Inside Billy Edwards Jr.’s apartment, sticky notes are posted all over his walls and bathroom mirror. Reminders are scribbled onto each square manilla-colored paper.
Some are inscribed with Edwards’ short and long-term goals. Others show motivational quotes and Bible verses. One saying comes from Edwards’ sister, Bailey.
“It’s amazing what can be accomplished when no one cares who gets credit.”
For a player who was raised to embody that quote, it fits Edwards perfectly.
He grew up in a sports-centric family, alongside a sister with about 12 varsity letters and an older brother who played football at Alabama. Edwards transferred to College Park despite knowing he’d have to wait two years to become the starter.
Those sticky notes keep him grounded. He has a chance to achieve one of those long-term goals in the biggest year of his career — becoming the Terps’ starting quarterback.
Edwards has never lacked confidence. As a 100-pound, scrawny freshman at Lake Braddock Secondary School, he boldly introduced himself to football coach Mike Dougherty at an introductory meeting.
“My name is Billy Edwards, and I’m going to be a Division I quarterback,” Edwards said.
“I just kind of smiled and patted him on the head,” Dougherty said.
That promise came true. Edwards dominated at Lake Braddock, recording over 5,000 passing yards and 750 rushing yards over two seasons. His father, Billy Edwards Sr., joined the Lake Braddock coaching staff as the program’s defensive coordinator. Coaching boundaries failed to prevent father-to-son tips.
[Aazaar Abdul-Rahim, Maryland football’s ‘lion tamer,’ is back home]
“[Billy Sr.] coached our linebackers and he would be 60 yards away doing linebacker stuff and you’d just hear him say [to Billy] ‘Stick your foot in the ground’ or ‘Get your hips right,’” Dougherty said.
The Edwards family life revolved around football. Group pictures were always taken at the field, visits to the local pool were planned around practice and the game’s intricacies dominated conversations.
Kyle Edwards, Billy’s older brother who played at Alabama, was a high school football ball boy when the two were kids. He even had a six-year-old partner.
“We really cut our teeth as ball boys in high school football,” Kyle Edwards said. “He was like my little dog I was supposed to watch.”
While all the Edwards children played multiple sports growing up, football was always the focus for the Maryland quarterback. Since he was 14 years old, Billy Edwards studied film with Dougherty during lunch together at school. Pretty soon Edwards was collaborating with Dougherty on the team’s offense.
“He gave up stuff that normal teenagers [do],” Dougherty said.
Edwards went to Wake Forest after a decorated high school career. He sat behind future NFL quarterback Sam Hartman for a year before transferring to College Park. Then, he learned from Taulia Tagovailoa — the Big Ten’s all-time leading passer.
Edwards is replacing a program legend. Like with his own family, the Virginia native has needed to wait his turn.
The redshirt junior has started in two games as a Terp. He defeated Northwestern and Auburn as a starter, throwing for 292 passing yards at a 50 percent completion rate in those two games. His legs are also a threat — he rushed for seven touchdowns last season.
Edwards insists his mental training prepared him for this year.
“Every game I’ve been in at the University of Maryland, I feel like I’ve treated myself like I’m the starter,” Edwards said.
[Maryland football embraces an identity shift in the post-Taulia Tagovailoa era]
Maryland’s offense will look different without Tagovailoa. It will rely on the running game and its defense more. Edwards is one of three possible quarterback options, alongside MJ Morris and Cameron Edge, that will need to step up.
Coach Michael Locksley and Edwards are both confident in the Terps’ quarterback situation, though.
“I’d say [I’m] definitely embracing it,” Edwards said. “College football is all about opportunity. I have a really good opportunity in front of me.”
“There’s not a player on the team that I wouldn’t see Billy hanging out with,” Locksley said. “He’s kind of one of those United Nations guys, he gets along with everybody.”
As Edwards stands on the verge of that long-awaited starting job, he’s trying to hold onto a crucial perspective.
“My biggest thing is just trying not to get too ahead, too high, too low, just taking it one at a time,” Edwards said. “It’s literally probably the people in the facility that I talk to the most are probably sick of hearing it.”
Constant questions have been raised about Maryland since Tagovailoa exited in the offseason.
Who is Maryland’s starter at quarterback? What will the team’s identity be? Is there going to be a multiple-quarterback system?
Edwards, if he assumes the starting job, has his chance to respond to those questions. That starts this weekend against UConn.
