Scan through the list of ESPN RecruitingNation's top 2017 classes, and you'll find the usual Big Ten suspects at the top.

There's Ohio State and Michigan in the top six, naturally. Penn State is No. 17. And then there's one more league team in the top 20: Maryland.

Wait, Maryland? Seeing the Terrapins rated that highly is almost as unusual as, say, a four-star running back committing via a weather balloon in space. Which also happened, when Cordarrian Richardson pledged to Maryland over Ole Miss, Oklahoma, Michigan State and other suitors on Wednesday.

Richardson didn't end up signing with the Terps -- space commits aren't what they used to be -- as he flipped to UCF on Thursday in a bizarre saga. Still, Maryland finished with five ESPN 300 signees, which was one fewer than it had in the previous six years combined. To further put that in perspective, Texas and Tennessee also had five ESPN 300 guys in their respective classes this year.

So, yeah, Maryland was one of the surprise teams of this recruiting cycle with one of its best classes ever (on paper, at least).

"This is the level we need to recruit at," head coach D.J. Durkin said. "It's what we need to do to go do what we want to do, which is win championships."

The Terrapins looked to put together a strong class last year as well. But after the school fired Randy Edsall in midseason and hired Durkin in December, things began to fall apart. The gut punch came when two four-star commitments, quarterback Dwayne Haskins and Keandre Jones, opted out to head to Ohio State.

But with a full year to work the trail this time around, Durkin aimed big -- literally. This class has 29 players, several of whom enrolled early and will count toward last year's numbers. He even got one back against the Buckeyes, as New Jersey athlete Markquese Bell picked the Terps over Ohio State.

The class is large on homegrown talent, as 17 signees are from the surrounding area known as "The DMV" -- Washington, D.C.; Maryland; and Virginia. That includes quarterback Kasim Hill (Washington, D.C.) and running back Anthony McFarland Jr. and offensive guard Marcus Minor from powerhouse DeMatha Catholic High School (Hyattsville, Md.).

"I can’t tell you how excited we are about that," Durkin said of all the local talent on board. "We’ve made no secret about that. Our formula is we’re going to take care of our backyard and we’re going to win here in the DMV. We’re going to build our team with that being our foundation."

The Terrapins' location, in a fertile recruiting base, has long been its chief selling point. It's a major reason why the Big Ten added Maryland, along with Rutgers, prior to the 2014 season. Since then, other league teams have very much enjoyed coming into both schools' areas and poaching top recruits.

The 39-year-old Durkin -- who was known as an ace recruiter as an assistant at Michigan, Florida and other stops -- is looking to keep more players home. He led the team to a 6-7 record and a trip to the Quick Lane Bowl in his first season in College Park, a season in which the Terps got exposed against the better Big Ten teams because of a lack of strength in the trenches. This class includes nine offensive and defensive linemen to try and address that need.

The program is just 16-22 overall and 8-17 in league play since joining the Big Ten. But Durkin can sell a new facility, as a $155 million renovation of the former Cole Field House is underway, as well as the school's close ties to Under Armour.

One top-20 recruiting class isn't going to push Maryland over the top in the brutal Big Ten East Division. But if Durkin can keep this up, the Terrapins will be an interesting team to watch in the near future.

"There's now a tremendous influx of talent coming into this program," Durkin said. "I know this: Great players want to play with other great players. When they see other guys going there, they want to go there for a reason. I think there's a great opportunity for this to continue as we keep going through this for years to come."