Maybe it would have been better if the Maryland-Georgetown game was being televised on ESPNU. (Would that be unwatchable if you were a Terp fan?)

I'm sitting here waiting for the traffic outside FedEx Field to ease up (after seeing the Redskins get blown out by the Giants) and I don't think I'm going to miss much if I don't stick around to watch the second half.

I actually thought the Terps were going to give the Hoyas a decent run. Georgetown isn't as good as Gonzaga, but Maryland is playing a lot worse. If not for Greivis Vasquez getting shut out in the first half, the Terps might have had all five scorers with two points. Talk about balanced scoring. (Sorry, couldn't resist.)

They're getting outrebounded by 10, are shooting eight of 25 from the field. Georgetown is 13 of 25 and the Hoyas look like they're running a layup drill. Or a Princeton backdoor drill. Or a tip drill. The Terps? They're just getting drilled.

Hate to be negative, but it looks as if Maryland has taken several steps back since Thursday's win over No. 5 Michigan State. That's a quality win, but if the Terps get hammered for the second straight game, whatever confidence they built with the win over the Spartans after coming back to beat Vermont in overtime will probably be shattered.

I have to get back to the game. Or maybe just to the car. The Hoyas might not be letting up, but the traffic outside FedEx Field is.

Posted by Don Markus at 6:16 PM | Permalink | Comments (3)
        

Maryland's prospects for a desirable bowl game dipped after Saturday night's loss in combination with wins by North Carolina and Clemson.

It's clear Maryland is still eyeing the Meineke Car Care Bowl on Dec. 27 in Charlotte, N.C.

In his media conference call today, coach Ralph Friedgen gave what I think is a preview of the case that Maryland will make to the Meineke bowl this week.

Remember that the Music City, Meineke and Emerald bowls have the fifth, sixth and seventh picks of ACC schools. So Maryland wants to be regarded as no worse than seventh among conference teams. It helps Maryland, of course, that the school has a large fan base.

This is what Fridge said:

“You have four teams that are 5-3 in the conference and another four or five that are 4-4,” he said. (Note that six teams actually finished 4-4).

“Of those 4-4 teams, we beat everyone but Miami and we didn’t play Miami,” the coach said. “As I look at it, we should be no worse than fifth in the conference. I would hope that would give us a leg up.”

Posted by Jeff Barker at 6:12 PM in Terps football | Permalink | Comments (12)
        

Did you notice that…

--Chris Turner continued to look for his favorite third-down receiver, Danny Oquendo. The senior caught six balls for first downs when Maryland needed plays on third or fourth down.

--The Terps continued a recent pattern of moving the ball early in games. They made 88 yards on their first two drives – all through the air.

--Torrey Smith, who holds the Maryland record for single-season kickoff yardage, continued to give the Terps good field position.

--Turner, who has been encouraged to run more, got his first career rushing touchdown in the first quarter.

--Boston College linebacker Mike McLaughlin literally jumped over Maryland running back Davin Meggett to sack Turner at the end of the first quarter.

--Boston College tried the increasingly popular direct snap to the running back a few times with modest success.

--Maryland’s Anthony Wiseman appeared to have position when called for pass interference in the second quarter, resulting in a Boston College first down at the Maryland 42.

--Jamari McCollough didn’t turn his head quickly enough on Boston College’s first touchdown pass. Adding to his embarrassment, he lost his helmet. He later missed a tackle on a 19-yard run by Montel Harris in the third quarter.

Posted by Jeff Barker at 7:00 AM in Terps football | Permalink | Comments (14)
        

Once again, the Terps are left dazed. They keep saying they’re better than their record, and sometimes it feels that way. But they’ve run out of time this season to rise above the pack.

Here’s the good, the bad and the ugly.

The good: Danny Oquendo was marvelous on third and fourth down; Chris Turner didn’t quit; and the defense was adequate.

The bad: The defense didn’t force any turnovers, which has been kind of a recurring problem. A couple players said Terrell Skinner slipped on the 45-yard Boston College touchdown reception, but I didn’t see it from the press box. Anybody catch that on TV?

The offensive line struggled against a good BC defense. The Maryland running game reminded me of how it had struggled against Virginia Tech. Fridge called the O-line play “disheartening” because it’s a veteran unit and he had expected more.

The ugly: Maryland had two 100-yard receivers (Torrey Smith and Oquendo). But the receivers sure dropped a lot of balls. Was it the chilly weather? A lack of focus? Who knows.

Posted by Jeff Barker at 9:30 PM in Terps football | Permalink | Comments (10)
        

As almost everyone predicted, the Terps can’t run against Boston College’s defense and have taken to the air.

It worked in the first quarter. Maryland made it 7-7 after quarterback Chris Turner hit Torrey Smith on a deep sideline route for 43 yards to the 1, then ran it in on the next play.

It was the first career rushing touchdown for Turner, who likes to jokingly boast that he runs a "flat 5.0" in the 40.

But Turner was intercepted by Mark Herzlich at the Maryland 45 in the second quarter -- the quarterback’s third interception in the last two games.

On the next play, Boston College's Dominique Davis hit a wide-open Rich Gunnell in the end zone for a 45-yard touchdown to make it 14-7. I’ll have to ask the coaches how the receiver got so free.

Maryland has eight rushing yards and 140 passing yards at halftime.

Posted by Jeff Barker at 5:11 PM in Terps football | Permalink | Comments (4)
        

Wide receiver Darrius Heyward-Bey (leg) is out of today's game, according to Maryland media relations.

So the Terps lose their best deep threat on a day when they're expected to pass a lot because Boston College's run defense is so stout.

The nature of the injury wasn't specified.

Posted by Jeff Barker at 3:14 PM in Terps football | Permalink | Comments (2)
        

The bowl situation is so volatile. Could Maryland, with a win, make a return trip to the Champs Sports Bowl in Orlando, where the Terps have happy memories from 2006? Not impossible, but it seems unlikely with other ACC schools doing well today on the scoreboard and likely to be invited ahead of Maryland.

The Terps could end up in Charlotte (Meineke Car Care Bowl), Boise (Humanitarian Bowl), Nashville (Music City Bowl) or elsewhere.

The Meineke folks could opt for North Carolina over the Terps. Clemson, which is beating South Carolina today, is another possible candidate for Charlotte -- although the Tigers could be picked for Orlando.

I hear Boise is not a bad destination. But it's far. It's change-planes-and-please-don't-lose-my-luggage far. Am I whining? Well, I am a sportswriter.

Posted by Jeff Barker at 2:23 PM in Terps football | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

* The Terps are warming up on the Alumni Stadium field. Quarterback Chris Turner (white football pants, black sweatshirt with the hood up) looks cold. He keeps blowing on his hands. Not chilly for Boston -- in the 40s -- but there's wind. Remember, Turner is from California.

* Redshirt freshman Dominique Davis is the most untested quarterback the Terps will face this season, and he's starting for a Boston College team that needs a win to advance to the ACC title game. But he led the game-winning drive against Wake Forest last week after Chris Crane was injured. Davis, by the way, is the brother of Chicago Bears tight end Desmond Clark.

* Watch for Mark Herzlich, Boston College's junior linebacker. He sports a mohawk and plasters excessive eye black on his face. He leads the Eagles with 92 tackles and five interceptions.

Posted by Jeff Barker at 1:47 PM in Terps football | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

I think it's great for local basketball fans that Maryland is playing Georgetown tomorrow.

I just wish the game would have been played at the Comcast Center or Verizon Center rather than some place called the Milk House. (Is that 2 percent or fat free?)

It's been nearly eight years since the two local basketball programs have met, and 15 years since they actually scheduled a game. That was the one at the old USAir Arena where Joe Smith introduced himself to the country as a freshman by dominating Othella Harrington.

Somehow, I doubt that Steve Goins will do that tomorrow in Orlando. (There's a better chance that Georgetown's Greg Monroe will have a monster game, but there's nobody wearing a Maryland uniform right now with the status that Harrington had at the time of the 1993 meeting.)

That the Terps and Hoyas don't play unless forced to goes back to an old feud between former coaches Lefty Driesell and John Thompson, and later some bad feelings between Thompson and Gary Williams when the Maryland coach was in the Big East at Boston College. It had to do with who had more to lose by playing the other, and those roles have switched a few times over the years.

Now that Thompson is a member of the media, he's had both of his former rivals on his radio show. I think it's time that the Terps and Hoyas play every year, just as Cincinnati and Xavier do, just as Louisville and Kentucky have done for awhile. Tomorrow's game would be the perfect time to start such a dialogue.

One reader suggested on my post yesterday that the game might expose Maryland's lack of recruiting success in recent years if the Hoyas win. Personally, I think this game should be a selling point in recruiting for both Williams and John Thompson III. When Steve Spurrier was at Florida, he used to recruit local kids as much with the annual game against Florida State as with the SEC.

Too bad tomorrow's game is going to be overshadowed by the Redskins-Giants at FedEx Field, not to mention the Ravens playing in Cincinnati. At least we will be able to watch it. Can you imagine if this had been one of the earlier games shown only on ESPNU? Next year, and for years to come, maybe they will play at Comcast Center and Verizon Center.

Posted by Don Markus at 1:06 PM in Terps basketball | Permalink | Comments (6)
        

After watching the first five Maryland games this season, I have come to the realization that the Terps are missing more than just a true center.

They don't have a legitimate power forward either.

Landon Milbourne is one of the team's best athletes, but he's as much out of position at power forward as both Braxton Dupree and Dave Neal are at center. Tonight's 81-59 defeat to Gonzaga was an indication of things to come for Maryland.

The 'Zags took advantage of their size, strength and length inside. Josh Heytvelt had 22 points, Austin Daye scored 17 points and each had nine rebounds. The Terps had no answers for either of them.

On how many possessions did it seem as if Gonzaga got three, four or even five shots?

The play of Milbourne this season had been overshadowed by the 4-0 start. Since scoring 16 points in the season opener against Bucknell, he fouled out against Youngstown State and Vermont. He was pretty ineffective against both Michigan State and Gonzaga.

At 6 feet 7 and 207 pounds, Milbourne is built to play against small forwards, not power forwards with any kind of athleticism. One of the reasons the Terps were able to upset the Spartans was the absence of Goran Suton and Raymar Morgan's foul trouble.

It's not going to get any easier on Sunday, when Maryland plays Georgetown in the tournament's consolation game. Milbourne will probably be matched up with 6-foot-8, 235-pound DaJuan Summers, the former McDonogh star who is now coming into his own with the Hoyas.

I'll have more tomorrow on the Maryland-Georgetown matchup, the first between the two schools since the 2001 NCAA tournament and the first regular-season matchup since Joe Smith's debut back in the 1993-94 season.

Posted by Don Markus at 7:30 PM in Terps basketball | Permalink | Comments (4)
        

It's rare that two teams that use the Flex offense as one of their staples play in the same game, let alone three in the same tournament.

But Maryland and Gonzaga, which are about to meet in the semifinals of the Old Spice Classic outside Orlando, use it, as does Tennessee, which already made the championship game after beating Georgetown.

The Terps and Volunteers are tied to the same coaching tree. Gary Williams and Bruce Pearl were both assistants under Tom Davis, who along with Williams learned the Flex from Bud Millikan at Maryland. Mark Few learned a West Coast version of the Flex offense started by Dick Davey at Santa Clara, where it was once run by Steve Nash.

It will be interesting to see how Maryland will play the No.10 Zags the night after upsetting No. 5 Michigan State. From what I saw watching Gonzaga beat Oklahoma State, Few's team has all size, strength and depth. The one advantage the Terps seem to have is in their athleticism on the wings.

Let's see if they can pull off another upset and get to the championship game. After what happened last night, I'm not making any more predictions for awhile.

Posted by Don Markus at 5:07 PM in Terps basketball | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

Sitting here at an undisclosed location in New Jersey, I didn't think I needed to leave room after sharing Thanksgiving dinner with my family.

Does white or red go better with crow?

It's been a while since I've looked this stupid -- OK, not that long -- but who outside of Gary Williams, his coaching staff, players and their family and friends thought Maryland could beat Michigan State tonight in Orlando? Even Williams couldn't have envisioned what transpired at the Milk House during a 80-62 victory.

Speaking of milk, has anybody seen Raymar Morgan?

I've seen a lot of Maryland upsets over the years -- starting with the Terps beating North Carolina at the Dean Dome back in 1986. This one has to rank up with some of Williams' top upsets in his coaching career, given Michigan State's ranking (No. 5 AP) and many, including me, thinking the Terps were going to be fodder for the field at the Old Spice Classic as well as the ACC.

I promise: no more dissing Dave Neal, who had a career-high 17 points and was ESPN's Player of the Game.

I am not jumping on the bandwagon yet, but if anybody wants to tell me how dumb I look right now, please feel free.

By the way, the crow went better with red.

Posted by Don Markus at 9:03 PM in Terps basketball | Permalink | Comments (21)
        

Happy Thanksgiving, everybody. We'll be back and blogging on game day from Boston.

Posted by Jeff Barker at 7:39 AM in Terps football | Permalink | Comments (2)
        

I love gadget plays. They're so much fun. I'm always asking offensive coordinator James Franklin about them.

You remember the play in which receiver Danny Oquendo tossed a touchdown pass against Eastern Michigan?

You'll recall the Terps tried a variation of it against Florida State, but this time Oquendo overthrew quarterback Chris Turner in the first quarter.

Franklin told me last night that the play would have worked had the throw been on target. He said Florida State's aggressive defense shifted towards Oquendo's side of the field as Maryland had hoped, leaving Turner's side pretty clear.

"There's only one guy left and he [Turner] has got two blockers," Franklin said, imagining the possibilities.

Posted by Jeff Barker at 9:30 AM in Terps football | Permalink | Comments (4)
        

Offensive coordinator James Franklin said there was a fight on the practice field yesterday. This is not uncommon.

Franklin said it it's a good sign. He said it means the players' energy and enthusiasm are up. He said the "fights" usually contain some levity.

He wouldn't identify the participants. Half-joking, he said these things often start with some trash- talking -- and he mentioned linebacker Alex Wujciak as a possible culprit.

Posted by Jeff Barker at 8:45 AM in Terps football | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

I’d say the word to describe Fridge these days is “resolute.”

He seems pretty disheartened to have been eliminated from ACC title contention, but obviously he can’t sulk. It’s his job to get the players ready for Boston College, not to fret about the Florida State game. I’ll be curious to see whether the Terps can rebound Saturday the way they have in the past.

“This is a special group of kids to me,” the coach said. “I’m very disappointed for them. I really wanted them to win this game. But, like I said, that’s not going to help us against Boston College. If we start feeling sorry for ourselves – sit around and mope – that’s not going to help us.”

Then he said: “I told them our character is being tested again and every time that’s happened this year they’ve responded.”

Posted by Jeff Barker at 7:00 AM in Terps football | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

Maryland coach Ralph Friedgen discusses the Terps' game against Boston College on Saturday during his weekly news conference.

Posted by baltimoresun.com at 7:49 PM in Terps football | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

The Terps won't play in the EagleBank Bowl at Washington's RFK Stadium. Sorry to those locals who were hoping for easy travel.

This is the new bowl game originally called the Congressional Bowl. Navy has already accepted an invitation to play in the Dec. 20 game.

But Maryland officials tell me the schedule won't work because the game would conflict with final exams.

The game gets the ninth pick of ACC schools that are bowl-eligible.

Posted by Jeff Barker at 6:36 PM in Terps football | Permalink | Comments (3)
        

Many of you have accused me of bashing Braxton Dupree, Maryland's much-maligned sophomore center.

Earlier today, I suggested that I would be shocked if he started Thursday's game against Michigan State in Orlando.

So I have to say that I am shocked that Gary Williams is sticking with Dupree after benching him twice and playing him only eight minutes against Vermont Friday night.

But listening to Williams explain why earlier today didn't come as a total surprise.

"He had six rebounds in a very short period of time in that game against Vermont," Williams told the media before practice. "The guy he was guarding was really quick in that 6-4, 6-5 size. It was not really a good matchup for Braxton. Against Michigan State, they have big people, so I think he'll be more comfortable at least in the matchups out there."

Dupree will likely guard Goran Suton, a fifth-year senior who, at 6-10, 245, is more similar in size to Dupree. Suton was among the leading rebounders in the Big Ten last season, and is particularly good on the offensive boards.

Williams had joked after Friday's game that he had found his "5," or center, in 6-2 Adrian Bowie, whose offensive rebounding in the overtime proved crucial for the Terps' win.

Asked jokingly if he planned to start Bowie at center on Thursday night, Williams cracked, "Can you imagine the look on Tom Izzo's face if Adrian came out for the opening tip?"

Posted by Don Markus at 3:01 PM in Terps basketball | Permalink | Comments (4)
        

Where do you want the Terps to go bowling? Keep in mind that your vote can reflect a number of factors in various order.

*What's best for Maryland's program?
*What's best logistically for fans in terms of dates and travel?
*What's the most gosh darn fun place to be for a bowl game?

Here, courtesy of the Asociated Press, is a list of bowl possibilities with dates and times. I didn't include bowl games such as "Orange" that the Terps won't be invited to. We'll know more about the realistic possibilities, of course, after Saturday's game against Boston College.

Saturday, Dec. 20

EagleBank Bowl at Washington, D.C. 11 a.m. (ESPN)

Saturday, Dec. 27

Meineke Bowl at Charlotte, N.C., 1 p.m. (ESPN)

Champs Sports Bowl at Orlando, Fla., 4:30 p.m. (ESPN)

Emerald Bowl at San Francisco, 8 p.m. (ESPN)

Tuesday, Dec. 30

Humanitarian Bowl at Boise, Idaho, 4:30 p.m. (ESPN)

Wednesday, Dec. 31

Music City Bowl at Nashville, Tenn., 3:30 p.m. (ESPN)

Chick-fil-A Bowl at Atlanta, 7:30 p.m. (ESPN)

Thursday, Jan. 1

Capital One Bowl at Orlando, Fla., 1 p.m. (ABC)

Gator Bowl at Jacksonville, Fla., 1 p.m. (CBS)

Posted by Jeff Barker at 11:12 AM in Terps football | Permalink | Comments (19)
        

Here, courtesy of Maryland media relations, is a look at Boston College. Remember that Dominique Davis is now the quarterback, replacing Chris Crane. Crane broke his right collarbone in the win over Wake Forest on Saturday. This will be the first start for Davis. Looks like the Terps are facing another stout defense.

Here are the notes from Maryland:

• No. 20 Boston College (8-3, 4-3 ACC) enters Saturday’s regular-season finale needing to beat Maryland to clinch a berth in the ACC championship.

• Winners of their past three games, the Eagles are tied for the FBS lead (with USC) with three shutouts this season, but two of their three losses have come in Chestnut Hill.

• BC and Florida State have each won an ACC-best three league road games, but the Eagles are just 1-2 in conference home contests.

• Boston College boasts one of the nation’s most dominant defensive units this season. The Eagles rank among the FBS leaders in interceptions (first - 23), turnovers gained (second - 31), pass efficiency defense (fourth), total defense (fifth - 269.6 ypg), rushing defense (seventh - 95.8 ypg), scoring defense (15th - 17.3 ppg), defensive red zone efficiency (ninth - 70.0 percent), pass defense (17th - 173.8 ypg) and defensive third-down efficiency (19th - 32.1 percent). Boston College leads the ACC in both rushing defense and total defense.

Posted by Jeff Barker at 9:30 AM in Terps football | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

Maryland's ACC title hopes are gone, along with its Orange Bowl dreams. Probably difficult for players, fans and coaches to get up for this Saturday's Boston College game after the Florida State disaster.

But this game is important in the broad scheme of things. For 20th-ranked Boston College, of course, it's a play-in game to the ACC championship a week later.

But for Maryland, I think it's meaningful because:

--Bowl position. Teams play all season for it, so why stop now? Maryland was in the Emerald Bowl last season. That's a bowl for teams that finish in either the fifth, sixth or seventh spot in the ACC. If the Terps are to demonstrate improvement from year to year, wouldn't they continue to aim higher than last season?

--Fridge's future. Coaches lose reputations (and sometimes jobs) not just because they lose big games like last week's. No, coaches lose jobs when the administration perceives they've lost their teams. They lose jobs when it can be demonstrated that there is a pattern -- a trend -- that seems irreversible.

Coaches want to demonstrate that their teams are moving in the right direction heading into the next season.

Consider what Notre Dame's Charlie Weis said after losing to Syracuse, a loss that doesn't help his chances of staying around. "I think that the team has a chance of being pretty darn good next year," Weis said, according to Notre Dame's athletics Web site.

Maryland, for all the disappointment, has won six straight versus ranked opponents over the past two seasons. Granted, some of those teams didn't hang around the rankings very long. But at this point, Maryland and its coaches need something to hang their hats on. A seventh straight win over a ranked team would show that the Terps haven't lost their will.

Posted by Jeff Barker at 7:00 AM in Terps football | Permalink | Comments (1)
        

Gary Williams wouldn't say after Friday night's 89-74 overtime win over Vermont whether Braxton Dupree is on his way out of the starting lineup for Thursday's game against No. 5 Michigan State at the Old Spice Classic.

Something about tipping off Tom Izzo, coach of the Spartans.

Based on Dupree's lack of production, and the way Williams benched the sophomore center in both halves (after five minutes in the first half and three minutes in the second), I'd be shocked if Dupree starts.

I'd also be surprised if Dino Gregory isn't the one to get a shot.

Williams has been talking up the 6-7 sophomore forward from Mount St. Joe's since the preseason and even started him in the team's exhibition game. Gregory took a step back that day, but has since played pretty well.

Gregory gives the Terps a lot more athleticism than Dupree and seems to have a better feel for the game than 6-10 sophomore Jerome Burney. In 42 minutes, Gregory has a team-high five blocked shots, but he also has just eight rebounds, nine fewer than Dupree.

The biggest issue with Gregory is his lack of bulk, and the fact that the Terps will have to contend with 6-8, 225-pound junior forward Raymar Morgan inside. I'm not sure any of Maryland's inside players can stop Morgan, who was second-team all-Big Ten last season.

It will be interesting to see if Williams makes any lineup announcements at today's media availability. If he does, I'll let you know.

Posted by Don Markus at 3:36 AM in Terps basketball | Permalink | Comments (5)
        

Love him or hate him, as Greivis Vasquez said leading Maryland to its overtime win Friday night against Vermont, the man knows how to find the spotlight.

The junior guard did today in a positive way, being named ACC Player of the Week.

Vasquez averaged 27 points, 8.5 rebounds, 4.5 assists and three steals in wins over Youngstown State and Vermont. Vasquez hit the three to put the Vermont game into overtime, then teamed with Adrian Bowie to help the Terps score the first 17 points in OT.

I am not quite jumping on this bandwagon.

Let's see what he and Maryland do against some better competition in Orlando later this week.

Posted by Don Markus at 3:02 PM in Terps basketball | Permalink | Comments (9)
        

One of the hardest parts of Maryland's Saturday night loss was that the blowout occurred in front of so many of the players' family members on "Senior Night."

The 30 seniors, including injured cornerback Kevin Barnes, were introduced to the crowd one by one before the game. Coach Ralph Friedgen embraced the players under the goal posts. They then trotted toward midfield and were embraced by family members.

The players and their relatives seemed so delighted to greet each other.

A half-dozen of kicker Obi Egekeze’s relatives surrounded him, each wearing black T-shirts with “OBI” emblazoned on the front.

Center Edwin Williams said that he'll have good thoughts about what transpired at Maryland in his career. But he wasn't in the mood after the game to think about those good times just yet.

Posted by Jeff Barker at 8:34 AM in Terps football | Permalink | Comments (3)
        

Florida State defensive lineman Everette Brown entered the Maryland game with nine sacks, so it's not as if the Terps didn't know all about him or prepare for him.

So how did Brown end up with 3 1/2 sacks?

Coach Ralph Friedgen said the Seminoles did something Maryland hadn't seen on video -- move Brown to the inside of the line.

Moving inside got Brown single coverage by Maryland's offensive line, the coach said.

If you can say anything positive about Maryland's effort, it's that Florida State's sack parade slowed in the second half. But that's little consolation to quarterback Chris Turner, who said he was hurting after the game -- probably physically and emotionally.

Posted by Jeff Barker at 7:30 AM in Terps football | Permalink | Comments (1)
        

Ralph Friedgen said there was plenty of blame to go around, but he was more frustrated with the offense. He said quarterback Chris Turner was not on his game, and that running back Da'Rel Scott's two fumbles obviously hurt.

"It was kind of a team effort. We didn’t play well at all. I thought the defense played a little harder than the offense," the coach said.

Friedgen was asked why Maryland seems to bog down when it approaches the red zone. The Terps moved the ball early but couldn't score.

"There's a lot of mental muistakes … really kind of unforced errors. That’s what's frustrating."

Friedgen wasn't ready to blame Scott's fumbles on the tailback's sore shoulder. As far as the coach knows, that wasn't a factor.

"He got stripped on the first one. The second one he got hit pretty good," the Friedgen said.

Posted by Jeff Barker at 6:07 AM in Terps football | Permalink | Comments (7)
        

Coach Ralph Friedgen said today there's still something to play for, even after Maryland's 37-3 loss to Florida State ended the team's chance of playing in the Atlantic Coast Conference title game.

“If we were to win Saturday we would tie for division champ [but lose the tiebreaker to Florida State]," Friedgen said. "I think that has an impact on what bowl you go to. You’d have a chance to go to a pretty good bowl.”

Getting players ready for Satuday's regular-season finale at Boston College will not be an easy task. It's true that the game could certainly have a bearing on which bowl game the Terps play in. But Maryland had been shooting all season for the Orange Bowl, and it's not easy to kiss that dream goodbye.

Posted by Jeff Barker at 5:02 PM in Terps football | Permalink | Comments (8)
        

* Quarterback Chris Turner completed his first four passes, and Maryland moved the ball well on its first two possessions. But Obi Egekeze missed a field goal, and Maryland came away with no points. I’m not saying an early score or two would have changed the result of the game, but it sure would have set a different tone.

* The Terps gave receiver Danny Oquendo another chance to throw. The lefty tossed a touchdown pass against Eastern Michigan, but this time he overthrew Turner in the first quarter.

* Florida State tried to spread out Maryland with five-receiver sets. That’s something other teams have done often against the Terps.

* Turner took a beating. He got rocked on a late hit by linebacker Dekoda Watson and commented about "cheap shots" afterward.

* Da'Rel Scott lost two more fumbles. I wonder if the injured shoulder makes it more difficult to hang on to the ball when defenders are pulling at it.

* The offensive line remains a puzzle. It struggled -- clearly -- against the Seminoles, who have an excellent defensive front.

Posted by Jeff Barker at 11:18 AM in Terps football | Permalink | Comments (3)
        

These quotes from Chris Turner came after I asked him about getting hit hard, particularly on a late hit (Florida State was penalized 15 yards) in the second quarter.

Turner said: “They played dirty, that’s for sure. That’s their M.O. What goes around comes around. I can’t do anything about that.”

Then Turner was asked about all the talking on the field and he said: "They talk and they get in your face. There’s cheap shots all game. I was getting hit on run plays all the time.”

More from Turner: "It was a good pass rush. I’m hurting a little bit; nothing I won’t be able to get over."

And: "There's still a lot to play for -- an eight-win season. We're playing for a good bowl. We want to get out of Maryland for the bowl and have a good time."

Posted by Jeff Barker at 11:13 AM in Terps football | Permalink | Comments (2)
        

Game, set, match.

Amazing how fast a season can tumble. I had thought Maryland would at least live to fight another day. Even if they lost, the Terps could have remained alive if Wake Forest had beaten Boston College. But it didn’t happen.

A really tough day for the Terps, obviously. What made it worse for the Terps was how the night began: with all the seniors introduced one-by-one and then trotting out to meet their relatives on the field. And then they lose badly.

The four turnovers obviously killed Maryland. But absent those miscues, they still didn’t seem able to win.

Florida State’s defensive pressure seemed too much for the Terps. Maryland couldn’t sustain a running game, and Turner was getting pounded. He said afterward that he was “in shock” emotionally and “hurting” physically.

It won’t be easy to pull things together to play for bowl position next week. The Terps have rebounded from losses all season, but this loss is like no other.

Posted by Jeff Barker at 12:35 AM in Terps football | Permalink | Comments (19)
        

You all know the big problems:

* Chris Turner is getting absolutely rocked. Florida State's Everette Brown has sacked him 2 1/2 times and Derek Nicholson got him once. Not to mention the late hit Turner absorbed in which Dekoda Watson put him on his back.

* Turnovers. Turner has been intercepted twice, and one led to a touchdown. And Da'Rel Scott's fumble led to a score as well.

Posted by Jeff Barker at 9:32 PM in Terps football | Permalink | Comments (10)
        

Boston College's late touchdown to beat Wake Forest means the Terps can't clinch the Atlantic Division by beating Florida State tonight.

A Maryland win means the Terps and Boston College would play for the division title next weekend.

A Maryland loss ends the Terps' title hopes.

Which all means that it's still a giant game for the Terps but that they won't be able celebrate much tonight if they win because the business of the regular season won't be concluded.

Maryland players -- wearing their black jerseys and black pants for this "blackout" game -- were warming up on this chilly night when Boston College pulled ahead. I'm sure the Boston College-Wake Forest result isn't something that Fridge wants his players thinking about as they begin their own game.

Posted by Jeff Barker at 7:07 PM in Terps football | Permalink | Comments (1)
        

Comcast SportsNet broadcast its Maryland basketball reality television show, "The Proving Ground," before Friday night's 89-74 overtime win against Vermont, chronicling the team's preparation for the 2008-2009 season.

This is what the Terps have proven so far after three ganes:

They have a lot more depth in the backcourt than they did a year ago. The improvement of sophomores Adrian Bowie and Cliff Tucker, as well as the addition of freshman Sean Mosley, gives Gary Williams some options if Greivis Vasquez and Eric Hayes are not playing well.

I think Williams needs to exercise those options even more than he has, especially giving Mosley longer stints to get into the flow of the game.

Their frontcourt situation is even worse than I imagined. Going into the season, it appeared as if sophomores Braxton Dupree and Jerome Burney were going to split time at center, and that senior Dave Neal would be used as a fill-in. As well as Neal played against Vermont, it was mainly due to the fact that Dupree and Burney were almost nonexistent. It's hard for players that size to be invisible on a basketball court, but Dupree and Burney were certainly that.

I don't think Williams is going to have the same choice against Michigan State in Thursday night's game in Orlando. If anything, I could see him replacing Dupree with Dino Gregory in the starting lineup. Gregory is by far the most athletic of that group, and one of the more athletic players on the team. Having said that, they need someone to score inside aside from Landon Milbourne.

Williams jokingly said that he found his center, referring to the way Bowie got rebounds and offensive put-backs against Vermont. But even Bowie admitted that the reason he went inside was due to the fact that he had a much smaller player guarding him.

In coming back to force overtime, then scoring the first 17 points in the extra period, the Terps also proved they might have a little more heart -- or a lot more -- than a year ago. Had Maryland lost, it would have been compared to last year's losses to American and Ohio, but Vermont was better than either of those teams.

Reality could set in Thursday when Maryland plays Michigan State, which if you hadn't noticed struggled to beat IPFW (Indiana-Purdue Fort Wayne) earlier this week.

I know that there have already been some pretty big upsets this season, and Michigan's win over No. 4 UCLA will certainly be mentioned by Williams going into the Old Spice Classic. But there is also the potential for a blowout. Should the No. 5 Spartans play up to their potential, and the Terps don't, Comcast SportsNet might want to add a segment and call it "Stomping Ground."

I hope Dupree and Burney wake up before Maryland gets to the land of the Magic Kingdom.

Posted by Don Markus at 9:53 AM in Terps basketball | Permalink | Comments (7)
        

I know that some of you might accuse me of Braxton bashing, but here's the deal:

Five minutes into the first half, Maryland center Braxton Dupree was subbed out for Dave Neal and didn't get back in until the start of the second half. Not that Dupree was totally at fault; he did have two rebounds and two blocks.

But after Neal went out, Dino Gregory came in for 10 minutes -- he didn't score either, but he had three blocks. Neal, by the way, missed two easy layups right after coming into the game. Neither Jerome Burney nor Steve Goins got out of their warmups.

It will be interesting to see how Dupree does before Williams pulls him again. He has been active, just picking up a rebound and nearly making a steal. But he seems to have forgotten how to score.

Oops, Dupree just got stripped going up for a layup and Willams signaled for Gregory, who just went in at 16:59. It was only a coincidence that Dupree picked up his third foul right before. He was coming out anyway.

And, oh yes, neither team has scored for nearly the first 3 1/2 minutes of the second half with Maryland leading by two.

Posted by Don Markus at 9:06 PM in Terps basketball | Permalink | Comments (3)
        

Those merry band of Maryland hoopsters got off to their first fast start of the season against Vermont.

Then the Catamounts -- by the way, does anybody know what a Catamount is? -- went zone.

And the Terps zoned out.

Leading 16-7 after hitting six of its first seven shots and scoring on seven of its first eight possessions, Maryland has now scored on only two of its last 10 trips and has watched Vermont take a 26-23 lead.

Greivis Vasquez, who hit his first three shots, hasn't attempted any since Vermont -- coached by former Maryland assistant Mike Lonergan -- put his team in a 2-3.

Wait, the Terps might have figured it out. Cliff Tucker scored inside and Eric Hayes just hit a long three to give Maryland the lead back and sending the Catamounts -- why can't we call them the Ben-and-Jerrys -- to a timeout.

Get back to you a little later. I'm zoning out.

Posted by Don Markus at 8:31 PM in Terps basketball | Permalink | Comments (3)
        

Maryland fans might get encouraged at how Boston College ran through the Seminoles for 176 yards last weekend.

Florida State coach Bobby Bowden has likened Maryland's offense to Boston College's. Both, he says, are big and physical up front. Boston College is fourth in the ACC in rushing offense, and Maryland is fifth.

But Florida State's defense is good. Its strength is pressure and big plays. The Seminoles rank first in the conference in sacks at 2.9 per game and first in tackles for losses at 8.5 a game. Owing largely to that pressure, the 'Noles are second in the conference in pass defense.

On offense, Florida State averages 192 yards on the ground -- second in the ACC only to run-happy Georgia Tech.

Boston College beat the 'Noles last week not only because of its running attack, but also because the Eagles intercepted Christian Ponder three times.

Posted by Jeff Barker at 10:22 AM in Terps football | Permalink | Comments (3)
        

When Maryland signed Steve Goins this summer, it barely registered in recruiting circles or even in College Park.

Most looked at the 6-foot-10, 250-pound center from Chicago as a practice body and a project with little hope of making an impact with the Terps this season, and possibly ever. Until his senior year in high school, Goins was either injured or indifferent about playing basketball

At first glance, it didn't appear that Goins would be anything more than an end-of-the-bench body who looked like one of those "All Lobby" players the late Al McGuire would talk about, someone who looked good until he stepped on the court.

But Gary Williams has seen rapid improvement from Goins since the start of preseason practice a month ago.

"I think he's getting it," Williams said this week. "That will really help us. If he can go after Braxton [Dupree] every day, if he can go after Jerome Burney every day, those three guys should be able to push each other and should be able to make each other better players. That's when you get better, that's when your team gets better."

Not that Goins is ready to be more than just a practice player who gets on the court for a couple of minutes at a time.

"He is in development, as we say," said Williams, sounding more like a Hollywood screenwriter than a high-profile coach. "He's not where you want him to be at. I just look at where he's come from since the first day of practice and I'm impressed. The stuff he's done, just in conditioning, he's never done anything like that in his life. He never lifted a weight in his life. It's all new to him."

Williams also sounded like an amateur psychologist in talking about Goins.

"There's a good study out there somewhere about big guys," Williams said. "Remember when you were in seventh grade and the biggest guy in the class how everybody made fun of? I think there's a tendency to be a bully or you try to be this nice guy. I think Steve's really a nice guy. I don't want him that nice."

We all know where nice guys finish.

Posted by Don Markus at 8:03 AM in Terps basketball | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

Florida State has designated Saturday night's Maryland game as a "sod game." That means the Seminoles -- if they win -- will bring a sample of Byrd Stadium turf back to Tallahassee.

Only certain away games get selected for this by the 'Noles.

The Florida State Web site explains:
"Sod games still represent road games won when FSU is a significant underdog. However, all bowl games are now considered sod games as well as landmark road wins no matter who was favored. Each piece of sod is buried in the cemetery next to the practice field and a tombstone is placed above it with the score and date of the game."

Maryland has a tradition of its own. The Terps have "tombstones" near the practice fields with the names of Top 10 teams they have beaten.

Posted by Jeff Barker at 8:00 AM in Terps football | Permalink | Comments (2)
        

Florida State has been thinking about the weather. It's supposed to be chilly on Saturday night --- football weather -- and the Seminoles want to be ready.

It might help Florida State that it hasn't exactly been balmy in Tallahassee.

It was "mid-40-degree weather Tuesday night" when Florida State practiced, according to the school's athletics Web site.

You might know that this is Florida State's second straight "blackout game." The Seminoles lost the first one on their own turf last weekend and now will encounter Maryland's sea of black-clad fans.

Posted by Jeff Barker at 7:00 AM in Terps football | Permalink | Comments (1)
        

Maryland’s night games this season haven’t worked out well. The Terps lost at Middle Tennessee, Virginia and Virginia Tech.

Facing another night game – this one at home – did Fridge consider practicing at night?

“Monday nights we do practice and after 4:30 [on the other days] it’s dark anyway,” the coach said.

Is there a reason for the night-game losses?

“I’d like to have a dollar for every guy who says, ‘Can you figure your team out?’ I don’t know what it is, I really don’t,” Fridge said. “They need to be ready to play this week, I don’t know why they wouldn’t be.”

I think the key to the night games is that they've been on the road -- where Maryland has rarely distinguished itself this year.

It's hard to go against recent trends -- the Terps are 6-0 at home and have beaten some good teams -- so I'll pick the Terps against Florida State on "senior night" in front of a large home crowd.

So many ACC teams are bunched together in talent this season that you look for factors to set them apart. Home field is as important a consideration as any.

Posted by Jeff Barker at 6:30 AM in Terps football | Permalink | Comments (1)
        

Back by popular demand is a list of bowl games picking ACC teams. Interesting to see where the Terps end up if they're not Miami-bound. I wonder what bowl games you Terps fans would most prefer if they're not in the Orange Bowl.

The Orange Bowl, as you probably know, gets the ACC champ.

The Chick-fil-A Bowl gets its pick of the rest. Then comes the Gator, followed by Champs Sports.

After that, the Music City, Meineke and Emerald bowls make bids for the ACC teams they want. Music City and Meineke are at the top of the pecking order.

Then comes the Humanitarian Bowl and the brand-new EagleBank Bowl in Washington D.C.

Posted by Jeff Barker at 12:47 PM in Terps football | Permalink | Comments (5)
        

I wrote a story for today's paper on coach Bobby Bowden and how many Florida State fans seem to be waiting impatiently for him to duplicate the success he had with the program in the 1990s.

It's no secret that many Seminoles fans believe Bowden's best coaching days are past -- that he's the "problem."

I think college football has changed since Bowden's Seminoles won national championships in 1993 and 1999. There are more schools trying to be big players -- consider the emergence of South Florida and Central Florida -- and more competition for recruits.

"I think there is a lot more parity than there was 10-15 years ago," said Michael Depiro, a Florida State grade from Alexandria, Va.

For the record, Depiro isn't among those calling for Bowden's retirement. "Obviously I'd like the team to do better. But at least as far as I'm concerned, he's entitled to hold on to the job."

I asked coach Friedgen about the fans who had been calling for Bowden's ouster. "People jump ship really easy," he said. "Cherish the ones who don't."

Posted by Jeff Barker at 10:25 AM in Terps football | Permalink | Comments (1)
        

When coach Friedgen arrived at Maryland, he said he was told not to expect much from Terps students in the way of support.

"I was told before I came here that that was a problem," Fridge said.

Winning early helped. But he says he's tried to take additional steps to forge bonds with students.

On Friday, he said, he'll hold another open practice in advance of the Florida State game. Only students are invited.

He has tried to bridge the generation gap with "Fridge TV" and the "Terrapins Rising" reality show and a new football Web site he hopes will appeal to students.

He said students seem to like how Terps players race toward the student section before home games begin and leap into the stands. But Fridge said that one evolved naturally and wasn't his idea.

Posted by Jeff Barker at 8:19 AM in Terps football | Permalink | Comments (20)
        

Davin Meggett didn't grow up with his father, former NFL running back David Meggett.

But the Maryland freshman said he talked to his dad -- as he sometimes does -- after the Terps' victory over North Carolina last weekend.

The elder Meggett had watched the game on television. He wanted to know about what appeared to be a planned running play to his son.

"He was asking about a play in which it looked like I ran the wrong play," the freshman said. He said it was supposed to be a pitch to one side, but quarterback Chris Turner looked to other side and then just held on to the ball.

"Chris called the wrong play," Meggett said with a smile.

Meggett, who doesn't seem fazed by anything, had 86 yards rushing in the game.

Posted by Jeff Barker at 7:00 AM in Terps football | Permalink | Comments (3)
        

Maryland is approaching a sellout for Saturday night's Florida State game, and why not?

If this game -- with a division title in play -- can't sell out, then what game can?

More complicated is what happens if the Terps advance to the ACC championship in Tampa. If Maryland wins that game, they'd move next to the Orange Bowl in Miami.

So here's the dilemma for Maryland: how do you get fans to commit to going to Florida twice in such a short period of time? I think many fans would choose one or the other, and most would prefer the bowl game.

But here's the reality check. It'd a good problem to have for Maryland, which would naturally be thrilled to get that far and to deal with whatever ticket situation arose.

Posted by Jeff Barker at 10:35 AM in Terps football | Permalink | Comments (10)
        

I've been trying to figure out why Maryland's running game, so ineffective in the Virginia Tech game, looked so much better against North Carolina.

That's when I heard about 'Wham."

Maryland used the running play six to eight times.

Offensive coordinator James Franklin described it this way: “It’s a way to trap a defensive lineman. You don’t [initially] block the nose, and he thinks he’s free. But then he’s blocked by a fullback or tight end.”

It must have worked, because North Carolina linebacker Mark Paschal said after the game: “They were trapping our defensive tackle, which is a look we haven't seen. We tried to make corrections at the half, but it was hard to figure out and all get on the same page. That was the hardest thing that they had for us. It's a good football play, and they ran it pretty well. Hopefully, we won't have to face that kind of offense again. That's the strange, tricky kind of running game they play."

It goes without saying that Maryland's offensive line also blocked better Saturday than against Virginia Tech.

Posted by Jeff Barker at 9:10 AM in Terps football | Permalink | Comments (1)
        

Maryland is designating Saturday night's game a "blackout."

I think college and professional teams used to get excited about "whiteouts" or "blackouts" or other such games in which fans are encouraged to wear the same colors en masse.

These events have become pretty commonplace. In the pros, they're sometimes little more than excuses for a sponsor to market itself by distributing same-colored garb to fans.

Maybe I'm just jaded. Do you think.these events inspire passion or unity?

I asked offensive coordinator James Franklin about it, and he said: "It's positive energy. It's not the same, old thing. It's something different."

As you all know, Maryland wore black earlier this season and shut out Wake Forest, 26-0. But that was just the team, not the fans.

Posted by Jeff Barker at 8:15 AM in Terps football | Permalink | Comments (20)
        

Fridge sometimes seems to choke up when talking about this team. He got emotional again yesterday talking about some of the seniors who will play their final home games on Saturday.

On center Edwin Willliams: "I'm going to miss when we break our huddle after practice every day and No. 60 sprints down to the other side of the field all enthusiastic and ready to go."

On defensive lineman Jeremy Navarre: "He competes every play. He's started in every game he's played at Maryland. That’s pretty good. I'm hoping he'll have a further career in the NFL."

I also liked what linebacker Moise Fokou said about Williams: "The guy's a monster. He has energy like a little kid. He wears me out."

Posted by Jeff Barker at 7:00 AM in Terps football | Permalink | Comments (2)
        

The scoreboard is not the only thing not working tonight at Comcast Center.

The Maryland offense isn't working very well early on against Youngstown State.

The Terps didn't miss their first eight shots as they did against Bucknell last Friday in the season opener.

This time they just missed five and two free throws and committed a couple of turnovers.

Gary Williams yanked Cliff Tucker and Braxton Dupree pretty quickly, putting in Sean Mosley and Dave Neal.

Dupree was getting beaten inside by Jack Liles, a 6-8 banger from Odenton.

The scoreboard got fixed -- some guy just plugged a few wires in underneath the press table and, voila -- and the Terps seem to be coming around.

It took 3 1/2 minutes for Maryland to get its first basket -- a steal and dunk by Eric Hayes.

Mosley has given the Terps some energy, hitting a jumper in the lane, taking a charge and getting a couple of rebounds. It took a little more than 7 1/2 minutes for Maryland to even the score at 10-10.

Jin Soo Kim is coming in.

I'll have more at halftime.

Posted by Don Markus at 8:19 PM in Terps basketball | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

Maryland coach Ralph Friedgen addresses the media during his Nov. 18 news conference.

Posted by baltimoresun.com at 7:52 PM in Terps football | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

Gary Williams was talking about James Padgett, the 6-9 forward from Lincoln High School in Brooklyn who signed with the Terps Monday. Someone asked Williams the last time Maryland had a player from New York City and Williams was stuck, bringing up Jap Trimble from the early Lefty years and Len Elmore.

I admit that even I was stuck about players from what we in Brooklyn call "The City."

How could we forget Garfield Smith?

Smith, a tough forward from the Bronx by way of some junior college in Kansas, was part of Williams' first recruiting class in 1990. His two-year career in College Park was played out under the cloud of NCAA probation Williams inherited from Bob Wade. Smith averaged almost 11 points and six rebounds, but I will remember most was the night he nearly knocked his coach out of the Maryland record books.

I don't recall all the particulars, but those of us on press row had Smith shooting 9 of 9 from the field. So did the scorer's table, until late in the game or even shortly after it, when he suddenly went 9-for-10. None of us could think of any shots he missed, even on an offensive rebound.

Not until we checked the record books did we think there was a possible conspiracy: one of those who shot 8-for-8 was Williams, in a game against South Carolina in 1966.

Thinking of Smith now, the current Terps can use his toughness inside.

I guess we'll just have to wait for Padgett.

Posted by Don Markus at 10:26 AM in Terps basketball | Permalink | Comments (4)
        

During games, it's quarterback Chris Turner doing most of the talking on the headset with offensive coordinator James Franklin up in the booth.

I'm always curious what he and Franklin are discussing. After one game, Turner talked about a conversation that occurred immediately following a Maryland scoring drive.

Instead of saying "hello," Turner picked up the headset and said: "You're welcome."

Franklin has been enouraging players besides Turner to communicate their ideas during games.

On Saturday, offensive lineman Jaimie Thomas picked up the headset and told Franklin the Terps could have success running the ball up the middle. Franklin, it seems, took that advice because the Terps indeed ran the ball between the tackles.

Posted by Jeff Barker at 8:34 AM in Terps football | Permalink | Comments (3)
        

Making plans for the Saturday of Thanksgiving weekend? I can help you -- but only a little -- if you're trying to schedule things around the broadcast of the Maryland at Boston College game.

We don't know yet what time the Terps and Eagles will kick off, but the ACC did say that the game will either start at noon or 3:30 p.m. So the Terps won't play in prime time. Florida at Florida State may get the night slot, although that game could also begin at 3:30.

The ACC normally announces start times 12 days in advance. But the networks occasionally get to be more flexible. In this case, we won't learn the start time of Terps-Eagles until sometime before noon on Sunday -- the day after Maryland-Florida State.

We also will learn Sunday who will carry the game: ABC, ESPN, ESPN2, Raycom or ESPNU.
Obviously, the game will be on one of the more widely available of those networks if Maryland and Boston College are playing for the ACC's Atlantic Division title.

Posted by Jeff Barker at 7:00 AM in Terps football | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

As I was leaving the court at Comcast Center after Friday's season opening game, I thought I heard Gary Williams mention on his post-game radio show something about his team being booed during its 29-point win over Bucknell.

Maybe my hearing is going along with some other things, but I never heard any boos.

I went as far as to ask a few friends who were at the game, and a couple of them said they might have heard a smattering of boos early on, but nothing vicious. A couple of them didn't know what I was talking about.

It might have come when the Terps were missing their first eight shots, but again, I never heard them.

If you were at the game (and not many can claim to that since the place was barely half-filled), I'd love to know if you heard the boos. I know I heard them last season when Maryland blew that huge lead at home against Clemson, but that was understandable given the situation and the point in the season.

But booing a team in its first game?

Williams has been known to motivate his team over the years by using that us-against-the-world mentality, and it usually has worked.

Is this real or imagined?

By the way, I am planning on get my hearing checked, just to be sure I won't miss them the next time.

Posted by Don Markus at 12:45 PM in Terps basketball | Permalink | Comments (20)
        

Here are a few scenarios that could occur, and what they would mean to Maryland:

*The Terps would clinch the division Saturday night with a victory over Florida State and a Boston College loss to Wake Forest.

*The Terps beat Florida State, but Boston College beats Wake. The Terps would then win or lose the division based on whether they beat Boston College the following week.

*Maryland loses to Florida State and Wake Forest beats Boston College. Then Maryland beats Boston College. The Terps, Deacons and Seminoles finish 5-3 but Maryland would win the division because of its superior division record. The Terps would have only one division loss.

*Maryland loses to Florida State and Boston College beats Wake Forest. Then Maryland beats Boston College. Maryland and Florida State would finish with 5-3 marks, but the Seminoles would win the division because of the head-to-head tiebreaker.

Posted by Jeff Barker at 10:54 AM in Terps football | Permalink | Comments (4)
        

I can't overstate how frustrated offensive coordinator James Franklin seemed with Josh Portis shortly after Saturday's game.

Remember that Portis gets to play more when he plays well. Based on that criteria, I'm not sure we're going to be seeing him much, although he sure is exciting to watch.

Against North Carolina, Portis ran for 12 yards. He threw a pass that missed an open Darrius Heyward-Bey on a deep pattern. Portis later fumbled to begin the fourth quarter, giving the Tar Heels the ball on the Maryland 33 (they couldn't score).

Said Franklin: "You can't make those critical plays. It was clearly a fumble."

Asked about Portis missing Heyward-Bey with the long pass, Franklin replied: "That was a touchdown."

Posted by Jeff Barker at 9:30 AM in Terps football | Permalink | Comments (8)
        

It looks like coach Friedgen is finally going to get what he wants: a big home game played in front of what he dearly hopes will be a raucous, capacity crowd.

The coach has been trying to get more students and fans interested in the team all season.

Among the earlier problems:

*Rainy weather the last two home games. The North Carolina State game, in particular, left fans drenched.

*Inconsistency. Many Maryland fans didn't want to emotionally invest in a team that seemed so up and down.

*Game broadcasts not available. I think Maryland fans (at least the more casual ones) lose interest in the team when games aren't televised regularly. Not all fans in the area can get ESPNU or ESPN360.

The television issue has been addressed for the time being. The better the Terps play, the more interest that networks have in making sure the broadcasts are seen on widely available outlets such as ABC, ESPN and ESPN2.

As for the weather, not even Fridge or Debbie Yow can control that.

Posted by Jeff Barker at 6:30 AM in Terps football | Permalink | Comments (15)
        

I've filed a story on coach Ralph Friedgen's Sunday conference call, but here's a synopsis of what he said:

*The upcoming Florida State game on Saturday night is one of the bigger games at Byrd Stadium in a while. The Terps can clinch their division with a victory over the Seminoles and a Boston College loss to Wake Forest, moving Maryland into the ACC championship game. Fridge said of the players: “Believing they can accomplish this is starting to become a reality now.”

*Will players be monitoring the Boston College-Wake Forest game, which starts at 3:30? “Since we’re playing at night, I think our kids are going to watch that regardless of what I tell them,” Friedgen said. “We still have to win. That’s what we need to focus on.”

*Friedgen said the veteran offensive line had its best game of the season in the 17-15 win over North Carolina.

*No new injuries of note.

Posted by Jeff Barker at 6:21 PM in Terps football | Permalink | Comments (3)
        

Obi Egekeze says he didn't watch when North Carolina kicker Casey Barth attempted a field goal in the third quarter with the Tar Heels ahead 15-14. Barth hit the upright.

Said Egekeze, who has been great since starting the season 0-for-5: "I never wish bad on another kicker. I don’t even watch other kickers kick. I just turned in the complete opposite direction and figured I'd let the fans tell me if it was good."

Posted by Jeff Barker at 9:00 AM in Terps football | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

Allow me to clarify that Maryland needs a little help to clinch the ACC's Atlantic Division title as early as next week.

The Terps could clinch the division Saturday night with a victory over Florida State and a Boston College loss to Wake Forest.

The Terps control their own destiny. If Maryland and Boston College both win Saturday, the division would be decided by the Maryland-Boston College game on Nov. 29.

Posted by Jeff Barker at 8:51 AM in Terps football | Permalink | Comments (3)
        

Here are observations from Maryland's 17-15 win. Did you notice that...

--Punter Travis Baltz made a heady play falling down in his own end zone after a snap went over his head in the first quarter. Better a safety than giving up the ball inside the 5.

--Adrian Moten recovered a fumble despite playing with a cast up to his left elbow.

--Trey Covington dropped a potential interception that would have prevented a 38-yard, first-quarter field goal by the Tar Heels. Anthony Wiseman missed one in the third quarter.

--Maryland had success spreading the defense with a four-receiver sets. Such a formation was used on a 15-yard, third-down completion to Darrius Heytward-Bey on Maryland’s first scoring drive.

--Maryland made ample use of freshmen Kenny Tate and Cameron Chism in the defensive backfield.

--Chris Turner narrowly avoided a pick when he threw into coverage at midfield with the Terps trailing 12-7. But he picked up a first down on a pass to Danny Oquendo the next play.

--As usual, running back Davin Meggett provided a spark. He ran for 86 yards.

--Maryland gambled and went for it on fourth-and-6 in the second quarter from North Carolina’s 39. Chris Turner was sacked for a loss of 6. But Turner made up for it with his run on fourth down on Maryland's final drive.

--Josh Portis re-emerged, entering the game at quarterback in the second quarter and running –- now there’s a surprise -– for 12 yards. He did throw a pass that same series and missed Heyward-Bey on a deep pattern that was a terrific call because the defense seemed to have been playing the run. Portis later fumbled, and coaches seemed none too pleased with his performance. More on this later.

--With Maryland trailing 15-14, Antwine Perez knocked Carolina quarterback Cameron Sexton out of bounds on a critical third-down run, forcing the Tar Heels to punt.

--A rainbow appeared over the north stands in the second quarter. For real.

Posted by Jeff Barker at 8:00 AM in Terps football | Permalink | Comments (6)
        

It’s an amazing pattern, isn’t it? The Terps have followed each of their three losses to unranked schools with victories over Top 25 teams the following week.

Offensive coordinator James Franklin almost sounded serious when he said he hoped Florida State will be ranked when the Seminoles come into Byrd next week. I think he truly wants to play a Top 25 team.

Maryland’s home victories seem to feed on themselves. You got the sense that the Terps, who trailed 15-14 for almost the entire second half, always believed they’d come back. That’s what being 5-0 at home does for your confidence.

Maryland won because:

*The Terps held the ball for long chunks of time, keeping the ball away from dangerous Hakeem Nicks and the rest of the North Carolina offense.

*North Carolina converted one of 11 on third downs. “I thought [defensive coordinator] Chris Cosh called a great game today,” Maryland coach Ralph Friedgen said. “Obviously if you have that type of possession it helps everyone, but you really should have more than 17 points.”

*Maryland’s running game returned. How can the offensive line create so little space for the running backs one week, and so much the next? It’s a mystery, but a happy one for the Terps since they won the game.

Posted by Jeff Barker at 10:29 PM in Terps football | Permalink | Comments (2)
        

Maryland's running game, which “netted” minus-12 yards against Virginia Tech, has returned. Da’Rel Scott (77 yards) looks sharp, bad shoulder and all, and so does Davin Meggett (70 yards). Much of their success, of course, is due to the offensive line giving them much more room than in the last outing.

Maryland has 15 first downs to Carolina’s six. And the Terps have held the ball more than twice as long as the Tar Heels.

Carolina leads 15-14 largely because of a 59-yard touchdown reception by Cooter Arnold that Terps safety Kenny Tate missed by inches. And because Maryland botched a punt snap – that’s a first this year -- and had to take a first-quarter safety.

Posted by Jeff Barker at 5:05 PM in Terps football | Permalink | Comments (4)
        

Gusty winds and intermittent rain this afternoon. Don't I sound like a weatherman?

Sloppy conditions played to N.C. State quarterback Russell Wilson's advantage the last time the Terps played in this sort of weather. I think the slick field helped Wilson -- who has moves in the open field -- because he knew where he was going and the defense didn't.

So here's my thought: How about Maryland giving Carolina a dose of Josh Portis at quarterback today? He'd be tough to catch on a wet field.

Fridge said Thursday that coaches haven't backed away from using Portis, who has seemed to get less snaps as the season has gone along. So we'll see.

Posted by Jeff Barker at 2:39 PM in Terps football | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

A bunch of imposters, or maybe the real Terps, showed up tonight for Bucknell.

Fortunately for Maryland, Bucknell was even worse.

How's this for first half shooting: the Terps missed their first eight shots, and 20 of their first 27 and finished the half 13 of 37, including two of eight on threes. The Bison was seven of 27, and missed all seven of its threes.

Gary Williams was shuttling in players trying to find someone who could finish. Finally, Cliff Tucker, who started tonight, gave the Terps some breathing room as they opened up a 33-17 lead at halftime.

Tucker was about the only Maryland player who looked under control. Greivis Vasquez talked a good game Thursday about playing within the team concept, but he still looks like the same player he was last year -- good at times, bad at times, ugly at times.

Williams better hope the second half is a little better, regardless if Buckell is worse.

I'll send my impressions from the opener after the game.

-- Don Markus

Posted by baltimoresun.com at 9:05 PM in Terps basketball | Permalink | Comments (1)
        

It's about 10 minutes until tipoff at the Comcast Center and the place is almost empty aside from the student section.

Did Maryland fans forget the Terps were opening the season tonight?

Or are they still tailgating in the rain and fog outside?

I guess this is going to be one of those deals that fans will want Maryland to prove it's worth watching before driving through rush-hour traffic to watch the team play. (Seeing the Terps in person will be the only way to see them tonight since the game isn't on television.)

For those interested, I just heard Cliff Tucker will be starting as the third guard alongside Greivis Vasquez and Eric Hayes. It could have been either Tucker or Adrian Bowie once Sean Mosley missed a week with a sprained ankle.

Anyway, I'll try to update at halftime.

Posted by Don Markus at 7:46 PM in Terps basketball | Permalink | Comments (3)
        

There's a possibility of rain for Saturday, although coach Friedgen -- who habitually checks the forecasts -- says it's supposed to clear by the afternoon.

Maryland didn't soak the footballs at practice yesterday the way it did before the rainy North Carolina State game. But the team may practice in artificially wet conditions today for a time -- just so the players would ready in the event weatherman Fridge is wrong.

Conditions couldn't be worse than they were for the N.C. State game, could they? "I figured we had enough [rainy-day] work at the N.C. State game to last four years," Fridge said.

Posted by Jeff Barker at 10:45 AM in Terps football | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

Gary Williams wouldn't name all of his starters for tonight's season opener against Bucknell, saying only that the team's three returning starters -- juniors Eric Hayes, Landon Milbourne and Greivis Vasquez -- would be among those whose names will be announced when the bells-and-whistles intros are made at Comcast Center.

But who will be the other two starters?

Vasquez and senior Dave Neal might have given it away during Thursday's session with the media. Vasquez said that his team in practice the day before consisted of he, Hayes, Milbourne, Neal, sophomore center Braxton Dupree and freshman guard Sean Mosley, (No offense to Neal, but the only start he'll probably make this season will be on March 3 against Wake Forest in College Park. It's Senior Night.)

Neal was even more direct, naming a starting lineup of Vasquez, Hayes, Mosley, Milbourne and Dupree.

Unless Mosley is head-and-shoulders above both sophomores Adrian Bowie and Cliff Tucker right now, I'm not sure I would start the former St. Frances standout immediately. Bowie and Tucker, according to Williams, have really picked up their games from last season and Mosley missed a week of the preseason with a sprained ankle. In the end, I'm not sure it will matter since they all will get their share of minutes.

The bigger concern is who is going to start at center, since Milbourne is going to be the power forward. Dupree didn't exactly get a ringing endorsement, but the competition for those minutes is not exactly stiff from sophomore Jerome Burney or freshman Steve Goins. At least one of them, and maybe two, will have to raise their games -- defensively too -- for the Terps to have any chance of competing in the ACC.

Who do you think will start?

Who should?

Posted by Don Markus at 8:56 AM in Terps basketball | Permalink | Comments (1)
        

Coach Friedgen yesterday detailed what prompted the shuffling of the defensive line in which Olugbemi Otulaja lost his starting spot and Jeremy Navarre got switched from tackle to end.

The shift came after Virginia Tech’s Darren Evans ran over the Terps for 253 yards in the last game.

Fridge said coaches noticed that Otulaja, a transfer from Marist, was “having trouble holding the point” and was getting overwhelmed.

The coach said the problem was not a lack of effort, but rather a lack of size. Plus, Otulaja has a sore ankle heading into this weekend’s North Carolina game.

Fridge appeared concerned about North Carolina’s ground game. “Their running attack is kind of right at you, where if you were playing, say, Florida State, they’re going to stretch you out and use their speed,” the coach said.

Posted by Jeff Barker at 8:30 AM in Terps football | Permalink | Comments (3)
        

Maryland is scheduled to hold an open practice this afternoon for students, weather permitting.

This falls in the same category as helmet decals. In other words, it’s another way that Fridge is trying to motivate his players.

Said the coach: “I’m trying to find some way to give a lift to our team. I’m hoping they [students] show up. I’m going to give 100 T-shirts away to the first 100 people who get in.”

He said a student ID card will be required for admission to the drills, which will probably start about 3:15.

Posted by Jeff Barker at 7:34 AM in Terps football | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

A number of “trends” favor the Terps against North Carolina this weekend.

*Maryland has won five straight against nationally-ranked teams over the past two seasons, and the Tar Heels enter at No. 17.

*Maryland was won all five of its games at Byrd Stadium.

*The Terps have demonstrated a penchant for rebounding after tough road defeats – and the nationally-televised loss at Virginia Tech certainly qualifies.

But here’s the thing: At some point the Terps are going to have to stop living dangerously. If they managed to win their easier games (Middle Tennessee, for example) there would be less pressure to beat the top teams. On some level, the Terps must enjoy having their backs against the wall. It seems to motivate them.

North Carolina has won five of its past six, beating three ranked teams in the process.
“Maybe the best team we’ve faced so far,” Fridge said of the Tar Heels.

A key to the game will be whether Maryland’s reconfigured defensive line can stop Carolina running back Shaun Draughn, sixth in the conference in rushing.

The Terps will need to force a turnover or two since it’s likely that Carolina – which is tied for the nation’s most interceptions with 18 – will claim a couple turnovers themselves. The Terps have had zero picks the past few games.

Carolina is a dangerous team, but I’m going to stick with recent history and pick the Terps in another “rebound” game at home. I picked their points total right last week (a paltry 13) and maybe I’ll get lucky again.

When it comes to predicting ACC football, luck is about the best you can hope for. I'll make a score prediction in my "matchup" box a bit later.

Posted by Jeff Barker at 6:37 AM in Terps football | Permalink | Comments (9)
        

I covered Joe Namath, long after Joe Willie's prediction about his Jets beating the Colts.

I was at Augusta National to hear Arnold Palmer predict that Tiger Woods would collect more green jackets than Nicklaus and Palmer combined.

And I was in College Park today to hear Greivis Vasquez use the term "Final Four" and the name "Maryland" in the same sentence.

It wasn't done with bravado, just sort of matter of fact.

"People keep talking bad about us, but the last two days I've seen something I've never seen at Maryland, including my freshman year when we went to the tournament," Vasquez said. "The last two days, I thought we could be a Final Four team."

If Maryland makes it to Motown, you read it hear first.

Posted by Don Markus at 5:06 PM in Terps basketball | Permalink | Comments (7)
        

The bad news for Maryland is that running back Da'Rel Scott is still wearing the yellow, "no-contact" jersey at practice.

The good news is that he's practicing at all and that coaches say he looks good -- sore shoulder and all.

Maryland, which netted minus-12 rushing yards in the Virginia Tech loss, desperately needs to revive its running game.

"I don’t think he’s as sore as he was. He looks very quick," coach Friiedgen said after Wednesday's practice.

Posted by Jeff Barker at 11:00 AM in Terps football | Permalink | Comments (1)
        

If the Terps have shown anything this season, it's the ability to rebound.

They lost at Middle Tennessee, then played one of their best games to beat Cal.

They got thumped by Virginia, then shut out Wake Forest the next game.

It memorably happened last year, too, when the Terps lost at North Carolina, then came back and beat Boston College.

Cal, Wake Forest and Boston College were all ranked at the time the Terps beat them. Now the Terps, coming off another road loss, play No. 17 North Carolina at home.

So how has Maryland managed to rebound in the past?

"The biggest thing I can tell is they were road losses and then we played at home. There is a home-field advantage, obviously," quarterback Chris Turner said.

Coach Friedgen said his team is resilient. The flip side is the Terps occasionally seem to let down in games they should win. "When things get going good, like most people, they tend to relax," the coach said.

Posted by Jeff Barker at 10:10 AM in Terps football | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

We haven't seen much of Josh Portis lately, and I wondered after the Virginia Tech game whether the grand Portis experiment was over.

The Terps, as you know, had been using Portis as a situational quarterback. He had given them another running threat (he has thrown the ball only twice). He has rushed for 167 yards this season and averages 5.8 yards per carry.

Coach Friedgen said that, no, the Portis experiment isn't over. Fridge said offensive coordinator James Franklin might have been reluctant to use Portis against Virginia Tech Thursday night. "I think James was a little hesitant with the crowd noise," Fridge said.

Left unsaid is that Portis has had issues in the past with calling the right play and managing the team. But Fridge said he might still summon Portis, particularly with running back Da'Rel Scott still nursing a sore shoulder and Maryland needing to revive its running game.

Posted by Jeff Barker at 8:10 AM in Terps football | Permalink | Comments (2)
        

North Carolina coach Butch Davis yesterday said he has no interest in the Tennessee job. In so doing, he hoped to avoid the sort of distraction to his Tar Heels that can come when your coach’s name is being bandied about in the media.

You never know how a coach will react if the siren call of a big contract comes. But the timing doesn’t seem right for Davis to leave. He hasn’t yet completed what he started at Chapel Hill.

Davis was 4-8 last year in his first season with the Tar Heels, including a win over Maryland. North Carolina hasn't finished above .500 since going 8-5 under John Bunting in 2001.

With a 7-2 record (3-2 in the conference), Davis seems to be nearing the breakthrough season that Carolina fans have been hoping and expecting. But it’s too early to say he’s accomplished enough to be looking for the next big payday.

Coach Friedgen, by the way, has been watching film of last season’s 16-13 loss at Carolina. What he noticed was how battered Maryland was entering the game – particularly the offensive line. “We were like the walking wounded,” the coach said. He said the Tar Heels have improved since then, and his team is healthier.

Posted by Jeff Barker at 7:01 AM in Terps football | Permalink | Comments (3)
        

The alleged assault case against linebacker Rick Costa raises the question: how often does this sort of charge get brought against Maryland athletes?

The Sun obtained documents in 2007 outlining 97 cases of Maryland athletes' alleged misconduct from the fall of 2004 to October 2006. By far, the largest number of incidents involved positive drug tests (39) and drinking (16 alcohol-related violations). Eleven cases of plagiarism or other academic misconduct also were chronicled, along with a dozen for fighting or assaults.

The problem is that it's very difficult to compare these numbers to other schools. That's because not all colleges keep the same records, have the same rules or test for drugs in the same way.

Maryland coach Ralph Friedgen has been known to dispatch assistants to bars to try to keep players out of harm's way. The alleged Costa incident -- he's accused of punching a police officer -- occurred at about 2:25 last Sunday morning at the Cornerstone Grill & Loft, which was scheduled to close at 3 a.m. You can't reasonably expect the football coaches to be "on duty" at that hour, so it's up to players to act responsibly and police themselves.

Posted by Jeff Barker at 1:21 PM in Terps football | Permalink | Comments (3)
        

Maryland coaches are minimizing their shuffling of the defensive line. They say it’s not such a big deal who starts because lots of guys will continue to play in various situations.

The idea, Fridge says, is to get the three guys together on the field who have been playing the best. That required shifting defensive tackle Jeremy Navarre to end – his old position. He said after practice yesterday that it wasn’t hard to adjust.

Travis Ivey becomes a starter at tackle, and Dion Armstrong will be the new starter at nose tackle. Ivey had been previously been backing up Navarre and Dean Muhtadi, and Armstrong had been behind Olugbemi Otulaja.

Meanwhile, Rick Costa’s suspension means more time for Trey Covington at linebacker.

Posted by Jeff Barker at 10:38 AM in Terps football | Permalink | Comments (1)
        

It's one thing playing well at home, where fans and friends are all behind you.

It's quite another to play well on the road -- where players sometimes feel they're fighting virtually an entire stadium.

Just ask Maryland, which is 5-0 at home and 1-3 on the road.

"All your family and friends cheering for you is a magical experience," offensive coordinator James Franklin said. "You go into somebody else's stadium, it's a different deal."

Franklin said most teams struggle on the road, not just the Terps. He said that's particularly true in the ACC this season. It's a year in which most of the teams in the conference have struggled to be consistent.

One thing Franklin has noticed is that his older players tend to adjust better to playing away from Byrd.

Senior Danny Oquendo, for example, says he likes it when opposing fans boo the Terps. He says it motivates him to play well. I'll have more on this home-road issue as the week progresses.

Posted by Jeff Barker at 8:38 AM in Terps football | Permalink | Comments (1)
        

Now that he’s come to terms with his season-ending shoulder blade and collarbone injuries, senior cornerback Kevin Barnes looked relatively upbeat yesterday.

Injured in the Wake Forest game on Oct. 18, Barnes is still with the team as a friend and supporter. He’s hoping to play in the NFL.

He had surgery recently at Washington Hospital Center. A pin was placed in his collarbone, and his shoulder was secured into place.

“The way [the doctor] did it, I should never really have problems ever again,” Barnes said. “Depending on how hard I push himself will determine whether I play in the Senior Bowl,” he said, referring to the pre-draft game in January.

Posted by Jeff Barker at 7:00 AM in Terps football | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

Maryland coach Ralph Friedgen addresses the media during his Nov. 11 news conference.

Posted by baltimoresun.com at 9:27 PM in Terps football | Permalink | Comments (1)
        

Maryland linebacker Rick Costa has been indefinitely suspended from the team after being accused of punching a police officer in the face at a local bar early Sunday morning.

Costa, a senior criminology major who has been splitting time with Trey Covington at outside linebacker, was charged with assault after police were summoned to the Cornerstone Grill & Loft in College Park at about 2:25 in the morning.

Costa had been trying to get into the bar and began brawling with a bouncer when told the bar was closing, police said.

“The officer rushed over to try and break up the fight when he came in contact with two employees who work at the bar as bouncers,” said officer Henry Tippett, spokesman for the Prince George’s County Police Department. Tippett said he was paraphrasing from a document – a statement of charges – filed against Costa over the weekend.

The bouncers told police that Costa and two other unidentified males had been told “they had to leave,” Tippett said.

“At this point the defendant [Costa] became combative, striking one of the bouncers in the face. Another bouncer came to intervene and tried to stop Costa from fighting with the other bouncer, at which point Costa pushed him away,” Tippett said.

Tippett continued: “The officer approached Costa. He announced himself as a police officer. The officer said Costa was intoxicated and disorderly at which point he punched the officer in the right side of his eye, causing a face injury.”

Other officers then arrived and Costa was charged with assault. He was later released on bond.
Coach Ralph Friedgen said at the afternoon media lunch that Costa had been suspended because of an “off-campus incident” but declined to elaborate.

"Due to the nature of the charges, Rick has been indefinitely suspended from all team activities, including practice and game participation," Friedgen said in a prepared statement released later. "Once the issue has been resolved, Rick's status with the team will be re-evaluated."

Costa has played in nine games, starting two. His 22 tackles include seven that resulted in lost yardage – tops on the team.

Costa’s brother, Phil, is an offensive lineman on the team. The Costas are from Moorestown, N.J.
Rick Costa began his career at Temple, then transferred to Maryland after redshirting as a freshman.

Posted by Jeff Barker at 6:13 PM in Terps football | Permalink | Comments (6)
        

Maryland linebacker Rick Costa has been indefinitely suspended following an off-campus incident, coach Ralph Friedgen said today.

Online court records say that Costa, a senior criminology major, was charged Saturday with assault in Prince George’s County District Court.

"Due to the nature of the charges, Rick has been indefinitely suspended from all team activities, including practice and game participation," Friedgen said in a prepared statement. "Once the issue has been resolved, Rick's status with the team will be re-evaluated."

The coach declined to discuss the matter further.

Costa’s brother, Phil, is an offensive lineman on the team. The Costas are from Moorestown, N.J.

Rick Costa began his career at Temple, then transferred to Maryland after redshirting as a freshman.

Posted by Jeff Barker at 1:21 PM in Terps football | Permalink | Comments (2)
        

As you all know, Maryland has been emphasizing keeping local talent at home. "If you look at the press guide, 60 percent of the team is from this area," Fridge said in announcing the recruiting class last spring. "I've always put a lot of stock in it."

One local product who decided to leave the region is North Carolina defensive lineman Marvin Austin, from Washington's Ballou High School. He'll be visiting home when the Tar Heels play at Maryland Saturday.

"I get to go back and a lot of people in my family and around the area want to see me play in person," Austin said yesterday, according to North Carolina's Web site. "A lot of them have not had that opportunity, so it is going to be a pretty special game."

Austin, a sophomore, was rated one of the nation's top defensive tackles when he came out of high school.

Austin has 29 tackles, four quarterback hurries and a blocked kick this season.

Posted by Jeff Barker at 8:01 AM in Terps football | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

OK, guess what team this ACC football coach is talking about in the following three remarks:

--“They’ve got the ability because of a big offensive line and huge tight ends to just line up and -- if they want to, if those choose to – they could play smash ball in a heartbeat.”

--“They’re one of the more experienced football teams.”

--“I think they have 21 sacks out of 12 different guys. They generally really give you a lot of negative plays.”

Answer: That was North Carolina’s Butch Davis talking to the Carolina media yesterday about Maryland. Kind of makes the Terps sound like the New York Giants in last season’s Super Bowl, doesn't he?

Many opposing coaches besides Davis have commented this season on Maryland’s experience and its big offensive line. Davis didn’t mention that the Terps rushed for minus-12 yards last Thursday against Virginia Tech.

By the way, here is what Davis had to say about Maryland wide receiver Darrius Heyward-Bey:

“When you watch Maryland play, Heyward-Bey, the wide receiver, is one of those guys that kind of takes your breath away. Scouts that have come through here have talked about different guys, and he’s one of those guys who comes up all the time as a future high-round draft choice.”

Posted by Jeff Barker at 6:45 AM in Terps football | Permalink | Comments (4)
        

Kickoff for the Florida State game on Nov. 22 has been set for 7:45 p.m.

The game will be televised nationally on ESPN, the ACC said today.

This weekend's North Carolina game is at 3:30, and you is being regionally televised by ABC/ESPN.

Posted by Jeff Barker at 2:56 PM in Terps football | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

Maryland’s rush defense is now 11th in the conference, ahead of only North Carolina State.
It will need to improve against North Carolina, Maryland’s opponent on Saturday.

Shaun Draughn, the Tar Heels’ leading rusher, has rushed for at least 90 yards in four of the past five games.

Here’s the weird thing: The Terps seem to turn their run defense on and off from game to game or even from half to half.

Consider the Clemson game, in which Maryland surrendered huge chunks of first-half rushing yardage, then held the Tigers scoreless in the second half.

“You look at them in the first half at Clemson, you’d think Clemson was going to run for 500 yards. And then we shut them down in the second half,” Ralph Friedgen said.

Posted by Jeff Barker at 10:35 AM in Terps football | Permalink | Comments (3)
        

Greivis Vasquez has been something of a lightning rod for Maryland fans, so I'm sure many of you will respond to this post. (How's that for generating traffic?)

He was Maryland's best player at times last season.

He was also Maryland's most selfish player at times last season.

He was always Maryland's most passionate player.

All of those traits came to mind when watching the Terps play an exhibition game Saturday, despite the fact that Vasquez sat out for violating team rules. While Maryland didn't need Vasquez's talent or emotion in a 44-point rout of an NAIA team, they also appeared more cohesive without the junior guard than they have with him.

When it was pointed out that his team had only 11 turnovers in what was essentially a pickup game, Gary Williams used the word "unselfishly" in describing the way the Terps played and how they are going to need to do more of that this season. I'm not sure that the comment was directed at Vasquez, but I hope it was.

Since Eric Hayes has seemingly settled back in at point, and Adrian Bowie appears more steady with the ball, Vasquez is going to be playing more on the wing. As I wrote a couple of weeks ago, I'm not sure he has bought into that concept completely. It's going to be interesting to see how Williams rotates his perimeter players. The good thing is that neither Hayes or Vasquez are going to have to play as many minutes this season.

I'm probably not going to see Maryland play until Friday night's opener against Bucknell, unless Williams allows the media to watch a practice. But I'm as curious as anyone to see how Vasquez responds to his benching, and the way the Terps played without him.

Do you think it mattered?

Posted by Don Markus at 9:28 AM in Terps basketball | Permalink | Comments (22)
        

*Fridge was asked again yesterday why he seemed to get into a heated discussion with defensive coordinator Chris Cosh at the end of the first half. The sequence ended with Maryland having to call a timeout with its defense on the field and Virginia Tech facing third-and-long.

Fridge suggested he had been wondering – and I’m being diplomatic in my phrasing here – why some players didn’t seem to have received the defensive signals.

“I talked to Chris about it,” Fridge said. “ He had gotten the call in, and everybody didn’t get the call [so] I called a timeout.”

*Fridge said running back Da’Rel Scott might have been slowed by his sore shoulder. “He didn’t seem to be himself,” the coach said.

*After reviewing the game, Friedgen said again that his rush defense was poor, but didn’t blame the defensive scheme. Rather, the coach said there were too many instances of poor tacking on Virginia Tech’s Darren Evans.

“The one long run [50 yards], probably three or four guys should have made the tackle, and no one wrapped up,” Fridge said.

Posted by Jeff Barker at 7:45 AM in Terps football | Permalink | Comments (1)
        

Undisputed possession of first place? Gone.

National ranking? Gone.

Neidermeyer? Dead. (You all saw Animal House, right?)

Maryland’s 23-13 loss to Virginia Tech was pretty costly to the Terps, who had been ranked No. 23 entering the game and have dropped out of the Top 25.

But this is a weird year in the ACC. It’s the sort of season in which there is so much parity (is it mediocrity in disguise?) that a team can like Maryland can have a split personality and still entertain hopes of winning the league.

You know what I mean by split personality. Maryland is a pretty good team at home. On the road, not so much. Coach Friedgen said yesterday that Thursday night’s loss was actually as well as the Terps have played on the road all year, with the exception of the second half at Clemson.

Maryland has been outscored, 95-47, on the road.

So here’s the good news: The Terps can still win the ACC. And the bad news: Where are they really going in the postseason – and what can they hope to accomplish – if they can’t play any better away from home?

Posted by Jeff Barker at 6:30 AM in Terps football | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

Coach Friedgen sounded substantially more upbeat today than he did after Thursday night’s loss to Virginia Tech.

Despite the loss, it sounds like Fridge is heartened by the fact that Maryland – which hasn’t lost at home – has two of its final three games at Byrd Stadium

The Terps play North Carolina and Florida State at home before going to Boston College in the final week of the regular season.

Maryland has struggled on the road – so much so that Fridge said Thursday night’s 23-13 loss wasn’t bad in a relative sense. “Of the games we’ve played on the road, that was probably our best one other than the second half at Clemson,” the coach said.

“At home it makes a difference in this league,” Friedgen said. “I watched all three of them yesterday. The three teams we have to play all played at home. And they were all very impressive.”

The Terps emerged relatively healthy from the game. Receiver Torrey Smith’s ankle is improving. Tailback Da’rel Scot “is no worse for wear, [fullback] Cory Jackson is no worse for wear,” Friedgen said.

Posted by Jeff Barker at 5:54 PM in Terps football | Permalink | Comments (2)
        

Every time Jin Soo Kim went to the basket and scored during the second half of today's preseason win over Northwood University, I kept thinking back to what Joe Smith did as a freshman in a preseason game against the Australian national team in 1993.

Smith scored something like 37 points against a team that included former Seton Hall star Andrew Gaze.

After that game, I asked Gary Williams if he knew the skinny 6-foot-10 forward from Norfolk, Va., could score like that, since his reputation in high school was as a rebounder and shot-blocker whose only offense on his AAU team came from putting back Allen Iverson's misses. Smith wasn't even the top player in the recruiting class; Dunbar's Keith Booth was.

"Don't create a monster," Williams said that night.

The monster created himself, destroying Othella Harrington and Georgetown a week or so later in his regular-season debut. Two seasons later, Smith was the National Player of the Year and the No. 1 pick in the NBA draft.

This is not to say that Kim is going to be a breakout star, but his 20-point performance (including 18 in the second half) gives Williams and Maryland fans some hope that this season won't be as miserable as everyone -- me included -- has predicted.

The Terps still have no inside game. Though sophomores Braxton Dupree and Jerome Burney played better in the second half than they did in the first, they need to at least be more of a defensive and rebounding force than they've demonstrated.

And Maryland might need to shoot 25 of 28 from the free-throw line and seven of 19 on threes, as they did against Northwood, in order to win games.

But Kim, and Sean Mosley when he returns this week from a sprained ankle, at least give the Terps some more athleticism -- something they will need in abundance to compete in the ACC. Landon Milbourne, Cliff Tucker and Adrian Bowie all played well today, and Eric Hayes was steady. That Maryland only had 11 turnovers might have something to do with Greivis Vasquez sitting out a one-game suspension.

That said, those who watched today's game will probably go home talking about this 19-year old Korean who just started practicing with the Terps last Tuesday after finally getting cleared by the NCAA.

Just as they did 15 years ago, talking about Joe Smith.

I'm going home to change my prediction.

Posted by Don Markus at 5:10 PM in Terps basketball | Permalink | Comments (7)
        

I guess those concerned about Maryland facing a good NAIA school needn't worry.

It's 53-35 at halftime.

Here are some impressions from what the Terps have done so far:

With Greivis Vasquez sitting out a one-game suspension and Sean Mosley in uniform but resting a sprained ankle, Gary Williams started Eric Hayes at the point, Cliff Tucker at shooting guard, Landon Milbourne and Dino Gregory at forward and Braxton Dupree at center.

I think Gregory was rewarded for playing hard in practice, but he came out early and didn't go back in until a little under 7 1/2 minutes were left, then came out about a minute later. The knock on Gregory last year was that he didn't play hard in practice, and some old habits seemed to creep back today. Maryland assistant Keith Booth, who always played hard, talked to Gregory after he came out a second time.

Milbourne has certainly picked up his game from last year, and so has Adrian Bowie, particularly his outside shooting. Hayes looks so much more comfortable back at the point, and Bowie seems solid at either guard spot. That, along with the inside play, is going to be the key spot for the Terps this season There wasn't much inside scoring from Maryland's bigs, mostly on drives from the wings and Milbourne. He and Bowie each had 14 at halftime.

I was most interested in getting a first look at Jin Soo Kim, the 6-8 freshman who is the first Korean player in Division I basketball. Kim came in with a reputation as a great shooter and he quickly took a couple of threes. Kim, who gained his eligibility earlier in the week, seemed to be trying to live up to the hype.

What I liked is that after he missed his first two shots, he took the ball inside (he missed those too but was aggressive going to the basket) and he did some other things in terms of defense and passing that should fit into Williams' system. He finally got his first points on a couple of free throws with 1:22 left in the first half.

One other impression: Aside from mixing up his lineups, Williams certainly isn't treating this like a scrimmage. He just left the court giving one of the officials an earful about a blocking call in the final seconds.

Posted by Don Markus at 2:26 PM in Terps basketball | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

We'll have a report on Sunday after Fridge does his media availability at 4:30 p.m. Until then, you Terps fans are free to engage in other activities -- a good movie, perhaps, without football in it -- that won't remind you of Thursday night's game.

I couldn't help but think of the unfortunate timing of Thursday being the occasion that top boosters were bused in for the game. Blacksburg is a tough place to play. Anyway, I hope the food was good.

By the way, there is some confusion (again) about my alma mater. Not that it matters, but it's Penn, not Penn State. The fightin' Quakers beat Princeton Friday night. Next up: a big one against always tough Harvard.

Posted by Jeff Barker at 8:00 AM in Terps football | Permalink | Comments (1)
        

Gary Williams met with the media today at Comcast Center and said that junior guard Greivis Vasquez would miss tomorrow's exhibition against Northwood University for an undisclosed violation of team rules.

Williams said that he also might keep freshman guard Sean Mosley out because of a mild sprained ankle, but added that the former St. Frances star would play if it were a regular season game. Mosley has been out since rolling the ankle after coming down on Vasquez's foot in practice last Friday.

The early issue with Vasquez is interesting, considering that he is a team captain and is expected to be one of the leaders. Williams said that the issue was an off-the-court matter and that Vasquez would be back at practice Monday as the Terps continued to prepare for the season opener a week from tonight against Bucknell.

Williams said of the Vasquez benching, "It's a good time. Better than being in the penalty box during the season.''

Asked what Vasquez did wrong, Williams said, "He's a college student, you know what they're like.''

Posted by Don Markus at 3:02 PM in Terps basketball | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

Eight ACC players were named on the early season Wooden Award list, none from Maryland.

Should Greivis Vasquez take it personally?

According to a release sent out by the league, a player's candidacy is based on his performance last season and his team's record. I can understand why three North Carolina players made the cut -- last year's winner Tyler Hansbrough, Ty Lawson and Wayne Ellington -- as well as Miami's Jack McClinton (Calvert Hall) and two from Duke (Gerald Henderson and Kyle Singler), but Tyrese Rice of Boston College and James Johnson of Wake Forest?

I think both Rice and Johnson are among the best players in the ACC, but their respective teams weren't. Maryland beat BC on the road -- a game Vasquez dominated down the stretch --and swept Wake. As you know from reading my coverage of the Terps, I'm not exactly drivivng the Vasquez bandwagon, but he had better overall stats and played on a better team.

Having said that, I think the Wooden list also takes into account what kind of season the player and his team are expecting to have. Vasquez, coming off summer ankle surgery, seems like he isn't at full strength and the Terps have been picked to finish in the bottom half of the league (so has BC, so I'm not sure why Rice should be on the list.)

Here's my choice for the Wooden: Stephen Curry of Davidson.

Posted by Don Markus at 12:23 PM in Terps basketball | Permalink | Comments (3)
        

Just in case you're wondering, here is the order in which the bowls pick ACC teams.

The Orange Bowl, as you probably know, gets the ACC champ.

The Chick-fil-A Bowl gets its pick of the rest. Then comes the Gator, followed by Champs Sports.

After that, the Music City, Meineke and Emerald bowls make bids for the ACC teams they want. Music City and Meineke are at the top of the pecking order.

Then comes the Humanitarian Bowl and the brand-new Congressional Bowl.

There will be a test on this later.

Posted by Jeff Barker at 9:30 AM in Terps football | Permalink | Comments (4)
        

Did you notice the following from last night's game?

* Maryland's Torrey Smith blocked a punt, but the ball went forward. Fridge said Smith came in clean and should have taken the ball off the punter's foot. "He goes for the thigh [instead]" the coach said.

* Maryland came up short in the red zone. It hurt worst when the Terps took the ball on the Virginia Tech 11 after a fumbled punt but could manage only a field goal to cut the lead to 20-13.
Darrius Heyward-Bey said the hit he took on a third-down screen pass on that series was "the best one I've ever taken." I think he meant the most severe.

* Chris Turner completed his first four passes, always a good sign for a player who calls himself a “rhythm quarterback.” He completed a particularly well-thrown sideline ball to Smith for 26 yards on Maryland's second possession.

* Obi Egekeze may have missed a 46-yard field goal, but he made potentially a touchdown-saving tackle on Dyrell Roberts’ 55-yard kickoff return in the second quarter.

* Virginia Tech tight end Greg Boone was used as a situational quarterback the same way Maryland uses Josh Portis. Boone carried six times for 22 yards. Speaking of Portis, I'll need to find out why he didn't play. Is the grand Portis experiment over?

* Virginia Tech, known for special teams, hurt Maryland on returns. The Hokies averaged 31 yards per kickoff return.

* Maryland put freshman Kenny Tate in to return the second-half kickoff. Fridge said Torrey Smith hurt his Achilles.

Posted by Jeff Barker at 7:00 AM in Terps football | Permalink | Comments (6)
        

When you can't run the ball and can't stop the run, you lose.

I don't blame Da'Rel Scott for Maryland finishing with negative rushing yardage. He had nowhere to run.

The run defense looked like it did in the first half at Clemson -- missed tackles, missed assignments.

In the first half alone, Maryland surrendered plays of 50 and 32 yards – plus a 55-yard kickoff return.

But the telling moments were when the Hokies ran out the game's final 5:38 with 11 plays. Eight of them were runs by Evans, and the Terps seemed helpless to stop him.

Check back for more analysis and thoughts in the morning.

Posted by Jeff Barker at 12:30 AM in Terps football | Permalink | Comments (8)
        

* The Terps' defense can't get off the field. The Hokies have scoring drives of 6:22 and 4:24. The principal reason is redshirt freshman Darren Evans, who has 116 yards for the Hokies on 13 carries.

* Da'Rel Scott is playing with his sore shoulder, but he's ineffective. For one thing, he's got little room to run. He's got one net yard on six carries.

* Virginia Tech is mixing and matching at quarterback, using tight end Greg Boone as a situational signal caller. Boone has lined up at tight end and running back, and he has a touchdown. He hadn't played quarterback since high school.

Posted by Jeff Barker at 9:08 PM in Terps football | Permalink | Comments (1)
        

* Running back Da'Rel Scott is warming up for Maryland, sore shoulder and all. We'lll see if he starts. He appears to be moving pretty well.

* The Terps are wearing white jerseys and white pants. Their uniforms look exceptionally clean.

* Scouts are here from the following bowls: Gator, Capital One, Champs Sports, Capital One, Chick-fil-A and Meineke.

Posted by Jeff Barker at 6:51 PM in Terps football | Permalink | Comments (1)