Mark Richt to Meet with Maryland

Georgia always stumbled along the way, preventing a bigger finish to the season, never going undefeated in the SEC or winning the conference championship game when it meant playing for the national title. Richt will coach the Bulldogs in their bowl game as the search for his successor begins. Maryland has been rumored to have interest in just about every major coach available, but the man that makes the most sense for the Terps is Mark Richt, who was let go by the University of Georgia on Sunday.

It’s hard enough to just win the SEC East, much less get through the obstacle course of votes needed to be in a BCS title game. While you are serving us, we are banging away this summer trying to get about 130 guys ready to play for the Georgia Bulldogs this fall.

As for the Georgia opening, McGarity had little to say Monday, deflecting questions about the impending search by saying a few times that the focus should be on Richt.

Only Vince Dooley won more games at Georgia than Richt, who amassed a 145-51 record during his 15 seasons.

Richt, 55, led the Bulldogs to a 13-7 victory over rival Georgia Tech on Saturday. They won two conference championships and six division crowns, but they’ve been held out of the SEC Championship Game for the last three years. Landing Richt would be a huge gain for the Terps, but does he want to go from Georgia, a SEC powerhouse, to Maryland, a program trying to right the ship.

In the time since the coaching change was reported, McGarity has taken some criticism from the Georgia fan base.

One of the players Richt had been recruiting is Callaway’s Braylon Sanders, who’ll be a senior next season.

Richt, deeply religious, was respected for his integrity but criticized for failing to keep pace in the SEC’s recent string of seven consecutive national championships.

“Whether it’s in the role of head coach, coordinator, quarterbacks coach, whatever it is, if in fact I choose to do that, I’d be real excited about coaching quarterbacks again and getting in the middle of offensive strategy”.

Richt has been offered an administrative position in the athletics department, at least to some degree, by McGarity and university president Jere W. Morehead but has yet to accept it. Richt said he will contemplate whether to stay in Athens or pursue opportunities elsewhere – whether that is in the coaching profession or not.

Flood is 27-24 in four seasons at Rutgers, including bowl appearances in his first three.

While many had called for Richt’s ouster over the course of the season, there were no celebrations of Richt’s departure.

Ole Miss coach Hugh Freeze, Mississippi State coach Dan Mullen also could be candidates.

“Yeah, there’s about five today”, Richt said Monday night, via OnlineAthens.com, when asked if he was contacted by any schools. His Saban ties link up with Georgia’s current defensive coordinator Jeremy Pruitt who coached under Saban from 2007-2012.

“I expected it”, McGarity said.