Sports

Maryland Allegedly Called Cops On Student Journalists Reporting On Mike Locksley Firing

#Maryland Terrapins
by Last Updated

iStockphoto

Maryland called the cops on student journalists reporting on Mike Locksley's firing.


The Maryland football team fired head coach Mike Locksley on Wednesday to end his eight-year tenure. Student journalists posted up outside the facility in the aftermath hoping to grab comments from players. The police were called.

The journalists were asked to vacate the premise. They detailed the ordeal on social media.

The athletic department has received backlash for its handling of the situation. Maryland Police provided some context after the fact.

Maryland fired Mike Locksley.

The Terrapins will pay the former coach nearly $10 million to leave. The decision comes amid a 12-game Big Ten losing skid.

Locksley went 38-49 leading the football program. There were some positives, highlighted by a pair of eight-win campaigns in 2022 and 2023. Success of late has proven elusive.

Maryland is fresh off back-to-back 4-8 seasons. As a result, Locksley entered the year firmly on the hot seat. A 2-5 start cranked up the heat. The school opted to pull the plug after a loss to Rutgers.

Student journalists working for the Testudo Times began reporting from campus Wednesday morning. The team held a meeting at 11:30 AM ET to inform players of the change. The outlet attempted to gather insights from outside the facility. They were denied the opportunity.

Maryland called the cops.

Managing Editor Nolan Rogalski posted his interaction with police officers to social media. He says he and a co-worker were approached by authorities and asked to leave.

Maryland staff members supposedly photographed the duo before dispatch arrived.

Maryland Police appeared to support the students’ version of events in a statement later that afternoon.

UMPD was contacted today, October 21, 2026, about two individuals who were standing outside of Jones Hill House. Due to heightened concerns for staff and player safety around the football program in recent weeks, there has been increased security around athletics facilities. A UMPD officer approached the two individuals, learned they were with a campus media organization, recorded student IDs, and no report was taken.

UMPD and Maryland Athletics respect the First Amendment rights of all journalists reporting in public spaces.

Police confirmed that they were called to deal with the journalists “due to heightened concerns for staff and player safety around the football program in recent weeks.”

No report was filed. Police recorded their information and Student IDs. National media members blasted the athletic department online.

“Absurd overreaction. Let the student journalists do their work,” said Pat Forde of Sports Illustrated.

“If the people trusted with spending millions on Maryland’s next football coach are the people calling the cops on student reporters doing their jobs, might be time to find some new people,” wrote Andy Stapled of On3.

The sentiment was echoed by Stewart Mandel of The Athletic who posted, “Long list of schools that bully their student media. But calling the cops on them is next-level stuff.”

“This is chickens— behavior by Maryland. Your SIDs should be communicating directly to media, not hiding and calling the cops,” said Yahoo Sports writer Steven Godfrey.

After being denied the opportunity to approach players for comment, the outlet turned to students on campus. Most believed it was time for a change.

Assistant Aazaar Abdul-Rahim will take over for Locksley in the interim. He will likely finish the season as head coach. From there, a coaching search will be conducted. Hot boards across the internet are already speculating on the program’s next leader.