The Maryland Terrapins passed through the first third of the season with a 3-1 record and so far, fulfilling expectations. Most did not see a 4-0 start as likely although it almost became a reality. The Terps won all their non-conference games with victories over Buffalo, Charlotte, and SMU. Their lone loss was their first Conference game at #4 Michigan by just seven points.
Breaking down all three phases for the Terps in all three games, here is how I would summarize it:
Special Teams which have made big strides this season was good in all three games. The Offense looked very good in the beginning of each quarter against Buffalo then faded afterwards, shined against Charlotte and was good but could have been great if not for the turnovers and some of the penalties against SMU. The Defense was good against Buffalo, had issues especially in the 1st quarter against Charlotte and came out strong in the 2nd half and made some big plays in key spots against SMU. Then against Michigan the Terps started off with a special teams blunder on the very first play that led to a TD. There would not be another flare up in that phase but the final score, a loss by seven certainly has that play top of mind. The defense despite what the rushing numbers looked like still had a very solid game. A good deal of those rush yards came on two plays. The secondary had their best game of the year. The offense was solid but not good enough. The Terps while only committing one penalty had three turnovers (although one should have been overturned).
In terms of expectations as pertains to wins and losses and competitive play overall, the Terps met those expectations however with definite room for improvement. With a team returning 15 of 22 starters coming off a 7-win season that included a Bowl Win, there were legitimate expectations for the team this year. It was important that Maryland play well even in a loss at Michigan, and they did that, in fact they had their chances to pull off one of the biggest upsets in program history. That said leading up to the following week’s game against Michigan State, I think it was safe to say the feeling among many was things are trending in the right direction but if they don’t come out and play well and WIN especially as a 7.5 point favorite at home than the effort and play at Michigan would be entirely lost and forgotten about in the narrative when analyzing this team this season. To the credit of the Terps, they came out and took care of business against the Spartans. The offense wasted little time in getting off to races. It was not the kind of defense performance you wanted to see in the first half, but they played better in the 2nd half. The penalties which they made major strides in the game against Michigan were an issue again with nine total. They did not however turnover the ball, a reversal of the Michigan between the two categories.
The Michigan State game was the first Tale Tell in the month of October. This month in fact will indeed tell it all for the Terps. That may seem a bit exaggerated to some but if it is it’s not by much. With games against Purdue at home, on the road at Indiana and then back home against Northwestern, those games will determine how we look back on the 2022 Terps. So far, they are 1-0 in that journey. The Terps can and should win out this month against the Boilermakers, Hoosiers, and Wildcats. Whether they do is another matter. They still have to build a foundation of consistency and a resume of wins in the Conference which they have yet to really do. This Terps team with the talent and experience must make the most of their opportunities this month.
If they want to match and exceed last year, they must take advantage of what lies ahead this month. These are the games and the teams that you should and must beat. No one said it was going to be easy, in fact Purdue is a solid team with a very good passing QB in Aiden O’Connell. The Boilermakers took Penn State to the wire at home in Week 1 and upset a ranked Minnesota team on the road last week (although the Gophers were missing their star RB).
There is a lot riding on this month given what looms in November with games against Ohio State and Penn State. Rutgers right now is a winnable game but who knows what kind of team they will be in a month. They started their season 3-0 too. Wisconsin at the start of the year looked to be a challenging task in a tough environment and while the wheels have about fallen off in Madison, they have made a coaching change with Jim Leonard taking over in the Interim. Leonard is a Coach they think highly of, and the Badgers well could be a different team and rejuvenated by time the Terps take on Wisconsin, I would not assume they will be a wounded duck still next month. Penn State is ranked #10 right now and is a tough team to beat at home at Beaver Stadium. Much of this team did pull off that feat in the pandemic shortened 2020 season where the Nittany Lions started at 0-5. That was then this is now; it will be a very tough task. Currently Ohio State is ranked #3 and while the game is at home let’s be honest, it is highly unlikely MD wins that one although it does not mean they cannot be competitive but that doesn’t count in the win column.
November could be fun, interesting, and fruitful and let us hope it is, but the Terps must take care of business in October for November to mean as much as it could. They do not want to stack extra pressure on themselves going into November with 5 or 6 wins with games at State College and Madison and at home against what likely will still be a Top 3 team. The Terps still have a lot of work to do from cleaning up penalties to more consistent play from their defense to Taulia getting that signature win against a ranked team. They must remain, focused, engaged, hungry and humble. The results of October will also tell us a lot about the experience, maturity, and perceived production from this Terps squad against equal or lesser opponents in crunch time when all eyes and pressure are on them. A 4-0 month is particularly important to achieve the Terps’ 2022 season goals. When all is said and done, I believe October will end up being the Tale of the Tape for this Terps season.
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.