QB Turner Says He's 'Leaning' Toward Staying at Maryland

After a night of mulling over his options with family, Maryland backup quarterback Chris Turner said Wednesday morning he was "leaning" toward staying at Maryland, but that he would give a definitive answer about his future later in the day.

"I'm just leaning that way because my whole life is here right now and I have been here for three years," Turner said. "That's what I would like to do, but we'll talk about a few things this afternoon, between my dad, my mom and Coach [Ralph] Friedgen."

On Monday, Friedgen named fifth-year senior Jordan Steffy the team's starter and said Turner, a junior, would be No. 2. Turner started the final eight games last season and helped Maryland beat two top-10 teams, Rutgers and Boston College, in two of the Terrapins' most impressive victories in recent memory.

Turner, who practiced Wednesday morning, said he was unsure what factors could still influence his decision, adding, "I just have a lot of support from my family. I have people telling me I should stay, I should go. I want to stay. I would never want to leave. Given the circumstances, it is something I have to consider, but I am leaning toward staying right now."

When Friedgen was asked whether he could say for certain that Turner was not transferring, Friedgen responded: "I don't know that yet. I think Chris is happy here. I would hope he wouldn't. I think the world of the kid. Since the decision, he has had his best practices, which has shown me something about the kid. If he was going to go in the tank, he would have. He has not. He has turned his game up big time."

Friedgen said he has spoken with Turner a handful of times since naming the starter. Friedgen talked to reporters this morning about wanting to see Turner be successful in life and about trying to help him get a politics-related internship in Washington. Turner's interest in politics was one of the reasons the California native chose to attend Maryland.

"I don't want my teammates to think I am a quitter or that I am bailing on them or anything," Turner said. "If you talk to anyone who knows me, I love going here more than anything else. They know that. I owe it to everyone to go out and give it my best effort on the practice field."

Before this morning's meeting with reporters, Turner had not been available to comment since offensive coordinator James Franklin informed the quarterbacks of Friedgen's decision in a Monday morning meeting. When Franklin was asked yesterday if he had any sense whether Turner might transfer, he responded: "What I can tell you is that I am really excited about the University of Maryland football program, the direction we're headed, our offense, and that's what I am focusing on."

Friedgen started his daily meeting with reporters yesterday by saying he would answer no questions about the quarterback decision. When asked a general question about the decision, Friedgen said it was probably the most difficult of his coaching career at Maryland.

"Just because I don't think it was going to be good no matter how I went with it," Friedgen said. "I think a lot of those kids, they are all great kids, they work their butts off and I believe in them tremendously as people. I want to see them be successes in life. This whole thing is a preparation for that."

Friedgen said Monday that he chose Steffy because of his consistency in practice and because Steffy outshone Turner in almost every statistical measurement the coaches used in spring and summer practices and scrimmages.

Steffy, who rooms with Turner, said Turner's mind-set is the same as it has been, adding: "I know people would like for me to say he is down in the dumps. It is nothing like that. It is the same way it was through all of camp, going out and working hard."

Turner said he was "bummed" about the decision but that his spirits have been mostly upbeat.

Turner has long confronted the perception that he performs better in games than in practice. In the spring, he said that was the "old Chris, not the new Chris." But last week, Friedgen acknowledged: "When he is on, he is pretty good. Sometimes he is just not there. He is somewhere else."

When recently reminded of Turner's performance in big games, Friedgen said: "He played well in those games. We also lost some games with him. I'm a believer that good practices make good games, too. It's better to play well in games than in practice. But if we did that every game, it would not be a concern."

Turner said this morning: "As a backup, my role is to prepare as a starter. If that's my role, so be it. Like I said last year, I knew at some point I'd go in. ... the chances of a backup playing in a 13-game season are pretty high."