Ralph Friedgen said anyone would want Jordan Steffy as their kid. Alas, sounds like they just don’t want him as their quarterback.
But, in reality, the booing at Maryland is directed more at Friedgen than it is at Steffy. And the former deserves it more than a college kid.
After all, he’s the guy who put Steffy in there and oversaw a team that struggled to beat Delaware.
Delaware!
“If you want to boo, boo me. Don’t boo the kid,’’ Friedgen said Tuesday.
“Maybe I’m like a father. If you’re booing my son, I’m going to get upset. That’s how I look at this kid. If he was a kid that didn’t give effort, who didn’t prepare, then that would be a different story. But that’s not the case.”
Here’s the problem: Steffy is guiding a team that has finished with a losing record in three of the past four years. This after winning 31 games in Friedgen’s first three years. Fans have become impatient and wonder about where the program is headed. That’s on Friedgen.
Still, the focus is, and will be, on Steffy. The Examiner’s Kevin Dunleavy said that Friedgen’s voice cracked a couple times when defending Steffy. Dunleavy said you could almost see Friedgen’s blood boiling as he launched into a defense of Jordan.
It wasn’t close to Mike Gundy territory (see: Oklahoma State coaching meltdown) but it was a stirring testimony.
Will it make a difference? Sure. If the Terps are winning, that is.
