Maryland's Edsall Reverses Course on Quarterback's Transfer When Maryland's third-year sophomore quarterback Danny O'Brien recently asked to be released from his scholarship, it was granted with restrictions. Terrapins Coach Randy Edsall said that O'Brien could not transfer to another Atlantic Coast Conference college; to a university that is scheduled to face Maryland; or to Vanderbilt, which is coached by the former Maryland offensive coordinator, James Franklin. Edsall's decision came under fire, however, and on Wednesday he reversed it and granted a full release to O'Brien, offensive lineman Max Garcia and linebacker Mario Rowson. "While at first I thought it was important to limit the institutions to which they could transfer, I have since reconsidered my decision," Edsall said in a statement. Maryland has filed a complaint against Vanderbilt alleging that improper contact was made before the players were released from their scholarships. The Vanderbilt vice chancellor, David Williams, said the university would investigate the matter. O'Brien's situation is unusual because he is scheduled to earn his undergraduate degree this spring. He has two years of eligibility remaining, and if he enters a graduate program that is not offered at Maryland, he could be eligible to play next season. The situation has raised questions about the roles a coach and a university play in determining a player's future. "I think this is one of the more alarming cases where they were actually limiting a student's academic choices," said Dr. Jason Lanter, an assistant professor of psychology at Kutztown University and president of the Drake Group, an N.C.A.A. watchdog. If we really take them by their word, and a lot of them say they're working in the best interests of the student-athletes, well, the best interest for them is to be able to continue to pursue their advanced degrees. Dr. B. David Ridpath, an assistant professor of sports administration at Ohio University, said he found O'Brien's situation so disconcerting that on Tuesday he contacted Dr. William Kirwan, chancellor of the University System of Maryland. Ridpath said that if an athlete has received his undergraduate degree, he has fulfilled his obligation to the university. He said Kirwan was receptive to his concerns. "I think it's about control, and it's about coaches trying to maintain a situation where they can win," Ridpath said. They're afraid if they lose a kid to another school, especially if it's an impact player, it will impact their ability to win and make money. That's what this is about. In 2010, quarterback Russell Wilson earned his undergraduate degree from North Carolina State while he had one year of athletic eligibility remaining. He enrolled in a postgraduate program at Wisconsin and led the Badgers to the Rose Bowl in January. Brandon Wood, a basketball player who graduated from Valparaiso after his junior season last spring, now plays for Michigan State. "All the coaches preach, "Come to our place and play, but getting your degree is the most important thing," " said Gerry DiNardo, the former football coach at Vanderbilt, Louisiana State and Indiana. If a coach says a degree is the most important thing, and the kid has already done that, he should be allowed to move on. But it is does not always go that smoothly. Todd O'Brien was a reserve center at St. Joseph's last season. He graduated last spring with one season of eligibility remaining and transferred to Alabama-Birmingham, where he planned to play basketball and pursue a postgraduate degree in public administration. But St. Joseph's did not endorse a waiver that would have allowed O'Brien to play this season, and his appeal was denied by the N.C.A.A. Kelly Brooks, the N.C.A.A."s associate director of academic and membership affairs, said numerous factors are considered during the process, including whether the athlete is transferring for academic reasons, whether their postgraduate program is offered at their previous institution, and whether the previous institution endorses the waiver. "Some institutions say if it's a future opponent, we're not going to support that, or if it's a conference member, we're not going to support that," Brooks said. St. Joseph's reasons for declining to support O'Brien's waiver are unclear. There are some concerns among coaches that athletes could try to exploit the chance to graduate early and transfer without having to sit out for a season. Chris Radford, the N.C.A.A's associate director of public and media relations, said that the rules on the graduate transfer exception could be revisited. Michael McCann, director of the Sports Law Institute at Vermont Law School, said: "These are rules that probably make sense when they're written, but there are situations like this one where the outcome doesn't seem fair. I think this is a situation where rules that are hard and fast maybe could be better defined to allow for some types of flexibility.