Maryland football seeks second-ever 2-0 Big Ten start against Washington

Photo by Dylan Davies/Maryland Terrapins. Photo courtesy of Maryland Athletics.

The last time Maryland football faced the Washington Huskies, head coach Mike Locksley was celebrating his 13th birthday. 

Led by star quarterback Boomer Esiason, the 1982 Terps finished the season with an 8-4 record, a ranking in both the AP and Coaches’ polls, and an appearance in the Aloha Bowl — where they lost 21-20 against the Huskies. 

Over 40 years later, Maryland (4-0, 1-0 Big Ten) will look to tie the series, taking on Washington (3-1, 0-1 Big Ten) on Saturday in College Park at 3:30 p.m. 

A similarity from both teams’ first matchup in the ’80s – the Terps will have a standout QB leading them. Malik Washington has been one of the top freshmen in the country, leading that group in average passing yards per game, and is tied for the most touchdown passes. Washington’s 1038 total passing yards through four games is the most by a power conference true freshman since Jayden Daniels in 2019. 

The 6-foot-5-inch quarterback has spread the ball early. Four different players in Maryland’s offense have over 10 receptions and 100 yards, with senior wide receiver Jalil Farooq leading the team in receptions with 17, while Shaleak Knotts’ 276 yards are the most out of any Terp. Knotts and Washington’s connection has led to a plethora of big plays, as the senior wide receiver has five touchdowns through four games and averages just under 20 yards per catch. 

Maryland’s passing game has been one of the best in the conference, but its run game has not. The Terps’ 102.8 rushing yards per game is the lowest mark in the Big Ten. Redshirt freshman DeJuan Williams has started to establish himself as Maryland’s top running back, leading the team in rushing yards. Williams is coming off a strong performance against Wisconsin, where he amassed 61 rushing yards on 15 carries. 

The Huskies have had no trouble running the ball. Washington has run the ball for more than double the yards the Terps have, averaging an impressive 5.3 yards per carry. Senior running back Jonah Coleman has been dominant on the ground, averaging 6.5 yards per carry and notching nine total touchdowns. 

“He’s a tough tackle in terms of – one guy coming, if you don’t bring your feet and play and tackle them with leverage, he can make you look bad,” Locksley said when asked about Coleman. “With this running back, it’s going to take a lot of hats to the ball, because sometimes the first guy may not get him down.”

Quarterback Demond Williams Jr.’s dual-threat ability makes the Huskies’ run game that much harder to defend. The sophomore has more yards on the ground than any Maryland running back, along with 951 passing yards. Junior wide receiver Denzel Boston has been Williams’ favorite target, leading the team in receptions, yards, and touchdowns. 

Keeping those three players in check will be key for the Terps’ defense — a unit that has proven so far to be up to any task. Maryland has allowed 43 points through four games — the lowest mark since 2013 — and boasts the nation’s second-best red zone defense. They also have eight interceptions this season — second best in FBS. 

A win on Saturday would not only be Maryland’s second-ever 2-0 Big Ten start and fifth-ever 5-0 start, but it would be Locksley’s first win as the Terps head coach coming off a bye week. Under Locksley, Maryland is 0-9 in games after bye weeks. 

“I didn’t even know. I had to ask, ‘What’s my record after bye weeks?’ But I didn’t know it was that bad,” Locksley said. “This past week, I gave a lot more individual time and really tried to hone in on –  let’s get better at one thing, because if you try to fix everything, you end up fixing nothing … so we took that approach and we’ll see how it works on Saturday.”