Gary Crowton

Random thoughts on offensive coordinator Gary Crowton's departure: *The details of Crowton's departure will be determined by a negotiation between Crowton and the school, according to a knowledgable source. There may be a negotiated buyout of the contract balance (or some of the balance).  *Crowton's hurry-up, spread offense looked good only sporadically. What the offense lacked was consistency. Partly because of injuries and suspensions, it seemed as if the offense was forvever shifting personnel.

The Last Word is an occasional Baltimore Sun Q&A series that checks in with outgoing Maryland football and men's basketball players.                          Matt Furstenburg came to College Park in 2008 as a well-regarded prep school tight end . Five years later, the Flemington, N.J., native leaves Maryland as the Terps' top NFL draft prospect. Furstenburg, who finished his Maryland career with 60 catches for 769 yards and five touchdowns, is ranked the No. 11 draft-eligible tight end by CBSSports.com . The 6-foot-4, 242-pound prospect, who earned a bachelor's degree from Maryland in family science, was the fastest tight end at the NFL scouting combine with a 4.62 40. Furstenburg spoke with The Baltimore Sun this week about his Maryland career, his NFL prospects and more.

Less than a month after the disaster that was the 2011 Maryland football season ended, offensive coordinator Gary Crowton is making it no secret that he wants out of College Park. Crowton, who joined Randy Edsall's staff at Maryland after four seasons at LSU, is openly campaigning for the Colorado State head coaching job. Crowton, who had mixed success as a head coach at Louisiana Tech and BYU, told The Denver Post that he would “very much so” like to coach at Colorado State , where he played college ball for a while in the 1970s.

The buyout  that Maryland negotiated with former defensive coordinator Todd Bradford is to pay him $300,000, according to a copy of the agreement obtained under a public records request. The document, dated Jan. 12 and obtained today, says Bradford was to get $50,000 on Feb. 3 and will receive $250,000 on July 12. Bradford, hired from Southern Mississippi, was at Maryland for just one season and was replaced by the University of Houston's Brian Stewart. Bradford's contract had two seasons left and had guaranteed him $350,000 per year.

Maryland offensive coordinator Gary Crowton has the highest salary of the nine Randy Edsall assistants -- $500,000 guaranteed plus various incentives. A copy of his contract was released by the school today as part of Maryland Public Information Act requests by The Sun and other media. Crowton's three-year deal (ends Dec. 31, 2013) calls for $375,500 in base salary and four annual installments of $31,250 -- one each for radio and TV appearances, personal appearances, fund-raising and endorsements.

Terps first-year offensive coordinator Gary Crowton said today that he is interested in the Colorado State job "because I played there and at some point I want to be a head coach again" but that his focus is on turning Maryland's fortunes around. "I am very happy at Maryland. I am looking forward to having a winning season in 2012," Crowton replied to me in a text message. "I don't think there is much of a story at CSU at this point. My focus is on recruiting and finding ways to make the [Terps]

Recently hired Maryland offensive coordinator Gary Crowton said he enjoyed his four years in the same position at LSU. But he said Friday that it wouldn't be quite fair to assess his offensive philosophy based on his years under head coach Les Miles. Crowton said Miles favored "a more conservative style" than his own. Crowton doesn't question LSU's success, but he said he was ready to move on to a new approach. "My true inner nature [is] I want to be exciting and open and fast-paced," Crowton said during a session with media members, new head coach Randy Edsall and the members of his staff.

The buyout  that Maryland negotiated with former defensive coordinator Todd Bradford is to pay him $300,000, according to a copy of the agreement obtained under a public records request. The document, dated Jan. 12 and obtained today, says Bradford was to get $50,000 on Feb. 3 and will receive $250,000 on July 12. Bradford, hired from Southern Mississippi, was at Maryland for just one season and was replaced by the University of Houston's Brian Stewart. Bradford's contract had two seasons left and had guaranteed him $350,000 per year.

The Last Word is an occasional Baltimore Sun Q&A series that checks in with outgoing Maryland football and men's basketball players.                          Matt Furstenburg came to College Park in 2008 as a well-regarded prep school tight end . Five years later, the Flemington, N.J., native leaves Maryland as the Terps' top NFL draft prospect. Furstenburg, who finished his Maryland career with 60 catches for 769 yards and five touchdowns, is ranked the No. 11 draft-eligible tight end by CBSSports.com . The 6-foot-4, 242-pound prospect, who earned a bachelor's degree from Maryland in family science, was the fastest tight end at the NFL scouting combine with a 4.62 40. Furstenburg spoke with The Baltimore Sun this week about his Maryland career, his NFL prospects and more.

Fans who looked closely at Maryland's sideline during the season-opening football game may have been puzzled by what they saw on cards held up by team managers. Was that really a photo of TV talk-show host Regis Philbin, and — if so — what could Philbin, a Notre Dame graduate, possibly have to do with Maryland football? Yes, it was a color photo of the co-host of "Live! With Regis and Kelly. " But why the school chose to display Philbin's image remains as much of a local mystery as which color uniforms the Terps will wear on a given week.

Maryland announced the hiring Thursday of former New Mexico coach Mike Locksley as offensive coordinator, then switched its focus to the defense where the evaluation of coach Randy Edsall's staff may lead the team to hire a new defensive coordinator, according to multiple sources. Maryland began a review of the football program after a 2-10 season ending with eight losses in a row. Several sources said the program - after hiring Locksley to replace Gary Crowton - logically turned its attention to defense, and that coordinator Todd Bradford's job was not safe.

Random thoughts on offensive coordinator Gary Crowton's departure: *The details of Crowton's departure will be determined by a negotiation between Crowton and the school, according to a knowledgable source. There may be a negotiated buyout of the contract balance (or some of the balance).  *Crowton's hurry-up, spread offense looked good only sporadically. What the offense lacked was consistency. Partly because of injuries and suspensions, it seemed as if the offense was forvever shifting personnel.

Gary Crowton is out as Maryland's offensive coordinator, and his departure will be negotiated between him and the school, according to a source with knowledge of the situation. It could be that Crowton and Maryland will agree to a negotiated buyout under which the school will be responsible for some -- but not all -- of the balance of his three-year contract. He makes a guaranteed $500,000 per year. If Crowton were found in breach of contract, Maryland would not be responsible for the balance.

Terps first-year offensive coordinator Gary Crowton said today that he is interested in the Colorado State job "because I played there and at some point I want to be a head coach again" but that his focus is on turning Maryland's fortunes around. "I am very happy at Maryland. I am looking forward to having a winning season in 2012," Crowton replied to me in a text message. "I don't think there is much of a story at CSU at this point. My focus is on recruiting and finding ways to make the [Terps]

Less than a month after the disaster that was the 2011 Maryland football season ended, offensive coordinator Gary Crowton is making it no secret that he wants out of College Park. Crowton, who joined Randy Edsall's staff at Maryland after four seasons at LSU, is openly campaigning for the Colorado State head coaching job. Crowton, who had mixed success as a head coach at Louisiana Tech and BYU, told The Denver Post that he would “very much so” like to coach at Colorado State , where he played college ball for a while in the 1970s.

Maryland offensive coordinator Gary Crowton has the highest salary of the nine Randy Edsall assistants -- $500,000 guaranteed plus various incentives. A copy of his contract was released by the school today as part of Maryland Public Information Act requests by The Sun and other media. Crowton's three-year deal (ends Dec. 31, 2013) calls for $375,500 in base salary and four annual installments of $31,250 -- one each for radio and TV appearances, personal appearances, fund-raising and endorsements.

Gary Crowton might be fool's gold. The new Maryland offensive boss comes in with a shiny resume. The man won a national title at LSU. He directed the offense for Oregon’s 2005 squad that went 10-1 and won the Fiesta Bowl behind Kellen Clemens' savvy play. Simply put, he seems like a home run. Don’t fall for it -- yet. The man has a pattern. Sure, you might bash me when the Terps go 10-2 this year and make it to the ACC title game, led by Crowton and Danny O’Brien. But after that, brace yourselves for the possibility of mediocre football.

Maryland has reached an agreement in principle for LSU's Gary Crowton – a longtime offensive coordinator in college and the NFL – to oversee new head coach Randy Edsall 's offense, according to a source with knowledge of the process. Contract terms were being finalized Thursday afternoon. Crowton would become a key figure in the program being rebuilt by Edsall, who replaced Ralph Friedgen and was introduced Jan. 3. Edsall's first big hiring decision was to retain Don Brown as defensive coordinator.

Fans who looked closely at Maryland's sideline during the season-opening football game may have been puzzled by what they saw on cards held up by team managers. Was that really a photo of TV talk-show host Regis Philbin, and — if so — what could Philbin, a Notre Dame graduate, possibly have to do with Maryland football? Yes, it was a color photo of the co-host of "Live! With Regis and Kelly. " But why the school chose to display Philbin's image remains as much of a local mystery as which color uniforms the Terps will wear on a given week.

Gary Crowton might be fool's gold. The new Maryland offensive boss comes in with a shiny resume. The man won a national title at LSU. He directed the offense for Oregon’s 2005 squad that went 10-1 and won the Fiesta Bowl behind Kellen Clemens' savvy play. Simply put, he seems like a home run. Don’t fall for it -- yet. The man has a pattern. Sure, you might bash me when the Terps go 10-2 this year and make it to the ACC title game, led by Crowton and Danny O’Brien. But after that, brace yourselves for the possibility of mediocre football.