Welcome, Coach Armando Leon
Marcus Washington // Terpsville • Published: December 17th, 2027
To my loyal Terpsville readers, let me preface these next comments. I like Mike Locksley as a person, as a coach, as a leader of men. That being said, I don't think I'm in the minority when I say that when Curt Cignetti announced his retirement a few weeks ago, Mike Locksley was not on my bingo card to be his successor.
Let's be frank. Coach Locksley has a career 49-61 record as a head coach and hasn't made a bowl game since 2023, the last time the Maryland Terrapins finished above .500. For a program that is looking to replace the man that said, "Google me. I win," this seems like a very underwhelming hire.
Maybe they're banking on Locksley's veteran leadership to help broker in a new era of Hoosier football, but I for one feel this is addition by subtraction. In the DMV, we know winning when we see it. When you look at Coach Leon's record, I see a winner. Plain and simple.
Over the last four seasons, Coach Locksley won 20 games. Coach Armando Leon has a 21-6 record over the last two years alone. Add in his 29-3 record in his two years as the defensive coordinator for the Montana State Bobcats—where he reached the FCS Championship Game both seasons with a 1-1 record—and suddenly Coach Leon has more wins on his resume (50) in just four years than Locksley does in eleven seasons as a head coach.
Now I know, wins as a defensive coordinator don't always paint the whole picture.
But a top-25 defense in year one with Oregon State, after a dumpster fire 2-10 2025 season, helps sketch the details. A #1 overall defense in just his second season—leading the FBS in points and yardage allowed while tallying a nation-high 57 sacks—adds the color. If nothing else, the man knows how to coach a defense.
For a team with the 113th-ranked defense in points allowed and 103rd in yardage allowed, that alone could turn a 6-6 campaign into an 8-4 bowl-eligible season. And that's what AD Jim Smith was banking on with the hiring of Coach Leon.
"Coach Leon may not have the extensive resume as some coaches who were on our radar this year," acknowledged AD Jim Smith at Leon's introductory press conference, "and he will be the youngest head coach in the history of Terrapin football. But what he lacks in sideline experience, he more than makes up for with passion, intensity, commitment to excellence, and football knowledge."
"Armando Leon is a former player who has never lost that fire, passion, and desire to be the best," continued Smith, "He shows up to work with the consistent mantra to make the next day, game, or season the best yet. And he embodies that. We did extensive research with former employers and co-workers alike and they all said the same thing:
"Coach Leon wants to win and expects nothing less. That is the standard we want at College Park. And it starts now."
With his wife, Jessica, and two kids, Tara Lydia and AJ, on stage with him, Coach Leon took the microphone to thunderous applause.
"I don't know how I can follow up that type of introduction, so I'm going to do it the only way I know how, by being straightforward," the first-year head coach began.
"I'm not in this game to sell false hope, paint a flattering narrative, or appease the national media. I'm here to win, to set a standard, and then execute that standard. I've been quoted many a time saying, 'We're going to get ours, more than we get got,' and I coach the same way. Whatever game we find ourselves in, we're leaving with something. I'm not promising we're going to win every game, but I do promise we will try our damndest. If we lose a game, it will not be for lack of preparation, commitment, or discipline."
"That is a hill I will die on."
Listen, I know the sample size is small. But when you look at what he did with an Oregon State team that was complete garbage the year before, flipped it, and reversed it into a top-ranked defense? I don't know how you can't be excited about that.
We have more resources, a better recruiting pipeline, and an elite conference. This is a Big Ten program in a Big Ten market. Why can't he do with us what he did with Oregon State?
And before you talk about the competition, or lack thereof, look at the stats. Coach Leon is 3-2 vs. the Top-25 and undefeated in bowl games (Holiday Bowl vs 16th-ranked SMU) and conference championship games.
Is there going to be a learning curve? Most definitely. And that's part of the reason why athletic director Jim Smith said they haven't announced Coach Leon's coordinators yet; they're scouring for veteran, experienced coordinators—specifically on offense—to help flatten that curve a bit.
Give a passionate, results-driven head coach who clearly knows how to recruit—let's not forget most of the key contributors on defense were his hand-picked guys—and get his players to execute, then pair him with an experienced coordinator group to help cover the gaps in his knowledge?
That sounds like a recipe for success in my book. And at worst, it's not like Locksley set a high standard, regardless of what Indiana thought.
