trey Edmunds, Jake Funk and Lorenzo Harrison all chose track if they were to be in the Olympics. Funk opted for volleyball as a second choice, while Harrison thought he would have success in basketball.
Offensive coordinator Walt Bell had a different answer from his players.
“Boxing or wrestling. I grew up around combat sports, I absolutely love combat sports. I think there’s really something special when there’s no one else to blame and there’s no excuses to make,” Bell said. “You add in how physically and mentally grueling that it is and that high level of competition, I think that’s the purest form of sport that there is.”
I also set out to learn which Olympian has left the football team more impressed: Usain Bolt or Michael Phelps.
A Maryland native, Jake Funk sided with Baltimore’s Phelps.
“I gotta go with Michael Phelps. Usain Bolt’s done it consistently as well, but Michael Phelps has got more gold medals than any other Olympian that’s ever been,” Funk said. “When you see him swim, it’s like he’s made with gills out there. I really do appreciate watching him and watching history be made every time he swims.”
Lorenzo Harrison chose Bolt.
“It’s crazy how fast he runs. Nobody can really compete with him,” he said.
Hills and Bortenschlager also voted for Phelps, while Edmunds sided with Bolt. The final tally came out to three votes for Phelps and two for Bolt.
Lastly, I wanted to know if Maryland’s coaches thought Bolt could work in Maryland’s offense.
Walt Bell saw the value of his speed but also noted that Bolt might have some issues getting used to football.
“He’d be the ultimate post takeoff guy. The one concern is typically with track guys, any time you get them off that linear track sometimes they get not-as-good really quickly,” Bell said. “He’d be an incredible decoy to create run game angles. At the end of the day it’d depend on his ball skills and how well he’d enjoy physical contact.”
Wide receivers coach Chris Beatty would welcome an opportunity to coach the gold medalist.
“He would be awesome. He’s a freak there’s no doubt, he’s amazing to watch,” Beatty said. “He would require coaching — everybody does. But at the same time, not many people can run as fast he can.”
