Maryland Terrapins head coach Kevin Willard hasn’t exactly played nice with the media during this year’s NCAA Tournament. The third-year Terps coach has endured a media circus since the tournament began, first due to his public remarks announcing the departure of Maryland athletic director Damon Evans to SMU before it was made official, and later because of his connections to Villanova’s head coaching vacancy.
In between, Willard has made remarks about the school’s insufficient NIL commitment to its basketball program. Some view this as a leverage tactic to secure additional resources from the administration while gaining influence in the next AD hire, while others believe it’s simply sour grapes, speculating that Willard might be leaving after the Terps exit the tournament. Regardless, it appears that the coach is fed up with these inquiries.
At his press conference leading up to the Terps’ Sweet 16 matchup against the Florida Gators, Willard showcased an impressive skill in deflection.
Kevin Willard with a masterclass in deflection 🤣 pic.twitter.com/oE8vz9sOTK
— Tommy Godin (@tommygodinjr) March 26, 2025
“You’ve been very open the last week about trying to get greater NIL share, revenue share,” a reporter began. “I’m sure you saw [Maryland football coach] Mike Locksley yesterday said he would prefer to keep some of these issues in-house. Why have you felt like bringing this discussion into the open has been the best way to advocate for your program?”
“Well I mean, I’ll be honest with you,” Willard replied. “I think our biggest thing is we gotta stop [Florida guard Walter] Clayton. He’s really good. He shoots the basketball going left 48%. He shoots it right going at, like, 38%. So really, the last couple days, trying to come up with a game plan to stop Clayton because I just think he’s one of the best guards in the country that we’ve seen. And then, really, obviously, trying to fix our rebounding woes have been at the top of my mind too. So, yeah, it’s a big problem.”
With a stone-faced demeanor and no hesitation, Willard offered straight ball knowledge. You have to give him credit—he committed to the moment and never broke character, clearly frustrated by the off-court questions as he prepares for his first career Sweet 16 game. However, like many college coaches before him, when it’s evident there’s a strong likelihood you might transition to a different program after the season, reporters have to do their jobs. Given that Willard has handled the situation as publicly as he has—discussing the departure of Maryland’s AD before it happened and expressing discontent about NIL resources—it’s only fair that he faces questions pertaining to those topics.
If he doesn’t want to answer, deflecting is certainly one way to handle it.
