Randy II?

It’s the rumble that leads to the roar. Fourteen 50-pound plates hit the second tier of Byrd Stadium’s makeshift weight room floor like a thunderclap.

“It goes ’Boom!’” said Maryland defensive tackle Randy Starks with a slight grin. “It feels like some big block hits the ground. I like seeing the big plates. It feels like I’m doing something.”

Starks wants to win the Outland Trophy as the nation’s best lineman this season, which begins for the No.13 Terrapins on Aug.28 against Northern Illinois. He hopes Maryland fans will remember him alongside another defensive tackle named Randy White, who took the 1974 Outland and Lombardi trophies and made the college and pro football halls of fame.

“He was the best player they had here, and one day I want them to say that about me,” Starks said.

Preseason accolades for Starks include All-American honorable mention by Street and Smith magazine and a rating as the No.5 defensive lineman nationally by the Sporting News. He was second-team All-ACC last year with 93 tackles, 17 quarterback hurries and 6 sacks. Starks was named ACC Defensive Lineman of the Week with nine tackles and two pass knockdowns against N.C. State. He also tipped two passes against Wake Forest for interceptions. But he played only the first series against Tennessee in the Orange Bowl before suffering a groin injury.

“He’s going to demand at least a double team,” defensive coordinator Gary Blackney said. “I don’t know if anybody can block him one on one. He is a force. He’s really become very disruptive in terms of offensive line blocking schemes.”

Starks was a Mid-Atlantic blue-chipper from Westlake High School in Waldorf, Md., choosing Maryland over Virginia Tech and Penn State. He also was a standout basketball player on the state runners-up. But Starks concedes he needed to gain intensity both on the field and the weight room when he arrived.

“I had to turn it up a lot more,” he said. “High school wasn’t that physical, and you only had to turn it on when you wanted, but here you have to turn it on every play.”

Starks came from a solid prep weightlifting program, so it wasn’t difficult becoming one of the “Iron Terps” — an elite group that has grown from six to 40 players in recent years based on a strength per pound formula. Starks trails only linebacker Leon Joe as the Terps’ strongest player and has done a team-best 765-pound squat press.

“Randy’s a super freak,” defensive tackle Justin Duffie said. “He loves to lift.”

But the mild-mannered Starks needed longer to become a feared defender who could dominate inside this year at 6-foot-4 and 312 pounds. Offensive line coach Dave Sollazzo steadily unleashed Starks during his freshman season, when the player recorded 35 tackles and 3 sacks.

“I’m like a teddy bear off the field, but on the field I’m an animal,” Starks said. “It’s all about attitude. You’ve got to be nasty. You have to want to hit. You have to want to be physical. It’s something you have to want to do.”

Starks certainly will be marked by offensive lines as the Terps’ biggest pass rushing threat. The reputation already weighs on him.

“There’s a lot of pressure on me knowing I have to live up to expectations,” he said. “I can’t take a play off here and there. I try not to read too much, but you can’t help it. I know people will be watching me to see if I’m as good as they say I am.”

Starks won’t even turn 20 until after the regular season, but a third straight standout year could force an early exit if he is projected high in the NFL Draft. Starks doesn’t expect to depart early but leaves the subject open-ended.

“I’m thinking about staying all four years,” he said. “If it comes up after this season, I’ll think about it.”

Notes — Quarterback Orlando Evans (headaches) practiced for the first time after cleared by medical tests. However, running back Mario Merrills (hamstring), offensive tackle Matt Powell (ankle) and defensive tackle C.J. Feldheim (knee) missed the first full contact practice. Feldheim returned after undergoing knee surgery Tuesday and could practice in one week.