Outscored 17-3 in the 2nd-half, MD lost at home to Virginia.
Facing a UVA team that was missing their starting RB, and lost their starting QB prior to the beginning of the 4th quarter, MD still could not find a way to win.
The game seemed to turn, when a sideline catch 26 yards was confirmed by replay for UVA. MD’s defense thought they had forced a 3 an out, and did not seem prepared to return to the field.
UVA went down and got 3pts. Then on the very next series, Chris Turner threw a pick, that was returned for a TD. In a matter of seconds, MD had gone from being up 9-3, to down 13-9.
Freshman Kicker Nick Ferrara has been excellent overall, but missed two critical FG’s yesterday. I can not get on him too much, as the field conditions grew consistently worse, and it should be remembered what an excellent job Ferrara has done as the back-up punter.
If the Terps wanted to salvage their season with a bowl appearance; winning yesterday was required.
You would think holding UVA to 201 total yards, forcing 5 sacks, and allowing Turner to only be sacked once – would have been a recipe for success, but the offense was dismal.
Turner had 38 passing attempts, but was only able to throw for 158 yards. His most effective contribution to the offense was his 15 yards rushing.
I have no doubt that Turner is currently the best QB on the roster. However, with this season effectively over, it might make little sense to give Turner all of the snaps. I think it would probably be beneficial to the Terps to get Jamarr Robinson, and Danny O’Brien some significant snaps prior to the official end of this year.
If the Terps were going to mount a come-back yesterday, there best chance evolved when true Freshman Caleb Porzel entered the game at running-back. On his 3rd-carry of the game, he hit the hole for 10 yards, but should have had a TD. With nothing but daylight in-front of him, Porzel fell down, as he was tackled by the wet-field. He brings an element of explosion to the field, and needs to get regular carries down the stretch. Actually, he should not be limited to just carries. You need to find a way to get the ball to Porzel in-space, and allow him to make plays. He reminds you of Sproles with the San Diego Chargers. I would review some Charger game-tape, and find similar plays to run for Porzel.
It is a shame that MD could not win yesterday, because both the offensive-line, and defense played well.
The return of Bruce Campbell at LT, allowed the rest of the line to settle-in. As mentioned above, Turner was only sacked once in 38 pass-attempts. They also helped the Terps rush for 126 yards on 33 carries. One positive that has occurred this season, is that a lot of players have received playing-time and experience on the O-line.
The defense holding UVA to 201 yards, and putting 5 sacks on the board is excellent. MD received sacks from 5 different players, including Wujciak, Ivey, Moten, Galt, and Pooler.
@Duke, @NCST, and home-against Boston College are winnable game for MD, but even if they win all 3, that only gets MD to 5 wins for the season.
The Terps have simply lost too many games this season that they had to have on the winning side of the ledger. They did not have to run the table against Middle Tennessee, Rutgers, @Wake Forest, and home vs. UVA – but losing all four is just inexcusable.
Owner
Chris Stoner founded Baltimore Sports and Life in 2009. He has appeared as a radio guest with 1090 WBAL, 105.7 The Fan, CBS 1300, Q1370, WOYK 1350, WKAV 1400, and WNST 1570. He has also been interviewed by The Baltimore Sun, Baltimore Business Journal, and PressBox (TV). As Owner, his responsibilities include serving as the Managing Editor, Publicist, & Sales Director.