Before Dwayne Haskins became the face of Ohio State as a Heisman Trophy finalist and Big Ten Championship-winning quarterback, he was an aspiring recruit out of Potomac (Md.) The Bullis School.

Maryland first held Haskins’ verbal commitment out of high school while Randy Edsall was head coach and Mike Locksley excelled as a recruiter during time as the offensive coordinator. Three years later, Locksley is back at Maryland and this time it is as head football coach. Haskins could not be happier for him.

Haskins offered his honest reaction to the news Friday evening during media availability for the Heisman Trophy.

“That’s my boy,” Haskins said. “Me and Locks have known each other for a while. It’s crazy how the full turn around goes for him to be there now. I’m 90 percent sure I would be at Maryland right now if Locksley was still there from when I was in high school.”

Haskins went on to compare his own program’s coaching situation to Maryland. The Buckeyes named Ryan Day head coach for 2019 as Urban Meyer retires after the Rose Bowl.

“Similar to (Mike Locksley) at Maryland and Lincoln Riley at Oklahoma, they are really smart offensively,” Haskins said. “(Day) has a pro background. He did a great job of preparing me for the games this season with reads and coverages and protections. To have him as a head coach and to see how he did with the first three games and during camp and to see the team respond to him, I feel like he will do a great job when he gets a full go at being a head coach. He has all the tools and I think he will be a great head coach.”

Maryland named Locksley as the replacement for DJ Durkin, who was fired during a trying season for the Terps. Durkin was initially set for reinstatement after an investigation into toxic culture accusations in College Park, but he was then terminating following severe public backlash and pressure from politicians.

Maryland and athletic director Damon Evans turn to Locksley to begin the healing and rebuilding process.

“This DMV community is very prideful and we root hard for our home teams,” Locksley said. “I grew up worshipping and loving the Terps. When I got into coaching this was the one job I always coveted.”

Locksley comes to Maryland after a spectacular run with Alabama. He is the 247Sports Offensive Coordinator of the Year, and will remain with the Crimson Tide in the hunt for another national title.

“Locksley’s play-calling is more aggressive than anything we’ve seen in the Nick Saban era in Tuscaloosa,” writes Chris Hummer. “Alabama utilizes RPOs to a lethal effect, trusting Tagovailoa to make smart decisions with the ball. Just as importantly, the Tide are pushing the ball downfield at more than double the success rate of a year ago. Alabama completed 17 passes of 30-plus yards last season compared to 35 this season.”