Terps look to Jackson, others to fill void left by Henderson

Maryland knows replacing middle linebacker E.J. Henderson won’t be easy. The Terrapins just don’t want to look lost without their departed All-American.

“I don’t know if you’ll ever have another E.J.” coach Ralph Friedgen said. “The guy made so many plays for us. We’re just looking for somebody to play the position well.”

Much of the burden will fall to D’Qwell Jackson, who will move from outside linebacker. Jackson is about 20 pounds lighter than Henderson at 225 but has the speed to blow past blockers. However, Jackson can’t let expectations of replacing Henderson alter his play.

“I just have to be me,” Jackson said. “There are a lot of experienced players around me who can play well.”

Henderson was a finalist for four national awards, including the Butkus and Bednarik trophies. He finished nine tackles (473) short of Maryland’s record. The Peach Bowl’s outstanding defensive player had 12 tackles, two sacks and a forced fumble in his final game before becoming a second-round pick in April.

Said safety Madieu Williams: “I don’t think any one guy can replace an E.J. Henderson. It will have to be leadership by committee.”

That means the responsibility won’t fall on Jackson alone. The Terps, ranked No.13 in the preseason coaches poll, return nine defensive starters from the nation’s seventh-stingiest scoring unit (16.3 points a game). Defensive tackle Randy Starks could be an Outland Trophy contender as the nation’s best lineman and the secondary has three top-rated veterans, but the Terps still will need someone to make plays across the field against Northern Illinois on Aug.28.

Like Henderson, Jackson can blitz to disrupt opponents, but he doesn’t quite have the girth to bull rush. Friedgen said he expects the sophomore to learn to play inside quickly after leading Terps freshmen last year with 51 tackles.

“He has very good instincts as a linebacker,” Friedgen said. “Quarterbacks are coached how to find receivers. There are things you can tell them to do, but a guy either has vision or he doesn’t. Same thing with a middle linebacker. If a guy can find where the football is and make a play, he has good instincts. D’Qwell has that.”

The Terps also need Starks to solidify the line to prevent opposing rushers from reaching Jackson. Starks promises to be one of the ACC’s top pass rushers after an offseason weight program. He now has a team-high 765-pound squat press.

“He has to be a dominant force,” Friedgen said. “Hopefully he can play better than last year, and he played very well last year.”

Weakside linebacker Leon Joe also may emerge as one of the playmakers. The third-year starter’s 103 tackles last season were second most among the Terps.

“What Leon does best is he can run,” Friedgen said. “At [weakside], we can protect him and let him use his feet. He ran a 4-second 40-yard dash. He’s 230 pounds and just missed benching 500 pounds. The biggest thing for Leon is consistency. If he would get the consistency to play every day like E.J. did, he would be a high draft choice just like E.J. was.”

Notes — Friedgen was upset over persistent fumbling the past two days, saying more than 30 percent of snaps were turnovers.

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