Impact Of A Scholarship: Daniel Oquendo

Danny Oquendo, or Daniel as he's known as now, a two-sport varsity student-athlete and double major, made the most of his four years at the University of Maryland. While in College Park, the football and track athlete sprinted his way to school records and athletics leadership roles, in addition to excellence off the field. All of his accomplishments at Maryland led the 2008 graduate to his current position as an executive at a leading global bank.

But, as a little kid growing up in Hackensack, New Jersey, Oquendo could have never imagined his present life trajectory.

"I come from humble beginnings. Second generation American actually from an urban, low income community in New Jersey," said Oquendo. "College was always something that was important to me, and something that [my family] always discussed."

Some of Oquendo's close relatives utilized their athletic talents to pay for their college educations, inspiring Oquendo to do the same. 

At Hackensack High School, he started at wide receiver and safety for three years. Then, as a junior, he led his team with 94 tackles and caught 27 passes for 540 yards and seven touchdowns: a genuine dual threat. Oquendo lettered all four years on the track, becoming one of New Jersey's top hurdlers. His 2005 time of 7.62 seconds in the high hurdles was the fourth-best in the nation. 

"Sports were really one of the great things that we all looked forward to during our time off. So having the opportunity to wield sports (specifically football and track), as something that could give me a boost to go to college. That background is what led me to playing football and looking to go to Maryland." 

Oquendo recalled his college recruitment as a crazy "pick me" contest. 

"First it starts with the letters from colleges, everyone trying to get you to play for them. The coaches are calling you to set up visits," said Oquendo. 

"I remember my official visit to Maryland. Even at that time, 2004-2005, it was such a magazine-looking campus," noted Oquendo. "You know, the ones you see in college movies with frat row and McKeldin Library and the student union building."

Oquendo chose Maryland over his in-state school Rutgers, a similarly sized, big state school. Even though this was before the Terps and Scarlet Knights' Big Ten rivalry, Oquendo's out-of-state allegiance marked a Maryland recruitment success.

"I was taken away by how beautiful Maryland was and I knew it was a place that I wanted to be."

The alumnus immediately made his presence known in UMD Athletics, being one of only four true freshmen to see action in every football game during the 2005 season. In addition, in his first track meet, Oquendo ran a 7.62 in the 55-meter hurdles, the fourth-best time in school history.

Oquendo eventually became the football team's top punt returner, notching 445 career return yards and 61 punt returns, a respective eighth and fifth in school history at the time. Despite a knee injury as a junior, Oquendo came back swinging during his senior season, finishing his college career with 85 receptions and even throwing for a 43-yard touchdown during a trick play against Eastern Michigan.

Described as "fast and tough, with good hands,"—qualities of a good wide receiver—Oquendo was a natural leader for future Maryland stars such as WR Torrey Smith.

"Doing multiple sports, seeing the day-to-day for two different kinds of athletes was a great experience," said Oquendo. "Maryland really puts the student-athletes in a great position to be successful for school, with all the study hall and training facilities."

Off the track and football field, Oquendo was part of UMD's Student-Athlete Academic Council, an advising group involved with improving the student side of life as a student-athlete.

"Two athletes of every sport with high academic standing would meet with the rest of the representatives for each sport. I was one of the two [student-athletes] that represented football," said Oquendo. "It was a really good experience being able to develop those kinds of interpersonal skills with other people, discussing things on high levels."

Oquendo described taking these lessons learned at Maryland with him into his professional career beyond the red Terrapin jersey.

"When you have so many responsibilities, one thing that you're taught to do as a student-athlete is to really hold yourself accountable," said Oquendo. "I think, given the foundation [of a scholarship] that I had the privilege of having at Maryland, it teaches you how to divide and conquer things and be responsible for what you need to do."

"Most of all, learning camaraderie and teamwork and collaboration with your teammates, that helps you in the professional world a ton…and I think one of my strengths…And that's all thanks largely to my experience at Maryland as a student-athlete."

Oquendo graduated from Maryland with a Bachelor of Arts in Criminology and Computer Science but later earned a law degree in 2018.

"After law school, I worked at the law firm Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton. One of our major clients was Citigroup/Citibank," said Oquendo. "The team that I work on with Citi recruited me to go work for them internally as an in-house counsel."

Oquendo's current position at Citibank is Senior Vice President and Assistant General Counsel. In his executive role, Oquendo primarily works with equity derivatives, offerings, security law analysis, and some of the bank's in-house capital markets

Looking back at his journey, Oquendo reflected on the sheer significance of his Maryland athletics scholarship: "It meant everything."

"Without having a scholarship, my path to graduating college and going to law school would have been much different," said Oquendo. "It would have started probably with Community College…I wouldn't have been able to go to a school like Maryland, and I wouldn't have had enough after Maryland to go to law school, like I eventually did…It was invaluable."

Oquendo expressed his utmost appreciation for the Terrapin Club donors, emphasizing the profound positive impact of their contributions on his life.

"Thank you for your kindness, your generosity," said Oquendo. "I hope you continue to give to the extent that you're able to, hopefully creating more future student-athlete lawyers in the world that represent Maryland."