After losing five consecutive games, the Maryland athletic department announced Wednesday that it was moving on from head football coach Mike Locksley. The school described the decision as a " mutual" agreement between both parties.

When the Terrapins called a team meeting for Wednesday morning, the news had already been broken by multiple outlets that included OutKick, players were seen arriving to the football facility for an explanation from those in charge of moving the program forward.

Unfortunately, news like this rarely stays quiet until a team can gather privately. Reporters typically wait outside football facilities to speak with players and gauge their reactions after a head coach is fired.

Defensive coordinator Aazaar Abdul-Rahim will be the interim head coach for the remainder of the season.

WHICH COLLEGE FOOTBALL COACHES IMPROVED OR TANKED THEIR HOT SEAT STATUS FOUR GAMES INTO THE SEASON?

Yes, reporters will stand outside the football facility for player interaction

That was the case Wednesday, when two University of Maryland student reporters stood outside the athletic complex hoping to speak with players leaving the facility after learning about Locksley’s dismissal.

According to one of the student reporters, SB Nation’s Testudo Times journalist Nolan Rogalski, he and Jude Wilkenfeld believed they were permitted to stand outside the football complex because Maryland is a public university.

However, a Maryland staff member reportedly called police on the two student journalists for "suspicious activity." Two officers then arrived at the scene and questioned the reporters about what they were doing outside the facility.

"For @testudotimes , @JudeWilkenfeld and I were outside Jones-Hill House trying to get players to comment," Rogalski mentioned on social media. "An athletics staffer took pictures of us, and a police dispatch was called for suspicious activity; a cop and 2 cop cars pulled up, and officers ID’d us and asked us to leave."

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The students appeared to be doing nothing out of line. They were simply covering a major story unfolding on their campus and attempting to speak with players affected by the coaching change.

This time last season, there had already been seven head coaches fired in college football, and every single one of them led to reporters in some capacity trying to gather quotes from athletes who were affected by the news.

Somewhere, there was a breakdown in communication on Wednesday following the firing of Locksley.

Terrapins release statement on police questioning students

Whether the school acted out of spite or genuinely did not know what the two students were doing outside the football complex is up for debate.

The University of Maryland Police Department recorded the names of Rogalski and Wilkenfeld but said no report was filed regarding the incident. The school and UMPD released a joint statement Wednesday evening emphasizing that they respect the First Amendment rights of journalists.

TCU DOES AN ABOUT-FACE AFTER STRIPPING LOCAL NEWSPAPER'S CREDENTIALS DAYS BEFORE FOOTBALL SEASON

The statement also cited heightened security concerns surrounding the football program in recent weeks as the reason police were contacted.

"UMPD was contacted today, Oct. 21, 2026, about two individuals who were standing outside of Jones Hill House," the statement noted. "Due to heightened concerns for staff and player safety around the football program in recent weeks, there has been increased security around athletics facilities. A UMPD officer approached the two individuals, learned they were with a campus media organization, recorded student IDs, and no report was taken."

"UMPD and Maryland Athletics respect the First Amendment rights of all journalists reporting in public spaces."

COLORADO FOOTBALL OPENS PRACTICE TO FANS AND REPORTERS, BUT TREATS IT LIKE A CLASSIFIED PENTAGON BRIEFING

The Maryland athletic department has recently been criticized over decisions made regarding press conferences involving the now former head coach Mike Locksley.

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Now they are searching for a new head coach, while also still making the news for actions involving reporters.

A new survey found that close to half of undergraduate students surveyed believe physical violence can be justified to stop "hate speech," as one university president warns that higher education has "lost its way."

In the Buckley Institute's 2026 National Undergraduate Student Survey, 45% of students said violence can be justified to stop what they deem to be hate speech. This includes 54% of liberals, 36% of moderates and 30% of conservatives.

The study also found that 46% of students support shout downs and 40% believe that offensive speech should be subject to criminal prosecution. Additionally, 42% said they would rather live under a socialist system, compared with 28% who chose a capitalist system, and 22% said the U.S. deserved the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.

Cornerstone University President Dr. Gerson Moreno-Riaño characterized the findings as more of a "moral formation issue" than a matter of free speech, warning that students have developed a "violent entitlement."

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"American colleges and universities for a long time now have really ceased to form students morally and are teaching resentment, teaching grievance politics, teaching violent entitlement," he told Fox News Digital. "So, when graduates leave these universities, they leave with that. They're not leaving with a moral formation of their hearts, their minds, their lives. They're leaving with resentment."

Moreno-Riaño said that entitlement and resentment are among the reasons why many employers are concerned about the value of a degree.

"It's not just what some will say are worthless degrees. It's also what's behind the degree. Individuals who have been taught to resent, not to reason, not to deliberate, not to have deep conversations with those with whom they disagree," he said.

"Rather, it's grievance, anger, violence, entitlement, and then violent action against it. And that to me is a significant problem. Again, not a free speech issue. It's really about how moral education in higher ed has lost its way. We're training people to be grieved, angry, entitled, violent. And that does not bode well for our democracy and our republic," he continued.

Moreno-Riaño, who has led the private Christian university in Grand Rapids, Michigan, since 2021, emphasized that higher ed has "lost its way" in the U.S. for decades and has become "godless."

"When there is no moral compass in higher ed, there's a vacuum, and what fills it? Ideologies, communism, socialism, grievance, culture. That's what's happened, and it's been happening for years," he said. "Not only that, there's an anti-history bent in higher ed. When you think about today's young students not really knowing the evils of communism, the evils of socialism and believing it's inspirational, that demonstrates just the moral bankruptcy, but also the academic bankruptcy of these institutions."

Moreno-Riaño argued that some employers may increasingly question the value of hiring college graduates and instead consider training workers directly out of high school.

Moreno-Riaño argued that employers are increasingly concerned about "worthless degrees" that do not prepare the workforce to tackle complicated problems, as well as the ideological bent of many recent college graduates. He warned that many colleges and universities are preparing "socialists and Marxists" who want entitlement and to "destroy the system" rather than "build it, make it, refine it and improve it."

"I think what's happening is that employers are seeing this and many employers are saying, maybe we should train our own people, or maybe we should go into the high schools directly and educate the future at the high school level and forget colleges altogether, because colleges are morally bankrupting our future," Moreno-Riaño said.

FOX NEWS POLL: FAITH IN HIGHER EDUCATION IN THE US IS COLLAPSING

"I think that's what's happening. And if you combine that with artificial intelligence, you have sharp minds without a moral compass. That's a very dangerous thing because a sharp mind without a moral compass is a weapon looking for a target," he continued.

"For a democracy, we need individuals who can reason, who can deliberate, who can speak with those with whom they disagree and not seek violent action against them, but think deeply about what they're saying, reconsider positions, pursue what is good and with courage. If we don't do that, then we're in trouble. And I think the workplace and employers are seeing that and want to shift that in a different direction," he added.

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Moreno-Riaño stressed that American higher education "has to shift," saying it needs to "take moral formation seriously and not be grounded in entitlement and grievance culture."

The Buckley Institute survey, conducted by Inquire LLC, included 803 full-time undergraduate students under age 25 attending four-year public or private colleges and universities. Respondents completed the online survey between Sept. 5 and Sept. 14.

Four in 10 college students believe people should face criminal prosecution for expressing opinions they find offensive, according to a new poll that raises questions about the next generation's attitudes toward free speech and the First Amendment.

"Four in ten (40%) agree that offensive speech should be subject to criminal prosecution, while 52% disagree. Agreement is up seven points from last year and is the highest in the three years this question has been asked," a recent survey from the Buckley Institute found.

The survey also found that 45% of students believe violence is acceptable to stop offensive speech.

"Forty-five percent (45%) agree that physical violence can be justified to prevent a person from using hate speech or making racially charged comments, while 50% disagree," the survey states. "Agreement is up six points from last year and ties the all-time high of 45% set in 2023. In 2017, the first year this question was asked, agreement was 30%."

I’M A UNIVERSITY PRESIDENT. OUR PROFESSION SHOULD FINISH WHAT CHARLIE KIRK STARTED

The survey also found that 42% agree that political comments they disagree with can be harmful to their mental health, while 53% disagree, up four points from last year and is the highest reading in the five years this question has been asked.

The survey polled 803 undergrads at four-year colleges across the country in mid-September.

The survey included full-time undergraduate students under the age of 25 attending four-year public or private colleges and universities. It excluded part-time students, those 25 and older, and students enrolled in community colleges, technical schools or trade schools.

UNIVERSITY PAYS PROFESSOR $600K AFTER BEING PUNISHED FOR PARODYING LAND ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

Lauren Noble, the executive director of the Buckley Institute, told Fox News Digital in a statement Tuesday that the support among undergraduates for prosecuting free speech is a red flag for the country.

"The high levels of undergraduate support for censorship should serve as a warning to America," Noble said. "The 40% of undergraduates who support criminalizing offensive speech will bring that perspective into their communities and workplaces after they graduate. Two hundred fifty years after America’s founding, defenders of the First Amendment should be worried about what the future holds when these censorious students assume positions of leadership."

LIBERAL FACULTY STILL HUGELY OUTNUMBER CONSERVATIVES IN HIGHER EDUCATION: REPORT

She added that institutions of higher learning have dropped the ball when it comes to educating students on why the First Amendment is a crucial right.

"The survey data shows that America’s colleges and universities are clearly not doing enough to impress upon their students why free speech is so critical to a free society," Noble added. "When significant numbers of college students accept violence and shout downs as appropriate responses to speech they disagree with, alarm bells should be ringing for Americans across the political spectrum."

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Just over a year after the assassination of Turning Point USA (TPUSA) founder Charlie Kirk, the organization is teaming up with Students for Life of America (SFLA) to launch a tour focused on discussing feminism and abortion with college students. The tour will be the first-ever partnership between the two groups.

The tour, which is being called "Feminists Lied: Prove Me Wrong," is kicking off on Tuesday with eight events scheduled at campuses across the country, including University of North Texas, Grand Valley State University, University of Cincinnati, Boise State University, University of New Mexico, University of Arizona, Southern Oregon University and University of Washington.

The organizations say that the campus tour is aimed at challenging "the claim that feminism and 'reproductive rights' have helped women more than they’ve harmed them."

"There’s a lot of young women who have bought the lies of the second wave and third wave of feminism, and are actually walking around hurt on college campuses unaware of where the pro-life movement really stands with women, all that we do to serve women and families facing unplanned pregnancies and beyond," SFLA President Kristan Hawkins told Fox News Digital.

INSIDE CHARLIE KIRK’S EFFORT TO DEVELOP THE NEXT GENERATION OF CONSERVATIVE VOICES

Hawkins is set to speak at the events and ask the students a fundamental question at the heart of the debate topic: "Have women been told the truth about career, equality, empowerment and motherhood?"

"If men do not have to sacrifice their children in order to succeed, why should women?" Hawkins said in a statement announcing the tour. "A society that values women should treat motherhood as an essential contribution worthy of honor, not a liability. Students deserve to hear that case, and we are going to make it on their campuses."

The "Feminists Lied: Prove Me Wrong" events will mirror Kirk’s famous "Prove Me Wrong" sessions during which he would debate college students and allow them to ask questions about various controversial topics. He was in the middle of one of these events on Sept. 10, 2025, when he was shot and killed.

Since his death, TPUSA has kept Kirk's spirit alive through the Pick Up the Mic initiative, bringing debates and open conversations with a full roster of speakers, including Hawkins.

"Charlie and I were friends, and so it means a great deal to me to be on campuses with his chapters at Turning Point and to really continue doing the work that he set out to do," Hawkins told Fox News Digital.

OPINION: I’M A UNIVERSITY PRESIDENT. OUR PROFESSION SHOULD FINISH WHAT CHARLIE KIRK STARTED

Hawkins said that prior to Kirk's death, the two had been trading stories and photos of their visits to various college campuses where they would speak with students, and she believes it is "extremely important that we continue this free speech work" that Kirk started.

Hawkins rejected criticism of college visits like hers as a form of "rage bait," saying that they are not meant to merely incite division and spark anger, but rather to change minds in meaningful ways.

"These videos, these conversations that we're having, not only do they change [the] minds of the 100-plus students who are gathered who can actually hear the conversation happening in real time, they change tens of thousands of minds of young people online," Hawkins said.

Hawkins told Fox News Digital that she has seen the results of these conversations for herself in real life. She said that she has held children whose mothers were thinking about getting an abortion and changed their minds after watching videos of debates online.

"There's not a doubt in my mind that these conversations are important for saving lives and changing minds," Hawkins said.

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Hawkins is no stranger to campus debates. Over the course of 20 years, she has built a national network of Student for Life campus groups across all 50 states. This past spring, she embarked on the "Abortion is Human Sacrifice" tour, which was also aimed at discussing the issue of abortion with college students.

Hawkins told Fox News Digital that it doesn't matter whether she is at an Ivy League or a community college campus, the conversations often involve the same arguments from pro-choice advocates.

"It really doesn't matter, to be honest with you, if I'm at Harvard or if I'm in a community college or a high school, the questions about abortion are about the exact same, no matter where you go," she said. "You will always get a question about children in foster care, as if a child being in foster care somehow justifies the violence of abortion against a million children a year. You will hear horrific stories about sexual assault and rape, and sometimes these are very deeply personal stories."

Ultimately, Hawkins believes that the key to winning over the hearts and minds of those on the other side comes down to the question of "what is inside a woman?"

"If what's inside a woman is a meaningless clump of cells that is not a human person, then there is no permission needed for abortion, abortion's fine, abortion is nothing," Hawkins said. "But if what's inside of the woman is unique, all-living human being who is completely unique and unrepeatable, then we need to have a conversation about that human being because all of those things that you hear as a justification for abortion under circumstances, those stop being justifications for harming another member of our human species."

While the conversations may have stayed the same, the demographics, according to Hawkins, are changing. She noticed that Gen Z men tend to be more pro-life than millennial men. However, Gen Z women still tend to be pro-choice, according to Hawkins. The pro-life advocate wants to help these young women understand how feminism has failed them.

"When I'm on campus today, when I am on campus this semester, a lot of my conversations are going to be towards the women and really addressing the lies that the second wave, the late second-wave feminists, the third-wave feminists, told women, that they needed abortion in order to be free and equal. That that was going to make us happy and responsibility-free, and it hasn't worked and by any measure by looking anxiety rates, depression rates, SSRI use, that hasn't worked," Hawkins told Fox News Digital. 

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"Young women are increasingly unhappy," she added. "They are not doing okay and we need to back up the conversation and ask the question of ‘why?’"

Last week, Michigan Senator Elissa Slotkin came to the University of Chicago to send a message to young conservatives: stay out of government, or else.

The visit came with little attention initially. Senator Slotkin chose her words carefully. She talked about fighting for the middle class, criticized President Trump’s economic policies and kept her name in the running for president in 2028.

But, buried between her typical politician-speak, she made a clear threat towards young conservatives. Asked whether she wanted to impeach the president, she pivoted and spoke of effectiveness. She thought the 67-vote threshold for conviction in the Senate was too hard to meet, so instead the best course of action would be to go after the people around the president. That way, young people who may be interested in working in the Trump administration would say, "Lord, that might be buying myself a ton of problems that I don’t want, so let me avoid participating in that."

MIKE DAVIS: SEN SLOTKIN REVEALS HER INSIDIOUS SCHEME TO TARGET YOUNG CONSERVATIVES

That threat felt personal to me. When I was in high school, I served as a United States Senate page. For those unfamiliar with the program, it selects 30 juniors from across the country to spend a semester going to school and working in the Senate. I did my math homework on the Senate floor when Congress was out of session and ran around delivering messages and papers during session. I made many of my closest friends during that program, few of whom share my viewpoints on politics. And I gained a deep respect for the body I worked for.

When I completed the program, my friends and family asked me whether I felt more optimistic or pessimistic about our government. The news coming out of Washington was so bad, they just assumed it would be pessimistic; they were interested in stories about senators yelling at one another and fighting to the death in meaningless partisan battles.

But I came out of that program more optimistic than ever. Top of the list of reasons was that no matter their political allegiance, senators encouraged us — a group of impressionable high schoolers — to go into politics and make our voices heard. I was excited about the prospect that I could really make a difference in the future of our country.

Hearing Senator Slotkin’s comments, I am left wondering whether that impression was incorrect.

But I choose to believe that the United States Senate can still be the world’s greatest deliberative body and that young people can, in fact, have a say in our shared future. Senator Slotkin’s remarks should be an exception to how the Senate operates, not the rule.

Thankfully, her threat could not have come at a more prescient time. The midterms are only two weeks away. Senator Slotkin’s words are not empty; they are a game plan for what Democrats will do if they retake power in Congress this November. Unfortunately, running that game plan will come at the expense of young men and women interested in serving their country. More still, in that very same discussion, Senator Slotkin left the door open to running for president in 2028. It is far from inconceivable that two years from now, we’ll be welcoming President-elect Slotkin into the Oval Office.

That is why it is more important than ever that young conservatives speak out and show up. It doesn’t matter whether you have a Ph.D. from Harvard or dropped out of high school — your voice matters in this country. If you love our country and have the capacity to serve in government, I encourage you to do so.

I recognize that that is not an easy ask. If Senator Slotkin is serious — and there is little reason to think she is not — serving your country will come at a great personal cost. Some very powerful people will seek to make you a pariah, as the host remarked to Senator Slotkin during her interview. And during the Biden administration, Democrats in the White House and Congress did so to many young conservatives. And one cannot forget Charlie Kirk’s assassination last September at the hands of a radical gunman.

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But the hardest fights are also the most important ones to win. Should our government fall into the hands of those who seek power for revenge and target the weak, our fates will be at the will of tyrants.

Preventing such a future requires the involvement of young people. John Adams once remarked to a crowd of young patriots in Philadelphia, "America and the world will look to our youth as one of our firmest bulwarks." 250 years after our nation’s founding, Adams’s words ring more true than ever before.

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So, do not cower in the face of Senator Slotkin’s threats. In fact, take her threats as a reason to serve our country. I sincerely believe that the fate of our Republic depends on it.

The Trump administration reached a settlement with the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill that will close 18 active federal investigations and a separate Justice Department compliance review involving alleged antisemitism and race discrimination at the university.

The voluntary settlement agreement does not require a monetary payment, and the university does not admit to any wrongdoing or liability. The deal, which will remain effective until the end of 2028, allows UNC to maintain its eligibility for federal funding.

Under the agreement, UNC will appoint an internal "Merit & Civil Rights Administrator" and establish a "Title VI Coordinator" position in its compliance office to address complaints about antisemitism and race-based discrimination.

The university said Elizabeth Hall, associate vice chancellor for university compliance, was appointed to serve in both roles in addition to her existing duties. She will be the point of contact for the Justice Department and oversee UNC's reporting obligations.

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"This announcement reinforces our commitment to the fair and equal treatment of everyone at Carolina," UNC Chancellor Lee H. Roberts said in a statement. "For at least a decade, through different presidential administrations, U.S. universities have faced heightened public scrutiny across a range of issues. We’re proud to resolve those issues at Carolina in a way that protects our mission and affirms the civil rights of everyone in our community."

The agreement also requires UNC to provide mandatory antisemitism training to students, faculty and staff.

UNC will also prohibit face masks used to conceal an individual's identity, subject to certain exceptions, as part of the deal, which said student groups "shall be subject to discipline for antisemitic discriminatory conduct."

President Donald Trump and administration officials have accused pro-Palestinian protesters of antisemitism. But protesters, including some Jewish groups, contend that opposing Israel's military offensive in Gaza is not antisemitic and that support for Palestinian rights does not indicate support for extremism.

The settlement agreement also said UNC will adopt what the Justice Department called a "color-blind admissions system," barring the university from using race or altering its admissions process to change the racial composition of its student body. However, it does not prevent UNC from considering how applicants overcame adversity at a personal level, and the university may consider aspects of family background, such as poverty, if those considerations are applied consistently.

TRUMP ADMINISTRATION PROPOSES STRIPPING TAX-EXEMPT STATUS FROM SCHOOLS USING RACE-BASED PROGRAMS

UNC must also maintain race-blind policies governing student benefits, scholarships, financial aid and programming, according to the agreement.

The administration has argued that policies favoring certain racial groups over others violate federal anti-discrimination law.

The deal said UNC will send any antisemitism and race discrimination complaints it has received to the DOJ and the Department of Education on a quarterly basis.

As part of the agreement, the Education Department's Office for Civil Rights will close 18 active investigations into UNC, while the Justice Department's Civil Rights Division will close a separate 18-month compliance review opened in April 2025.

"Title VI requires that all students — regardless of their ancestry or race — receive equal treatment under the law at federally funded colleges and universities," Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights Harmeet Dhillon said in a statement.

"Higher ed policies and practices that tolerate antisemitism or favor certain racial groups over others frustrate our color-blind justice system. The Civil Rights Division commends UNC for its cooperation in meeting its obligations under federal law without the need for litigation; we hope other institutions will take note and do the same," she added.

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In 2023, the Supreme Court rejected affirmative action at colleges as it struck down ​race-based admissions programs at UNC and Harvard.

The administration has targeted universities across the country with probes and threats to pull federal funding in response to pro-Palestinian protests on campus, diversity initiatives and transgender policies.

The federal government has also settled with some other schools, including Columbia University, which last year agreed to pay more than $200 million to resolve federal probes, and Brown University, which agreed to provide $50 million over 10 years to Rhode Island workforce-development organizations as part of its settlement.

Harvard, which has been a primary target of the administration's threats, has not yet made a deal.

Reuters contributed to this report.