Maryland

Season Preview: Maryland Football aims to take the next step – WMUC Sports

Published

2 years ago

August 21, 2022

Season Preview: Maryland Football aims to take the next step – WMUC Sports

By Brennan Stewart

2021 had its justifiable share of ups and downs for the Terps. The crew completed 7-6 total after the Terps’ squad received its first bowl sport since 2010, routing Virginia Tech within the New Period Pinstripe Bowl. All six losses got here from groups throughout the Huge Ten convention: Iowa, Ohio State, Minnesota, Penn State, Michigan State and Michigan. The Terps will play 9 in-conference video games this season, simply as they did final 12 months, hoping to extend its 33.3% win proportion within the Huge Ten and make it to a different bowl.

Guess who’s again?

Who can neglect the Terps’ Week 5 blackout in opposition to No. 5 Iowa? Early within the second quarter, Maryland’s high huge receiver, Dontay Demus Jr., suffered a ugly proper knee harm that required surgical procedure and in flip ended his season. Simply as he promised, Demus might be returning in 2022 for his last 12 months as a Terp.

Demus, at present graded 75.8 on PFF.com, is now the third highest grade to be given to a Maryland huge receiver behind D.J. Moore (77.1) and Stefon Diggs (79.5). With rising expertise Taulia Tagovailoa as his Quarterback, Demus Jr. might be seeking to make a comeback as a high huge receiver prospect within the 2023 NFL Draft.

Earlier than his harm final season, Demus had 3 touchdowns and 507 receiving yards, which was probably the most receiving yards within the Huge Ten on the time. He’s anticipated to be prepared by the beginning of the season, in keeping with Coach Locksley. “Our thought is that we’ll see him within the first sport and I feel that’s nonetheless the place we at the moment are,” Locksley instructed reporters throughout his Huge Ten Media Day press convention earlier this month.

The Offense

Demus received’t be the one highly-touted receiver popping out of Maryland after this season. Junior huge receiver Rakim Jarrett might be seeking to make one other splash this 12 months after a stellar 2021 season that landed him at #68 on ESPN’s top-100 faculty soccer participant checklist. Jarett completed 2021 with 829 receiving yards on 62 receptions, and a complete of 5 touchdowns. Moreover, former Florida Gators receiver, Jacob Copeland, transferred to Maryland within the offseason and appears to search out his place in a proficient receiving corps. Copeland had a restricted function as a Gator, incomes 642 receiving yards and 4 touchdowns, however in Faculty Park, he appears to spice up his affect.

Now, again to Maryland’s quarterback, Tagovailoa. Arguably probably the most underrated quarterbacks in faculty soccer, Tagovailoa had a formidable exhibiting in 2021, accumulating 3,860 yards passing and an astonishing 26 touchdowns. With a whole and wholesome receiving tandem at his disposal, anticipate Tagovailoa’s numbers to exceed his already elite exhibiting from final 12 months.

The Protection

Sadly, Maryland’s protection seems to be the crew’s weakest facet on paper. A number of of Maryland’s key defensive gamers entered the switch portal earlier than the deadline arrived in Might. Sophomore Darrell Jackson transferred to the College of Miami after raking in 15 solo tackles in his first 12 months at Maryland. Senior Lavonte Gater transferred to Kent State after incomes 21 solo tackles and 1 pressured fumble. Different names embody Demeioun Robinson, Andre Porter, Kenny Benett, and Devyn King. In complete, six defensive gamers have been misplaced to the switch portal.

With Brian Williams serving as the brand new defensive coordinator this season, he turns into the 4th particular person to carry the place since 2019. Williams was the top play caller for the ultimate two video games in 2021, serving to Maryland earn wins over Rutgers and Virginia Tech. the Terps’ teaching workers hopes he’ll be capable to construct upon his early success after incomes the promotion earlier within the 12 months.

Teaching Workers

Williams might be joined by a number of new coaches on the defensive workers. Considered one of these coaches is Lance Thompson, a educated recruiter who has additionally coached at eight totally different faculties across the NCAA together with Alabama, LSU, and Auburn. Most just lately, Thompson served because the linebacker coach at Florida Atlantic College and can now be teaching Maryland’s inside linebackers.

Moreover, one other new addition to the workers is Wes Neighbors, who joined the Terps as a safeties coach. Neighbors has coached at three totally different faculties: Louisiana, South Florida, and Florida Atlantic. Final season, Neighbors helped the Louisiana Ragin Cajuns go 13-1 en path to a Solar Belt Convention championship. The Ragin Cajuns’ protection was ranked #14 within the FBS, solely permitting 18.5 factors per sport on common.

Moreover, Beneath new management, Maryland’s protection might be seeking to change the narrative after being ranked third-worst amongst defensive models within the Huge Ten in 2021.

On the opposite facet of the ball, Coach Locksley employed Gunter Brewer because the crew’s new huge receiver coach. Brewer started his teaching profession at Purdue in 1986. Over the previous three many years, Brewer has developed many notable receivers together with Dez Bryant and Randy Moss. With the abilities of Demus Jr., Copeland, and Jarett in his receiving corps, Maryland’s passing sport is definite to strike concern into its Huge Ten opponents.

Schedule Preview

Week 1: Buffalo at Maryland – September third, 12:00 PM

Week 2: Maryland at Charlotte – September tenth, 3:30 PM

Week 3: SMU at Maryland – September seventeenth, 7:30 PM

Week 4: Maryland at Michigan – September twenty fourth, 12:00 PM

Week 5: Michigan State at Maryland – October 1st, TBA

Week 6: Purdue at Maryland – October eighth, TBA

Week 7: Maryland at Indiana – October fifteenth, TBA

Week 8: Northwestern at Maryland – October twenty second, 3:30 PM

Week 9: Maryland at Wisconsin – November fifth, TBA

Week 10: Maryland at Penn State – November twelfth, TBA

Week 11: Ohio State at Maryland – November nineteenth, TBA

Week 12: Rutgers at Maryland – November twenty sixth, TBA

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Maryland

Michigan State football opens as sizable underdog vs Maryland

Published

6 hours ago

September 2, 2024

Press Room

Michigan State football opens as sizable underdog vs Maryland

Who’s ready for Big Ten play to begin? In all honesty, I am not. I really wish Michigan State football had more tune-up games after seeing them struggle against Florida Atlantic and only win 16-10. But unfortunately, that is not how the schedule unfolds for Michigan State this season.

The Spartans will hit the road for an early Big Ten game as they face Maryland on Saturday at 3:30 pm. Going into the season I thought Michigan State and the Terps were on a pretty level playing field, but after seeing both teams play week one that doesn’t appear to be the case.

And Vegas agrees.

Michigan State opens as a 7.5-point underdog next week at Maryland. My guess is that grows to 8, 8.5.
— Graham Couch (@Graham_Couch) September 1, 2024
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As you all know, Michigan State only beat Florida Atlantic by six and did not look very impressive, especially on the offensive side of the ball. So it’s no surprise that MSU will be the underdog next week. But 7.5 points feels like a lot, and according to the Lansing State Journal’s Graham Couch, it likely will only go up from there.

So does Vegas have it right or are they underrating Michigan State?

Looking at Maryland’s week one game against UConn it appears Vegas has this line right. The Terps were up 23-0 at halftime and never looked back and went on to win in dominant fashion 50-7. UConn and FAU are very similar in terms of what level they’re at in college football, so that drastic of a difference in the final score is very scary.

So Vegas probably could’ve gotten away with Maryland being even bigger favorites in this one.

But maybe Vegas saw what I did and thinks a lot of Michigan State’s mistakes on Friday are easy to fix. Maybe they think Aidan Chiles will be much better next week. The Spartan’s defense was also fairly dominant so there isn’t much of a chance Maryland scores 50 points next week either.

I tend to not bet on Michigan State games, but even if I did this would be a line that I would avoid because who knows how much Jonathan Smith’s squad will improve by next week, and who knows how much Maryland might struggle against a Power Four opponent.

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Maryland

University of Maryland reverses decision to allow anti-Israel protest on October 7

Published

13 hours ago

September 2, 2024

Press Room

University of Maryland reverses decision to allow anti-Israel protest on October 7

The University of Maryland on Sunday reversed its decision to allow an anti-Israel protest on the first anniversary of the October 7 Massacre, following backlash from local Jewish groups.

UMD Students for Justice in Palestine and UMD Jewish Voice for Peace had been set to hold their October 7 vigil for Gazans killed in the Israel-Hamas War at the campus’s Mckeldin Mall, but the University System of Maryland (USM) said in a statement that on the day of the Hamas-led pogrom it would limit campus events requiring permits or approval to those supporting “a university-sponsored Day of Dialogue.”

“From the beginning of the war, we have come together as a University System to urge that we use this moment to encourage conversation, compassion, and civility; to engage with one another across our differences and draw on our shared humanity and our shared values to bridge what divides us,” said USM. “These dialogues aren’t new. Many of our universities have been hosting this kind of programming for several months. Reserving Oct. 7 gives us a chance to continue these urgent conversations and to mark this solemn anniversary in a way that gives students—all students—the time and space to share and to be heard.”

USM said that its intent was not to infringe of the free expression and speech of students, but to be sensitive to the needs of students as October 7 was a “day of enormous suffering and grief for many in our campus communities.”

UMD Jewish Student Union, Maryland Hillel, Terps for Israel, and Israeli American Council Mishelanu at Maryland welcomed the USM decision and thanked UMD leadership in a joint social media statement on Sunday.

The campus of the University of Maryland in College Park. (credit: Courtesy)

“October 7, the largest massacre of Jews since the Holocaust, is a day of mourning for the Jewish and Israeli community,” said the UMD JSU. “We are relieved that SJP will no longer to be able to appropriate the suffering of our family and friends to fit their false and dangerous narrative.”

The Jewish groups said that it was distraught that the decision to only hold university-sponsored event had to be made at all, and wished to used the campus space to “grieve together as a community” to promote unity at the university. The unideal situation was necessary, according to the Jewish groups, to ensure the physical and psychological safety of students on the day of mourning.

UMD JVP and SJP attacked the decision to cancel the event, claiming that the vigil for Palestinians killed since the October 7 Massacre was attacked without familiarity of the content. The anti-Israel groups said that the discourse was “the continuation inherently racist, Islamophobic, and dehumanizing rhetoric surrounding Palestinians.” JVP and SJP said that the actions against their event were an attempt to paint “Muslim, Arab, and anti-Zionist Jewish students as barbaric.”

The anti-Israel groups asserted that their vigil for Palestinians who died in the war was no threat to the campus’s Jewish community, but conflation of Zionism and Judaism did threaten UMD and the Jewish community.

“To claim that Palestinians cannot hold a day of remembrance in mourning one year of genocide, or lay claim to that date is an insult to every life lost in the Zionist entity’s genocidal campaign,” UMD SJP and JVP said on Instagram on Sunday. “The disproportionate scale of suffering experienced by the Palestinians over the past year necessitates their remembrance and our solidarity on this day. The suffering of all innocents killed must not be monopolized and necessitates a fair and just representation.”

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SJP and JVP demanded the right to organize and exercise their right to free speech, accusing Zionists of attempting to stifle Palestinian voices.

The organizations indicated on their Sunday Instagram post that they still planned to hold their all-day event at Mckeldin Mall, and on Monday a link to register still active and listing the campus building as the rally location.

UMD Jewish groups said that they would be holding their own event to memorialize the victims of the October 7 pogrom at the Maryland Hillel.

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