Maryland football seeks bounce back performance against Rutgers

Photo by Grayson Belanger/Maryland Terrapins. Photo courtesy of Maryland Athletics.

Maryland football head coach Mike Locksley has said on multiple instances this season that this year’s team “isn’t the same old Maryland”.

The Terps have lost their last four straight conference games following a 4-0 start, with three involving blown fourth-quarter leads. The trend is similar to previous seasons, where the Terps have won early in the season before struggling through Big Ten play. 

Maryland will look to show that it’s not the same old Maryland on Saturday, taking on Rutgers at SHI Stadium in Piscataway, N.J. The Terps have won three of the last four matchups with the Scarlet Knights, including three straight on the road. 

Maryland (4-4, 1-4 Big Ten) is coming off its worst loss of the season. The Terps were demolished by No. 2 Indiana last Saturday, allowing a season-high 55 points. The Hoosiers doubled Maryland in total yardage and dominated on the ground, outrushing the Terps by 330 yards. 

Now Maryland’s run defense will be tasked with stopping Rutgers’ (4-5, 1-5 Big Ten) star running back Antwan Raymond. The sophomore has 760 rushing yards and 10 touchdowns on the season and is averaging close to five yards a carry. The Terps have had issues stopping the run recently, surrendering over 190 yards on the ground in each of their past three contests. 

Malik Washington has struggled in his last two outings. The true freshman quarterback has completed less than 50 percent of his passes in his previous two games and has thrown more interceptions than touchdowns. Maryland has been forced to rely heavily on its young quarterback due to the absence of a run game – Washington’s 299 pass attempts are second in the conference. 

The Terps’ run game has been a non-factor, especially in conference play. Maryland is dead last in the Big Ten in rushing yards – the only team with an average of under 100 – and is coming off a season-low 37 rushing yards against Indiana. 

The only Big Ten player with more pass attempts than Washington is Rutgers’ Athan Kaliakmanis. The senior quarterback leads the conference in both attempts and passing yards with 2,746 yards on 306 attempts. Unlike the Terps, Kaliakmanis hasn’t been asked to throw because of an absence of a run game, but rather the lack of a strong defense. 

Rutgers hasn’t gotten many stops this year. Opposing teams have thrived, averaging a whopping 428 yards per game – the worst mark in the Big Ten. The scoring defense has been only marginally better, ranking second-worst in the conference with an average of 31.1 points per game. 

Maryland’s total yards allowed are similar to the Scarlet Knights – 380.9 on average – but it has made up for it with turnovers. Maryland ranks first in the conference and is tied for second in the nation in interceptions with 15 — four of which have been returned for touchdowns. 

The Terps’ young pass rush, led by star freshmen Sidney Stewart and Zahir Mathis, will have a chance to make a big impact on Saturday. Maryland’s 23 sacks are fifth in the Big Ten, and no quarterback in the conference gets sacked more than Kaliakmanis. He’s gone down in the backfield 28 times, and each Big Ten opponent that the Scarlet Knights have played has picked up multiple sacks. 

Saturday’s game will have significant bowl implications for the Terps. Maryland has to win two of its final four games to be bowl eligible, and the easiest path would be through the Scarlet Knights and the Spartans in the Terps’ final game of the season. If the Terps drop their contest to the Scarlet Knights, they would have to win their final two road games or beat No. 21 Michigan.

“Our goal didn’t have a number on it,” Locksley said. “We said our goal is to elevate the program. I think I’ve displayed and showed that there’s still room for us to have that type of elevation.”