I was asked recently how good the Terps are, and my response was I don’t know yet. The non-conference schedule so far has been underwhelming. In Week 1 against Buffalo the Defense and Special Teams played well however the Offense despite putting up 31 points was off in their passing game. The numbers for Taulia Tagovailoa may have pained a different picture but he was not in rhythm on that Saturday at times. While yardage and completion percentage looked good, he had no TD passes and 1 INT. Some of that can be chalked up to it being the first game but with 15 of 22 starters back and with the amount of starts under the offense’s belt you would have liked to see this offense put 45 or 50 against a team picked 5th in the MAC this season.
Against Charlotte, the offense looked great and special teams was good, but the defense had issues especially in the 1st giving up 14 points. Some penalties in that quarter did not help matters either and they have 16 as a team in the first two games to start the season.
The long and short of it is SMU will give everyone including the Terps themselves a better idea of where they stand before Conference play gets started and the first two weeks of the season (at #4 Michigan then vs. Michigan State) in Big Ten play will also go a long way to determining if the Terps are ready to compete with the upper echelon of the Big Ten this season and whether they can pull off an upset even if it does not happen against one of those two teams.
*The Terps so far have run the ball much better than last year and that is something they will need to continue to do to make their offense that much more of a threat to score. I have said I thought their RB room was underrated and so far I have been proven right about their talent and potential…I have not been happy with the Corner play for the last three years. It simply needs to be more consistent. Bennett, Banks and Still (currently injured) need to get together and fast.
*The question of expectations this year is also apart of the regular conversation concerning the 2022 Terrapins. Obviously, we are already 2 games into the season at 2-0 and so far, the Terps have taken care of business against lesser teams. There are 10 games left. I have said that even if the Terps go 7-6 this season with a Bowl win that to me that would still be considered a successful season because they have not had back-to-back winning seasons since 2013 and 2014 and they have not had back-to-back Bowl Game wins since 2002-03. Now I know a lot of fans might disagree with that assessment but putting together consistent 7 game winning seasons is a far cry from where this program has been in a long time. I am not saying that should be the ceiling, but it still would be successful. Now my caveat to 7 wins is one of those 7 wins needs to be an upset win over a Michigan, Michigan State, Wisconsin and or Penn State. (The Terps defeated PSU in ‘20 on the road and took them into the 4th quarter at home last season, I think they can be with them down to the end this season too…Michigan looks even less likely now that they have some answers to their question marks…Michigan State is still to me an unknown, I think possibly the other team they have a chance to upset outside of PSU…Wisconsin is struggling in red zone right now but usually a strong defense). This team should be taking better teams into the late 3rd or into the 4th Quarters. An upset is not asking too much at this point with this amount of returning starters. Heck if Appalachian State can go into College Station and beat Texas A&M, and Marshall can go into Notre Dame and win, well…
For those that say 8 or 9 wins is what this team should accomplish this year—8 is possible but 9 is not going to happen. With West matchups against Wisconsin and Purdue, 9 wins is near impossible playing in the East for this program. Eight wins is attainable, but this team must cut down on the penalties and get better play from their secondary especially at the Corner position. They also of course must stay healthy on the offensive line. Perspective of this program must be considered when projecting the Terps this season.
*Right now, in the Big Ten East everyone is off to a 2-0 start:
Ohio State got through a tough game against a good Notre Dame defense in Week 1 although admittedly that game looks different now after the Irish loss to Marshall last Saturday. They also defeated Arkansas State. Their defense is playing better so far and the offense is still loaded with talent.
Michigan has decided on JJ McCarthy at QB and he is decidedly more talented than Cade McNamara. He looked outstanding Saturday night albeit it was against Hawaii. The Wolverine’s defense has looked outstanding under new DC Jesse Minter even without Aidan Hutchinson and David Ojabo. They have rolled their first two opponents so far at home with another coming this week.
Michigan State has wins over Western Michigan and Akron…QB Peyton Thorne has been inconsistent to start the season but so far RBs Jalen Berger and Jarek Broussard have filled the shoes of Kenneth Walker who is now playing for the Seahawks in the NFL. WR Jayden Reed returns. The secondary is still a question mark.
Penn State returns a 6th year QB in Sean Clifford with some very young but talented RBs and enough at WR/TE. The Nittany Lions got through a tough Week 1 road matchup at Purdue with a late TD for the win followed by a win over Akron. They will be good maybe not great but will be a challenge for the Terps no doubt.
Rutgers played 3 QBs last week in their rout of Wagner and they all played well. They also have a nice come from behind win against Boston College in Week 1. This is an important year for Greg Schiano to show some progress for the program in Year #2 of his 2nd go round in Piscataway.
Indiana after 8 straight losses last season got a Week 1 Conference win against Illinois after going winless in the Big Ten last season and then avoided upset as they scored 35 points in the second half to defeat Idaho. Connor Bazelak is their new QB transferring in from Missouri.
*Conference expansion in the offseason should not have come as a surprise, it had been about a year since anything significant had happened in the Power 5 and it just was not top of mind for many. The Big Ten getting USC and UCLA to come into the Conference bringing in the LA market is obviously huge. With the additional money from TV contracts, we are looking at Big Ten Schools receiving $100 million annually, a substantial increase from where they are today. So, what does this mean for Maryland? On the field USC’s addition clearly makes it tougher for the Terps to find consistent footing because it adds what will likely be a perennial elite program. The UCLA addition is no gimme win but is not a program that the Terps can’t win games against. The Terps have it tough enough in the East. Where will USC and UCLA be placed? If they are put in the West who from the West comes to the East? All of that is still to be determined.
The bigger question is with the additional money what will Maryland do with it? How much further will they delve into NIL? Facilities matter for sure, but NIL will win over facilities and let’s be honest everyone is building nice facilities. Although I am sure there are certainly some distinct differences between them, the campuses, and the overall feel for a prospective player between schools. The bottom line is the college athletic departments and universities that do not go all in on NIL will be playing from behind with 4- and 5-Star recruits. That said Maryland must use the money wisely and creatively for NIL, facilities and more to be able to capture those rare 5 Star recruits but more so with lesser and fringe 4 Star recruits. To their credit they have made major strides in the football program with the Jones-Hill House. Maryland Stadium though still leaves a lot to be desired.
Terps Analyst
Mike Popovec is a Weekend and Fill-In host at 105-7 The Fan. In addition Mike hosts the Pre and Post, Halftime and Scoreboard Updates for the Football Games on the Maryland Terrapins Sports Radio Network. He also hosts the Pre and Post Game Show on weekends for some of the Maryland Basketball Games. Popovec also hosts a local News, Talk and Sports Morning Program at the beach on 92-7 WGMD. He also produces and hosts High School Football Games and Shows throughout the season out of Easton covering the Eastern Shore’s Bayside Conference. He sideline reports for CW54 for the Maryland State High School Football Playoffs with Bruce Cunningham, Doug Duvall and Wally Williams.