The University of Maine (UMaine) is a public research university located in Orono, Maine, United States. The university was established in 1865 as a land grant college and is referred to as the flagship university of the University of Maine System. Having an enrollment of approximately 12,000 students, UMaine is the largest university in the state and is the only institution in Maine classified as a research university (RU/H) by the Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education. The University of Maine's athletic teams are nicknamed the Black Bears, and sport blue and white uniforms.

UMaine was founded in 1862 as a function of the Morrill Act, signed by President Lincoln. Established in 1865 and originally named the Maine College of Agriculture and the Mechanic Arts, the Maine College opened on September 21, 1868, changing its name to the University of Maine in 1897.

By 1871, curricula had been organized in Agriculture, Civil Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, and electives. The Maine Agricultural and Forest Experiment Station was founded as a division of the university in 1887. Gradually the university developed the Colleges of Life Sciences and Agriculture (later to include the School of Forest Resources and the School of Human Development), Engineering and Science, and Arts and Sciences. In 1912 the Maine Cooperative Extension, which offers field educational programs for both adults and youths, was initiated. The School of Education was established in 1930 and received college status in 1958. The School of Business Administration was formed in 1958 and was granted college status in 1965. Women have been admitted into all curricula since 1872. The first master's degree was conferred in 1881; the first doctor's degree in 1960. Since 1923 there has been a separate graduate school.

Maine (ⁱ/ˈmeɪn/) is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States, bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the east and south, New Hampshire to the west, and the Canadian provinces of Quebec to the northwest and New Brunswick to the northeast. Maine is both the northernmost and easternmost portion of New England. It is known for its scenery—its jagged, mostly rocky coastline, its low, rolling mountains, its heavily forested interior and picturesque waterways—as well as for its seafood cuisine, especially lobsters and clams.

For thousands of years, indigenous peoples were the only inhabitants of the territory that is now Maine. At the time of European encounter, several Algonquian-speaking peoples inhabited the area. The first European settlement in Maine was by the French in 1604 on Saint Croix Island, by Pierre Dugua, Sieur de Mons. The first English settlement in Maine, the short-lived Popham Colony, was established by the Plymouth Company in 1607. A number of English settlements were established along the coast of Maine in the 1620s, although the rugged climate, deprivations, and conflict with the local peoples caused many to fail over the years. As Maine entered the 18th century, only a half dozen European settlements survived. Patriot and British forces contended for Maine's territory during the American Revolution and the War of 1812. Maine was part of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts until 1820, when it voted to secede from Massachusetts. On March 15, 1820, it was admitted to the Union as the 23rd state under the Missouri Compromise. Maine is the 39th most extensive and the 41st most populous of the 50 United States.

Derrick "DJ" O'Hara Johnson (born November 22, 1982) is an American football linebacker for the Kansas City Chiefs of the National Football League (NFL). He was drafted by the Chiefs in the first round (15th overall) of the 2005 NFL Draft. He played college football for the University of Texas and earned All-American honors twice.

Johnson was born in Waco, Texas. He attended Waco High School. He registered 170 tackles (103 solo), 21.0 stops for loss, 6.0 sacks, five forced fumbles and two INTs, including one for a TD as a senior. Once he produced a career-high 30 tackles and four forced fumbles in a single game.

Johnson earned Parade magazine high school All-America and first-team All-Texas Class 5A honors following both his junior and senior seasons.

Johnson attended the University of Texas in Austin, and played for the Texas Longhorns football team from 2001 to 2004. He played in the first-ever U.S. Army All-American Bowl on December 30, 2000, alongside Texas Longhorn teammates Cedric Griffin and Jonathan Scott. He then went on to become one of the most dominant linebackers in Longhorn history. In Johnson's senior season, the Texas Longhorns went 11-1, beating Michigan in the 2005 Rose Bowl.