COLLEGE PARK — Maryland practiced for the seventh time this spring Tuesday morning, another energetic session at the halfway mark of spring practice.

Players have had the chance to emerge in certain roles and impress the new coaching staff. After starting practice with a blank slate four weeks ago, it would be logical for Terps coach DJ Durkin to have more of an idea about how the depth chart will look after the team's April 16 spring game marks the end of the spring session.

But in his first spring practices as coach, Durkin is trying to keep Maryland on its toes.

“I'm trying to create unsettling feelings, too,” Durkin said. “When they're starting to get settled, I'm trying to throw a wrench in the works there, too. We're still moving guys around a bunch, and we got a ways to go. We're starting to figure out more of who can help us and do certain things, but we also want to find out more of what they can do in terms of positionally or what techniques we're asking them to play.”

Durkin's approach mirrors the way he has run the rest of the Maryland program since he was hired in December. He's trying to foster a competitive, energetic environment with both the coaches and the players.

The Terps' initial depth chart when they opened practice March 7 was based on how the coaches saw the players perform during winter workouts. Durkin wanted to avoid forming preconceived notions about his players, so he went by what he saw.

“Coach Durkin, the first thing he told us when he got here was there's no such thing as a previous depth chart,” said defensive back Josh Woods (McDonogh), who is competing for a spot at safety in a secondary that lost three starters from a season ago. “Everyone's starting brand new.”

After providing an initial shock to the system, Durkin has to make sure Maryland avoids satisfaction with the way things have gone through the first half of spring practice. And the easiest way to do that is to make sure nothing is settled. Durkin said he's “OK” with competitions remaining unresolved this spring and carrying over into preseason camp in August.

“That really handles and eliminates complacency when guys know, ‘I better come out and practice today or I'm going to lose my job or I may not be able to get the job I want,'?” Durkin said. “And so we're going to continue. That's something we encourage every day, every drill. It's competitiveness. It's winner-loser. We'll keep doing that.”

Durkin said from the beginning of practices that he was grading the players on effort, and the staff was watching everything they did in practice to find who was working the hardest. Those who caught the staff's eye were rewarded. Those who didn't fluctuated on the depth chart from one day to the next.

“It's honestly like how are you producing in the weight room — are you doing the things that they're asking you to do — and they'll reward you with playing time or moving up on the depth chart,” Woods said. “Plenty of guys have been moving up; they've moved down. It's pretty open.”

Durkin acknowledged that Maryland still has plenty to work on before it gets to where he wants it to be. There are still plenty of position battles that remain unsettled, and a number of incoming freshmen from the recruiting class Durkin signed in February could change things once they arrive on campus.

The Terps, though, will continue to rely on competition to mold and shape their roster. They've already seen what it's done for them in spring practice.

“When everyone's in competition, that means you're getting the ‘A' game out of everyone at every point,” said offensive lineman Brendan Moore, who is the leader to win the starting center job. “That's going to help everyone. … It's going to help every aspect of the game because everyone is trying their best on every rep because they know the guy behind them is going to take over if they don't.”