Postgame Quotes

Boston College 20, Maryland 17

Head Coach Randy Eds.

On lost opportunities to win the game:

“We had our opportunities to win and we couldn’t make a play when we needed to make a play here at the end. It’s very disappointing, but again, it’s one of those things that our kids played hard, competed, put themselves in a position to win the game and then couldn’t come up with the one play that we needed to make. We had opportunities, offensively, defensively and on special teams.”

On the defense’s play:

“Our defense played great the whole game and really kept us in the game until we got going offensively. [BC] doesn’t have a third-down conversion the whole game, until that last drive. We blew a coverage there at the end, which was unfortunate. Offensively, we didn’t take advantage of the field position that we had throughout the game.”

On freshman QB Caleb Rowe:

“I thought Caleb did a good job. I thought he competed. You can see the inexperience a little bit. A couple of times, he could have hung in the pocket a little bit more. Two of the picks he had, he was trying to do too much. Take a sack on the first one. On the second one, just run out of bounds, in terms of where we were. And he’ll get better for this and he’ll learn from it.”

On the loss:

“I feel for the kids, I really do. I wanted them to win so badly because they are doing all the things that we are asking them to do and playing their hearts out. We’ve got to get them to play a little bit smarter. When they got in some of these situations, they need to believe even more in themselves. That is what is so frustrating and disheartening for me. We’re just not getting those wins for these kids in terms of the effort that we are getting from them.”

On BC’s game-winning drive:

“We had some pressure in there. We had one that opened wide open and [Darin Drakeford] was just a hair second late getting there. We were getting good pressure. We just needed to make one more play and we were just unable to do it.”

 

Senior Defensive Lineman Joe Vellano

On the play of the defense:

“We were running just some base stuff and we were able to get a few sacks but they had a few crossing routes that mixed up our coverage a little bit.  It’s tough for me to tell with the coverage because my back is to the play.”

On the play of freshman quarterback Caleb Rowe:

“In practice watching him, he made all the throws. He did a great job coming in and getting the offense going, getting some first downs, and putting some points on the board.  He did a really good job overall.”

On how frustrating the final drive is after playing so well all game:

“We were rushing hard every play and he [Rettig] made some plays but we can’t let them come down the field like that with such a long field ahead of them. Obviously it’s a tough one to handle.”

On how difficult the loss is given their schedule in November:

“We have some guys down but a bunch of guys need to step up. We just have to keep making plays and not wait until the second half to do so.  We have to come out with better energy in the beginning of games and give them tougher field position then they had.”

 

Freshman quarterback Caleb Rowe

On making his first career start:

“It was very exhilarating and we were finally able to get some things going in the second half.  Overall it was fun but you would have liked to have gotten a win.

On getting on rhythm in the third quarter:

“I felt pretty calm at the beginning of the game, I think it was just a matter of things opening up for us in the third quarter. That’s just how football goes, things began to click for us.”

On what it was like preparing this week:

“I’m always trying to get myself ready but it was fun to be “the guy” this week. There were a lot more reps so I’m a little more sore than usual, the guys were behind me the whole time.”

On the final drive:

“I felt calm on the last drive. I know we had to get a field goal with one timeout left but #47 [Rositano] made a good play on the ball.”

On much he learned from this game?

“I have learned so much. Each interception really can teach you a lot and with the film study, I’m looking forward to learning a lot more. Right before halftime I shouldn’t have tried to force that ball, also I need to try and stay in the pocket more. My offensive line was blocking great, I just need to stay in there longer.”

 

Postgame Notes

 

Kicking Off: Maryland fell to 4-4 overall and 2-2 in the Atlantic Coast Conference, while Boston College improved to 2-6 and 1-4 in the league … the Eagles lead the all-time series 7-3 with a 3-1 advantage in Chestnut Hill … Maryland’s defense held its opponent to under 100 rushing yards for the fifth time this season.

D-Line Steps Up: Maryland’s defensive line combined for 3.5 sacks and 6.0 tackles for loss, while helping hold Boston College to 8 net rushing yards. Joe Vellano, who leads the ACC in TFLs, had 3.0 including 1.5 sacks. A.J. Francis had 2.0 TFLs and 1.0 sack, while Darius Kilgo had 1.0 sack.

Rowe Makes Start: Caleb Rowe made his first career start at quarterback and became the sixth true freshman to start on either offense or defense this season. Rowe went 23 of 42 for 240 yards, two touchdowns and three interceptions. He became the first Maryland QB with 40 pass attempts in a game since C.J. Brown vs. Wake Forest on Nov. 19, 2011.

4th-Down Conversions: Maryland converted two fourth downs en route to its first scoring drive. On 4th-and-7, Rowe hits Kevin Dorsey for a 26-yard gain that got the Terps to the BC 6-yard line. Four plays later, on 4th-and-goal from the 1, Rowe hit Nigel King in the back of the end zone for a touchdown.

Diggs Cracks Two Lists: With four games to play, Stefon Diggs has already cracked the top 20 on the Maryland single-season receiving yards list. Diggs had 152 yards on 11 catches against Boston College, bringing his season total to 670 which ranks 16th. That’s second all-time among freshmen, trailing only Darrius Heyward-Bey’s 694 in 2006. Diggs also moved into the top 20 on Maryland’s single-season all-purpose yards list. The freshman has 1,354 this year, which ranks 11th. That’s also second among freshmen, trailing only Torrey Smith’s 1,425 in 2008.

More Diggs: Diggs set career highs in receptions (11) and receiving yards (152). It was his third 100-yard receiving game this season and he leads the team with four receiving touchdowns. Diggs is the first Terp with at least 10 receptions in a game since Torrey Smith had 14 against NC State on Nov. 27, 2010.

Defensive Notes: Maryland held Boston College to 8 net rushing yards on 27 attempts, while totaling five sacks and 10 tackles for loss … Cole Farrand had a team-high seven tackles … the Terps forced six 3-and-outs, including three straight during one stretch in the second half … defensive backs Dexter McDougle and Anthony Nixon each had six solo tackles.

Tidbits: Maryland possessed the ball for 33:27 compared to 26:33 for Boston College … the Terps were just 5 of 18 on 3rd-down conversions, while holding Boston College to 3 of 13 … Nathan Renfro averaged 40.8 yards on eight punts and put two inside the 20.

COLLEGE PARK, Md. - After a heartbreaking 20-18 loss at home to NC State last week, the Maryland football team will look to rebound and move one win closer to bowl eligibility when it takes on Boston College this Saturday. The Terps and Eagles will be meeting for just the 10th time in a series in which Boston College has held the upper hand. Boston College has won six of the nine meetings and five of seven since joining the ACC in 2005.

First-and-10

• In the loss to NC State, Maryland overcame a season-ending injury to quarterback Perry Hills and was in position to win in the game’s final seconds, while totaling a season-high 462 yards of total offense. Backup quarterback Devin Burns ably directed the spread-option attack in the second half, rushing for 50 yards and a touchdown and completing three of four passes for 47 yards. Burns’ mobility helped create lanes for freshman Wes Brown, who ran for a season-high 121 yards, with 97 coming in the second half. Heading into preseason camp, Burns was set to play wide receiver; only after C.J. Brown’s season-ending injury during camp did Burns switch to quarterback.

• On top of Burns’ performance, true freshman quarterback Caleb Rowe entered the game with 0:32 left to direct Maryland’s 2-minute offense. Rowe moved the Terrapins 61 yards in three plays, sandwiching passes of 17 and 33 yards with an 11-yard run. That set up a 33-yard field goal attempt that would have won the game, but freshman Brad Craddock’s attempt clanged off the left upright. Rowe became the 13th true freshman to play for Maryland this season, which is tied for the sixth most in the FBS (see list, page 3).

• Maryland’s defense continues to rank as one of the nation’s best. The Terps rank 11th nationally in total defense (288.4 ypg), sixth in rushing defense (87.6 ypg) and tied for 29th in passing defense (200.9 ypg). NC State totaled just 40 rushing yards on 26 attempts (1.5 yards per carry) and became the fourth Maryland opponent this season to fail to gain 100 yards on the ground. Maryland has an experienced front seven highlighted by senior defensive linemen Joe Vellano and A.J. Francis, and senior linebacker Demetrius Hartsfield. Those three have played a big role in holding opponents to an average of just 2.53 yards per rush, which ranks fifth nationally. Adding to Maryland’s strength up front are senior linebackers Kenneth Tate andDarin Drakeford. Tate, who made his season debut at West Virginia after missing the previous 11 games due to a knee injury, has 18 tackles and four pass breakups in four games back. Drakeford, meanwhile, has constantly been in the opponents backfield; his 6.0 sacks are tied for third in the ACC, and his 8.0 tackles for loss are tied for seventh.

• Maryland’s 7.4 tackles for loss per game are tied for 17th in the FBS and its 2.9 sacks per game are also tied for 17th. Vellano leads the ACC and is tied for 14th nationally with 1.64 tackles for loss per game. Linebacker Cole Farrand is third on the team with 6.0 TFLs.

• Offensively and on special teams, wide receiver Stefon Diggs continues to be Maryland’s most dynamic playmaker. Against Virginia, the freshman returned the game’s opening kickoff 100 yards for a touchdown and went on to catch four passes for 89 yards. Over the last four games he’s averaging 92.0 receiving yards per game, while his 166.0 all-purpose yards per game this season rank second in the ACC and 11th nationally. Additionally, Diggs leads the conference in kickoff return average (28.4 yards) and ranks fifth in punt return average (10.3 yards), while his 19.0 yards per catch are tied for third. Diggs had a stretch of three straight weeks in which he earned ACC weekly honors (Rookie of the Week – WVU, Wake Forest; Specialst of the Week – Virginia).

• Marcus Leak has also turned into one of Maryland’s most reliable players on offense. The sophomore is second on the team in both receptions (23) and receiving yards (393) and against NC State caught four passes for a career-high 94 yards.

Quick Hitters

• Maryland’s close game against NC State is one of a number of close calls in recent history. In the last 13 contests, 11 have been decided by 10 points or fewer. Aside from a 37-0 Maryland win in 2007, the 11 games since 2000 have been decided by an average of 6.0 points. The Terps have played in close games all of the 2012 season; their average margin of victory is 5.5, and their average margin of defeat is 5.0.

• Stefon Diggs earned ACC Player of the Week honors in three straight games from Sept. 22 to Oct. 13. Diggs won Rookie of the Week for his play against West Virginia (9/22) and Wake Forest (10/6) and Specialist of the Week against Virginia (10/13). A Terp captured Linebacker of the Week honors in two straight games when Demetrius Hartsfield earned Linebacker of the Week for his play against Wake Forest, and Darin Drakeford received the award against Virginia.

• Diggs ranks seventh in the conference and first among freshmen with 73.4 receiving yards per game. Diggs, who has 27 catches for 514 yards, is just outside the top 25 on Maryland’s single-season receiving yards list (see list page 6).

• Diggs is the only Maryland freshman to record back-to-back 100-yard receiving games (vs. West Virginia and Wake Forest) since at least 1985, the earliest game-by-game statistics were recorded at the school.

• Maryland allowed Wake Forest to complete just 32.4 percent of its passes (13 of 38). That is the lowest percentage by an opponent with at least 30 passing attempts since Duke went 13 of 42 (30.9%) on Nov. 14, 1998.

• Joe Vellano’s father, Paul Vellano, was inducted into the Maryland Athletics Hall of Fame on Oct. 5. The elder Vellano was a first team All-American in 1973, while Joe was a second team All-American in 2011. The father-son combo represent one of four known father-son All-America combos to attend the same FBS school (also Lee and Travis McGriff at Florida; Kevin and Drew Butler at Georgia; Archie and Eli Manning at Ole Miss).

• Thirteen players have made their first career starts at some point this season. In the season opener against William & Mary, quarterback Perry Hills, running back Albert Reid, safety Sean Davis, defensive back Jeremiah Johnson, linebacker Cole Farrand, nose tackle Darius Kilgo and offensive lineman Nick Klemm debuted. Against Connecticut, wide receiver Stefon Diggs made his first career start; defensive back Isaac Goins and running back Brandon Ross made their starting debuts at West Virginia. Defensive back Anthony Nixon and offensive linemen Mike Madaras and Andrew Zeller made their first starts vs. Wake Forest.

• Fourteen players saw their first career action for Maryland against William & Mary, and 23 players have seen their first career action for Maryland at some point this season (13 true freshmen, seven redshirt freshmen, two juniors, one senior).

• The Terps are holding opponents to 2.53 yards per carry, which ranks fifth nationally. Of the opponents’ 242 rushing attempts this season, 165 (68.2%) have been for three yards or less (28 of 41 vs. William & Mary; 28 of 39 vs. Temple; 25 of 40 vs. Connecticut; 20 of 25 vs. West Virginia; 21 of 29 vs. Wake Forest; 25 of 42 vs. Virginia; 18 of 26 vs. NC State).

• Demetrius Hartsfield leads the team with 64 tackles and is just outside Maryland’s top 15 with 324 in his career. He needs seven stops to pass Kevin Walker for 15th on Maryland’s career tackles chart (see list page 3).

• The Terps have done a good job controlling the clock. In seven games, Maryland has had the ball for an average of 31:28 to 28:32 for the opponent. That’s a major upgrade compared to 2011, when Maryland averaged just 25:16 a game to 34:44 for the opponent.

• Head coach Randy Edsall hands out game balls for each win. Most recently, Darin Drakeford received the defensive game ball and Stefon Diggs got the special teams game ball for the win over Virginia (see complete list, page 6).

• Against William & Mary, Perry Hills became the first true freshman starter at quarterback for Maryland since Latrez Harrison in 1999. He also became the first freshman to start a season opener since redshirt freshman Calvin McCall on Sept. 2, 1999, in a 6-0 win over Temple.

• Nine bowl teams from last year appear on Maryland’s 2012 schedule: Temple (Gildan New Mexico Bowl), West Virginia (Discover Orange Bowl), Wake Forest (Franklin American Mortgage Music City), Virginia (Chick-fil-A Bowl), NC State (Belk Bowl), Georgia Tech (Hyundai Sun Bowl), Clemson (Discover Orange Bowl), Florida State (Champs Sports Bowl) and UNC (AdvoCare V100 Independence Bowl).

Maryland-Boston College Series History

• Maryland and Boston College will face off for the 10th time Saturday. The Eagles own a 6-3 edge in the all-time series, including a 2-1 advantage in Chestnut Hill, Mass.

• Last season, Boston College won 28-17 in College Park behind 243 rushing yards from Rolandan Finch. The Eagles have won three of the past four in the series. The Terps snapped a BC three-game winning streak in the series with a 42-35 victory over the eighth-ranked Eagles in 2007. Maryland won 24-21 in its last trip to BC, in 2010.

• Prior to 2007, Maryland’s only win in the series came in 1985 when the Terps beat the Eagles 31-13 in Foxboro, Mass.

• The Eagles have won five of the seven meetings since Boston College joined the ACC. Maryland fell 31-16 in College Park in 2005, and 38-16 at Boston College in 2006. The Eagles also upended the Terps, 28-21, in 2008 in Chestnut Hill, Mass.

 

Head Coach Randy Edsall

 

Opening statement:

“We’re going to head back out to practice today and get ready for Boston College. We’re going to see a Boston College team that’s playing very hard, competing, but just coming up a little bit short. They have an outstanding quarterback in Chase Rettig and Alex Amadin is a very good receiver. You also throw in Andre Williams the running back and a big offensive line and they present you with some problems on that side of the ball.

“When you look at the defense, they have an outstanding linebacker corps in Kevin Pierre-Louis, Nick Clancy and Steele Divitto. They are active up front and a team you know is going to play hard and give you some things you maybe haven’t seen before. We have a tremendous challenge again to go on the road and play another ACC team and our guys are really looking forward to it and looking forward to getting back out to practice.”

 

On quarterbacks Devin Burns and Caleb Rowe:

“I think when you have a chance to see the two young men go out and perform….you saw Devin on Saturday and what he did in terms of his feet and his running ability, I think it kind of speaks for itself.  Then we see Caleb come in and scramble out of the pocket and make some of the throws he did. They are both excellent quarterbacks. They are both guys I trust, our guys trust and our players trust to be able to do the job and do it effectively. We’ll put a plan together knowing either one of those guys could go in the game and play at any given time. We’ll find out on Saturday what that plan is going to be.”

 

On if he’s had a quarterback situation like this in the past and how he handled it:

“I have been through this before. I had a [defensive back] that we had to get ready to play quarterback in Darius Butler when I was at Connecticut. So, no, this isn’t new territory for me. We will take Shawn Petty and Brian McMahon practicing at quarterback to get a third guy. You feel bad for the guys that get hurt, but injuries are something that you can’t control. So you always have to have a plan for the ‘what ifs.’ You work with what you have to go out and win the in the game. I’m not panicked, upset, or frustrated. You just roll with the punches and go out to get yourself ready for a win.”

 

On if he would have preferred to redshirt Rowe:

“Ideally, yes I would have liked to redshirt him. We had made the decision to go with Devin as number two and Caleb at number three. I told him he had to be ready and be prepared because he hasn’t gotten many reps. In practice he would just do the 2-minute drill and 7-on-7 with the defense. But he has been in the meetings and taking notes. I think it was so impressive that he went in and preformed the way he did with such minimal reps. Ideally, we would have wanted to redshirt him but we weren’t afforded that luxury.”

 

On what he tells his players during a week like this:

“I’m going to tell them today when we meet that we believe in anyone that we put in the game. We believe in them and trust in them and know that they can do the job to help get a win. They just need to go in and execute the plan we have for them to the best of their ability. Everybody has to rally around those guys and support them and also do their own jobs as well. We tell them not to let their teammates down. Be prepared and know what you’re doing.”

 

On what he can expect from Shawn Petty and Brian McMahon at quarterback:

“We’ll find out as we go out to practice today. We want to get them to understand as much as they can so they can go out and manage the offense. Brian at least being on offense, kind of knows it. Shawn it will be a little bit different because he was a defensive guy, so he has to learn some terminology. But both guys will be able to throw and run the ball, I’m sure. It’s like riding a bike. They didn’t forget how to run or throw the ball by not having played quarterback for the past few months.”

 

On when he expects to make a decision about who will start as quarterback:

“We’ll have a really good idea by the end of the day on Thursday after seeing three days of practice. Am I going to say anything at the end of the day Thursday? That’s too far in advance to know that. But we could come out and say something on Thursday or wait until game time.”

 

On what earned Wes Brown the starting job and if it was in part due to Devin Burns being at quarterback:

“I think that we have seen Wes perform really well in the game without Devin in other situations. Coming off that injury; Saturday’s game, it just allowed us to get him some more work. When you’re running the read-zone, defense has to make a decision. One of the decisions is who are they going let run the ball. You got to make sure to take the quarterback away or the running back away. That’s something where the quarterback has to do a good job of reading. Sometimes it’s going to open up where the running back or the quarterback will benefit, based on the defense. Wes can have that kind of production with Devin or without Devin.”

 

On if some of the gloom of all the injuries has been mitigated by the fact they’re two wins away from bowl eligibility:

“There’s no gloom around here. If you see our kids, they’re not down in the dumps. It‘s like the old mule that fell into the well without water in it, and the farmer doesn’t know how to get the mule out of there, so he figures that he will just cover the old mule up. So what happens is, he start’s throwing dirt down there, and the mule ends up just shaking it off and stepping up. And before you know it, there’s enough dirt and he’s at the top and just comes out of it. That’s how I look at it. We are just trying to get win number five. The third win in the ACC and the fifth win overall. I just told our guys that everything we want is still ahead of us. That’s what we have to have our focus on and prepare for to keep it that way.”

 

On designing the game plan for Saturday:

“I don’t think that we’ll do anything differently. We’ve been doing the same things with Perry, Devin, and Caleb all through the preseason. There are things that you will do with each guy based on his specific skill sets.”

 

On Caleb Rowe’s ability to run:

“I think Caleb is a more than adequate runner. He is by no means as fast as Devin. But he has good running ability and we have seen him execute our offense during the preseason and we know he can do all of the things we would ask him to within our offense.”

 

On what kind of player Devin Burns is:

“He is a kid that loves to play the game. He is somebody who has a smile on his face all of the time and is a tremendous competitor. He has a quick release, is athletic enough to make plays with his feet, can read defenses well, and is someone who our players respect. When you can come in and do what Devin did and also what Caleb did in the second half coming off the bench, I have a tremendous amount of respect for each one of those guys. Both of them were very poised and I was very impressed.”

 

On if he’ll design the playbook to keep the quarterbacks healthy:

“We have to do the things that need to be done in order to give our team the best chance to win games, using the guys that we have. You cannot sit there and try to worry about people getting hurt if you run a specific play. We will do the best we can to utilize their skills and get other guys ready to go just in case.”

 

On how Brad Craddock has handled the last few days:

“We went out and did a little bit of PAT and field goal work on Sunday. We as coaches just have to do a better job to make sure that he has the same leg swing every time. We have to keep working with his technique and his fundamentals. He has the leg and he has the right attitude. I was a little mad at myself because I wish I had taken the opportunity to talk to him before he went out there [to attempt the field goal at the end of Saturday’s game]. We just have to keep working with him and showing him on tape why he missed the ones that he missed and ensuring that he has the right leg swing every time. Brad will be fine.”

 

On the Boston College offense and what makes quarterback Chase Rettig so special:

“Chase Rettig is what makes them go. He can move around in the pocket and he likes to move to throw the ball. BC has a big offensive line and they do a good job of pass protecting and they have good receivers to throw the ball to. They put up those numbers from an offensive standpoint because of those things.”

 

On what defensive back Jeremiah Johnson has done to play well:

“I think that J.J. has worked really hard to hone his craft. When you watch him play, he does a good job of preparing and studying. When he sees certain sets he knows what will be coming. He does a good job of watching receivers during the week and understanding their tendencies. He has a lot of confidence, and you have big pass breakups like he has had, those only build your confidence. J.J.’s skills have come from hard work and preparation, not only during the season, but also from his hard work during the summer.”

 

On if he has seen wide receiver Nigel King coming along recently:

“I see a guy who is getting more confidence. Nigel is a great guy, but was never sure of himself. Now you can start to see the confidence come out. He sat out a year, and I know that was not any fun for him. Now you can see him out there and he is enjoying himself and you can see his confidence building. As long as he can stay healthy and continue to work very hard he can be a very productive player for us.”

 

On the play of the offensive line last week:

“I thought we were a little bit better. We were nowhere near where we needed to be, but I thought the communication was a little bit better and I was not displeased with the way we played. I thought there was improvement, but we still have much more to do with that phase of our game.”

QUOTES – MARYLAND COACH RANDY EDSALL

NC State 20, Maryland 18

 

Opening Statement:

“That was a very disappointing and heartbreaking loss we had out there, but the guys competed and played very hard. They gave everything they had. We put ourselves in a position to win the game there at the end but we just came up short. We will look at the film to make corrections and move forward.

 

I thought that [quarterback] Devin Burns came in and played well as a backup. Caleb [Rowe] also came in and executed the two-minute drill with perfection. That is something that we have been working on and planned on bring in Devin if something happened to Perry [Hills] and use Caleb in the two-minute offense. We got the ball down there, but unfortunately Brad [Craddock] didn’t make it and we came up two points short.

 

We had over a 100 yards rushing, 121 yards with Wes [Brown]. Defensively, we played really well. We gave up that one long pass that was disappointing. I’m very proud of the way the guys played and came back out there. We were in a position to win so I’m disappointed that we weren’t able to finish it out.”

 

On Perry Hills’ Injury:

“Perry has a knee injury. We will wait to see what the MRI tells about it, but it doesn’t look good. We will take a look at the film and look at how we will move forward. I think we have two guys who will help us move forward and it’s a credit to how they have prepared and to our offensive coaches for having those kids ready.”

 

On the offense going forward:

“You always do what guys can do offensively. You try to match the plan to their skill level and we know what Devin’s skill level is and what Caleb’s skill level is. We have a base of what we know we want to do, but we will fit it to meet our personnel.”

 

On the defense’s performance:

“The defense has played well all season and they played well again today, except for that one touchdown pass. That play was a killer for us. Then we needed to make one more stop there at the end to prevent them from kicking the field goal. We had them, but one of our guys lost his man and they completed the pass. There was also the close play there on the sideline and the pass interference call. They are playing well and they are playing together to execute.”

 

On the second-half rushing:

“We came in at half-time and knew that Perry was down. We made the adjustments we needed to make to give us an opportunity to move the ball and score.”

 

Freshman Quarterback Caleb Rowe:

On anticipation of getting playing time:

“I was not surprised, coach always preaches to be prepared for whenever your number is called. I work hard in practice and today I was ready to play. They were telling me through my headset to get ready to play.”

 

On the quickness of NC State’s defense:

“In practice we go against our defense and they are very good, so it wasn’t really a surprise. I wasn’t surprised by their quickness because our defense is fast as well. I am used to playing at that pace during practice.”

 

On Hills injury:

“I definitely feel for Perry because he is a very good quarterback.  I personally see how hard he works behind the scenes. He really works hard during the week. I don’t really know much about his injury situation yet, but I feel for him.”

 

 

Place Kicker Brad Craddock:

On last kick:

“I really didn’t see it after I kicked it, I just reacted to everyone else. I just tried to look at my spot and kick the ball. I was just thinking to myself take your time because it’s just like any other kick. I actually thought I hit it pretty well. Afterwards, I didn’t really know what to think.”

 

On the support from his teammates:

“My teammates were really supportive because there were so many other opportunities during the game to earn those points. They kept telling me that it wasn’t my fault, they are always supportive. It is never good when you miss one, but that comes with being a kicker. You just have to play through it.”

 

Freshman Wide Receiver Stefon Diggs

On the mood in the locker room:

“It’s a typical mood. It’s a tough game. We competed, we didn’t give up. Things happen, can’t do much more than cheer on your teammates and keep your head up.”

 

On Perry Hills being knocked out of the game:

“In the game of football, things like that are going to happen. We were well-prepared. When one guy goes down, the other guy has to step up. That’s part of battling adversity. Things like that are going to happen.”

 

On Wes Brown’s development:

“He’s coming into his own. We continue to push each other. You are going to see more of Wes Brown.”

 

Sophomore Quarterback Devin Burns
On being ready to play:

“Like Coach Edsall said, always be prepared. That’s what I practice all week. I just wanted to take advantage of the opportunity I was given.”

 

On his poise:

“I think that is part of my personality because I’m I laid back guy. I don’t say too much. I’m pretty much cool, calm and collected.”

 

Senior Defensive Lineman AJ Francis

On what NC State was taking advantage of on their last drive:

“They were spreading us out. All game their quarterback was doing a good job. We were in his face and he was just able to dump it off.”

 

On the defense giving up game-winning field goal:

“We need to play all 60 minutes and we didn’t. We were not sure we would even get back on the field, but when we did we did not come up how we should have and we lost the game because of it.”

 

On how the offense played on the final possession:

“It was a great drive and Nigel [King] put us in great position to make that field goal and Caleb did a great job running the two minutes like he does in practice all of the time. It hurts to lose like that, but it’s football.”

 

Freshman Running Back Wes Brown

On the keys to the success of the running game:

“We worked hard and paid attention in practice and we executed on the field.”

 

On the emotional highs and lows of the loss:

“I had a lot on my shoulders, being out and then coming back to practice and then coming back to play, but I need to still execute better on the field”.

On the play of Devin Burns in the second half:

“He was not scared to tuck the ball and run, and he was very shifty and fast. He knew what the down and distance was and instead of taking a risk, he took [the first down run]. I was happy about him being up to step up, create a play, and play a big role.”

 

NC STATE COACH TOM O’BRIEN

 

Opening statement:

“Sometimes when you play a school like Maryland — everything goes bad when we play them. Sometimes something crazy happens like it did at the end. You have to give our kids credit, they hung in there. We made a play. Our defense is so good in the last two minutes, and we let the guy out twice there. Sometimes over the course of a season you have to win a game where you scratch your head a little bit. Great effort and we won the football game.”

 

On Mike Glennon:

“He’s a big league quarterback, no question about it. He wasn’t real crisp in the first half, but when it came time to make plays, he made plays. Go down the field with no timeouts… It was a great victory.”

 

On Devin Burns:

“Probably the worst thing that happened to us was that we knocked the quarterback out of the game. You get ready for a little bit of option, but you don’t get ready for a lot. It’s so different than everything else they do, but we finally solved it. We stopped it, got guys on the ground, and lived to fight another day.”

 

On Niklas Sade’s field goal range:

“We thought anything 50 yards and in. I would have kicked it from 55. I’ve got a lot of faith in him.”

 

On stopping Stefon Diggs:

“We’ve done a good job for the last three weeks of against really good return guys. He’s got great moves and great vision… I thought our coverage teams did a great job.”

 

On getting close to bowl eligibility:

“We’re not going to worry about that. We’re just going to worry about trying to get better, and taking it one game at a time. At the end of the year, add them up and we should be in good shape.”

 

Redshirt Senior Quarterback Mike Glennon

On his thoughts during Maryland’s last field goal attempt:

“I hoped he was going to miss it, but you never really know what’s going to happen. It was a great win. You kind of hate to see it end that way, but it was still just a great win for us.”

 

On his thoughts during Maryland’s last field goal attempt:

“That was the first time that has ever happened to me. I watched it. It looked left to me and then when it hit off the upright, I didn’t know which way it was going at first. For us, good thing it was wide left.”

 

On their two straight wins:

“We knew this was going to be a tough game because of their really good defense. We would have liked to have played a little bit better, but at the same time we got the win and it’s a big win going forward.”

 

On the game in general:

“They have really good defense and are very well-coached. In the first quarter we kind of had a hard time, but then the second quarter we just got in a rhythm and at the same time I felt like we weren’t on the field all that much. I know I looked up and they had almost twice the field time on offense as us. Coming out with the win is just really cool.”

 

Senior Defensive End Brian Slay

On their pressure on the quarterback:

“We wanted to come into the game and pressure the freshman quarterback, so we wanted to keep him rattled. He ended up going down and the backup quarterback came in and he was a running-type, so weren’t prepared for it. That’s why he was eating up yards during the third quarter. Finally, we were able to get things settled and got some stops.”

 

On Maryland switching quarterbacks:

“It was definitely harder. We knew coming in that the backup quarterback was a runner, but we didn’t know what to expect. He hadn’t thrown a ball all year, so we knew he was going to come in and run, but we didn’t know what he was going to do. It was hard to have him thrown in and us not be prepared for him at all. We did a really good job and the coaches did a really good job of adjusting. We were able to settle down and get some stops.”

 

Redshirt Sophomore Wide Receiver Bryan Underwood

On Maryland’s last field goal attempt:

“I was just not looking, but praying and hoping for the best. We heard the bang and it was just a great feeling.”

 

On the upcoming game against North Carolina:

“It means a lot. Every game from here on out is going to mean a lot. We’re going to just prepare for them all week.”

 

 

Postgame Notes

 

Kicking Off: Maryland fell to 4-3 overall and 2-1 in the Atlantic Coast Conference, while NC State improved to 5-2 overall and 2-1 in the league … the loss snapped a three-game winning streak Maryland had over NC State in College Park … the Wolfpack now lead the all-time series, 33-32-4.

 

Close Calls: The Maryland-NC State series has had a number of close calls in recent history. In the last 13 contests, 11 have been decided by 10 points or fewer. Aside from a 37-0 Maryland win in 2007, the 11 games since 2000 have been decided by an average of 6.0 points. The Terps have also played in close games all of the 2012 season; their average margin of victory is 5.5, and their average margin of defeat is 5.0.

 

Total Offense: Maryland turned in its most productive game of the season in terms of total offense, totaling 462 yards. The Terps’ previous high was 351 at West Virginia. That’s the most for Maryland since it had 468 vs. Oct. 15, 2011. It was a balanced attack, with Maryland gaining 206 yards on the ground and 256 through the air.

 

Rush Defense: The Terps held their opponent to under 100 yards rushing for the fourth time this season as NC State had 40 yards on 26 carries. Maryland, which entered the game ninth nationally by allowing 95.5 rushing yards per game, held the Wolfpack to just 1.5 yards per carry.

 

Burns Steps In: Devin Burns got his first significant collegiate action at quarterback after Perry Hills had to leave the game with a knee injury. Burns helped lead the Terrapins on three scoring drives and finished with 50 rushing yards, 47 passing yards and a rushing TD.

 

Brown Goes for 100: Wes Brown became the first Maryland player to rush for 100 yards this season by running the ball 25 times for 121 yards. The freshman also had a touchdown. The last time a Terrapin rushed for 100 yards in a game was Nov. 19, 2011, when C.J. Brown had 110 at Wake Forest.

 

Leak Sets Mark: Marcus Leak had a career-high 94 receiving yards on four catches, an average of 23.5 yards per catch. Leak had a 47-yard catch which is the longest of his career.

 

Diggs Does, Too: Stefon Diggs totaled a season-high six catches for 61 yards. The freshman also had 72 kickoff returns yards.

 

Defensive Notes: Demetrius Hartsfield matched a season high with 13 tackles, seven of which were unassisted. He also had a pass breakup and tackle for loss … Darin Drakeford had 1.5 sacks and now has a team-high six this year … Joe Vellano totaled 10 tackles for his second double-digit stops game of the year (also William & Mary).

 

Hill Honored: Maryland athletics celebrated the 50th anniversary of Darryl Hill becoming the first African-American to play at the University of Maryland and in the Atlantic Coast Conference on Saturday. Hill was honored on the field after the first quarter, and presented with a new Maryland jersey with his name on it.

 

Tidbits: Caleb Rowe saw his first collegiate action by coming in on the final drive of the game … he completed his first pass attempt, a 17-yarder to Kevin Dorsey … he also had an 11-yard run and another 33 completion that setup a 33-yard field goal attempt by Brad Craddock that would’ve won the game … Maryland dominated the time of possession, 35:14 to 24:46 … the Terps were 3 of 4 in the red zone … Nigel King and Levern Jacobs both made their first career receptions.

COLLEGE PARK, Md. - Led by a defense that ranks as one of the nation’s best, Maryland is 2-0 in the Atlantic Coast Conference for the first time since 2001. The Terps, coming off victories over Wake Forest and Virginia, will look to improve to 3-0 in the league for just the second time since winning three straight ACC Championships from 1983-85, when it takes on NC State in its Homecoming game. Maryland and NC State have met 68 times in history, and the all-time series is even at 32-32-4. The Terps have won three straight over the Wolfpack in College Park and five of the last six.

First-and-10

• With another gutty fourth quarter performance, Maryland held on to beat Virginia, 27-20, last Saturday. The Cavaliers cut Maryland’s lead to 17-13 with 0:29 left in the third quarter, but the Terps scored the game’s next 10 points and held on late. In Maryland’s four wins, the Terps average margin of victory is just 5.5 points, and the opponent has been within a tying score at some point in the fourth quarter in each of those games. The Terps, though, have outscored opponents 51-31 in the final stanza and have received key defensive stops when it’s mattered most.

• The Terps rank ninth nationally in total defense (278.7 ypg), tied for ninth in rushing defense (95.5 ypg) and 18th in passing defense (183.2 ypg). Though Virginia tallied 168 rushing yards, the most by a Maryland opponent this season, the Terps have been tough against the run with an experienced front seven highlighted by senior defensive linemen Joe Vellano and A.J. Francis, and senior linebacker Demetrius Hartsfield. Those three have played a big role in holding opponents to an average of just 2.65 yards per rush, which ranks seventh nationally. The Terps received a major boost to their linebacking corps with the return of Kenneth Tate in the West Virginia game. Tate, a 2010 consensus first team All-ACC choice, had missed the previous 11 games dating back to the 2011 season due to a knee injury. The fifth-year senior has already made an impact in his three games back: he has 15 tackles, two for a loss, a sack, three pass breakups, a forced fumble and a fumble recovery.

• Vellano and Darin Drakeford have been the biggest contributors for a Maryland defense which has been disruptive in the opponent backfield – Maryland’s 7.8 tackles for loss per game are tied for 11th in the FBS and its 3.0 sacks per game are tied for 14th. Drakeford, who was named the ACC Linebacker of the Week for his performance at Virginia, ranks third in the ACC with 0.75 sacks per game and is second on the team with 6.5 tackles for loss. That trails only Vellano with 11.0, which leads the conference and ranks 13th nationally.

• Offensively and on special teams, wide receiver Stefon Diggs continues to be Maryland’s most dynamic playmaker. Against Virginia, the freshman returned the game’s opening kickoff 100 yards for a touchdown and went on to catch four passes for 89 yards. Over the last three games he’s averaging 102.3 receiving yards per game, while his 168.8 all-purpose yards per game this season lead the ACC and rank ninth nationally. Additionally, Diggs ranks second in the conference in yards per catch (21.6) and has earned ACC weekly honors in each of Maryland’s last three games (Rookie of the Week – WVU, Wake Forest; Specialst of the Week – Virginia).

• Quarterback Perry Hills, who is just the third true freshman quarterback to start for Maryland in school history (Randall Jones in 1998; Latrez Harrison in 1999), is directing the offense. Hills had his best collegiate game against West Virginia when he finished 20 of 29 for 305 yards and three touchdowns, all season highs. He led Maryland on the game-winning touchdown drive in the fourth quarter of the season opener against William & Mary, and was named ACC Rookie of the Week after going 11 of 21 for 190 yards and two touchdowns in the win at Temple. Hills has been at his best in the fourth quarter, having completed 24 of 35 passes for 390 yards and two touchdowns in the final stanza.

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Quick Hitters

• Stefon Diggs has earned ACC Player of the Week honors in three straight games, and a Terp has captured Linebacker of the Week honors in two straight games. Diggs won Rookie of the Week for his play against West Virginia (9/22) and Wake Forest (10/6) and Specialist of the Week against Virginia (10/13). Demetrius Hartsfield earned Linebacker of the Week for his play against Wake Forest, while Darin Drakeford received the award against Virginia.

• For the first time since 1999, Maryland held its opponent under 300 yards of total offense in four of the season’s first five games. Only No. 17 West Virginia exceeded the 300 mark against the Terrapins (363). In the sixth game of the season, Virginia also broke the 300 mark (386).

• Diggs ranks eighth in the conference and first among freshmen with 75.5 receiving yards per game. Diggs, who has 21 catches for 453 yards, is averaging 21.6 yards per catch. That ranks second among ACC receivers and sixth among the top-100 receivers (yards per game) nationally.

• Diggs is the only Maryland freshman to record back-to-back 100-yard receiving games (vs. West Virginia and Wake Forest) since at least 1985, the earliest game-by-game statistics were recorded at the school.

• Maryland allowed Wake Forest to complete just 32.4 percent of its passes (13 of 38). That is the lowest percentage by an opponent with at least 30 passing attempts since Duke went 13 of 42 (30.9%) on Nov. 14, 1998.

• Joe Vellano’s father, Paul Vellano, was inducted into the Maryland Athletics Hall of Fame on Oct. 5. The elder Vellano was a first team All-American in 1973, while Joe was a second team All-American in 2011. The father-son combo represent one of four known father-son All-America combos to attend the same FBS school (also Lee and Travis McGriff at Florida; Kevin and Drew Butler at Georgia; Archie and Eli Manning at Ole Miss).

• Thirteen players have made their first career starts at some point this season. In the season opener against William & Mary, quarterback Perry Hills, running back Albert Reid, safety Sean Davis, defensive back Jeremiah Johnson, linebacker Cole Farrand, nose tackle Darius Kilgo and offensive lineman Nick Klemm debuted. Against Connecticut, wide receiver Stefon Diggs made his first career start; defensive back Isaac Goins and running back Brandon Ross made their starting debuts at West Virginia. Defensive back Anthony Nixon and offensive linemen Mike Madaras and Andrew Zeller made their first starts vs. Wake Forest.

• Fourteen players saw their first career action for Maryland against William & Mary, and 22 players have seen their first career action for Maryland at some point this season (12 true freshmen, seven redshirt freshmen, two juniors, one senior).

• Maryland’s defense allowed just 682 total yards to opponents through its first three games (William & Mary – 229, Temple – 230, Connecticut – 223). That marks its best defensive performance in a three-game span since 2004, when it held The Citadel (137), West Virginia (156) and Eastern Michigan (275) to a total of 568.

• West Virginia came into its game with Maryland averaging 612 yards of total offense and 55.5 points per game. The Terps held the Mountaineers well below those averages, surrendering 363 yards and 31 points, seven of which came on a fumble return for a TD by the WVU defense.

• The Terps surrendered just 45 yards to Wake Forest in the second half, including just four in the fourth quarter. Maryland has been at its best in the second half all year, surrendering just 133.3 yards on average.

• The Terps are holding opponents to 2.65 yards per carry, which ranks seventh nationally. Of the opponents’ 216 rushing attempts this season, 147 (68.1%) have been for three yards or less (28 of 41 vs. William & Mary; 28 of 39 vs. Temple; 25 of 40 vs. Connecticut; 20 of 25 vs. West Virginia; 21 of 29 vs. Wake Forest; 25 of 42 vs. Virginia).

• Demetrius Hartsfield leads the team with 51 tackles and is tied for second with three sacks. He’s also had a hand in three turnovers, also a team high (one interception, two fumble recoveries).

• The Terps have done a good job controlling the clock. In six games, Maryland has had the ball for an average of 30:50 to 29:10 for the opponent. That’s a major upgrade compared to 2011, when Maryland averaged just 25:16 a game to 34:44 for the opponent.

• Head coach Randy Edsall hands out game balls for each win. Most recently, Darin Drakeford received the defensive game ball and Stefon Diggs got the special teams game ball.

• Against William & Mary, Perry Hills became the first true freshman starter at quarterback for Maryland since Latrez Harrison in 1999. He also became the first freshman to start a season opener since redshirt freshman Calvin McCall on Sept. 2, 1999, in a 6-0 win over Temple.

• Nine bowl teams from last year appear on Maryland’s 2012 schedule: Temple (Gildan New Mexico Bowl), West Virginia (Discover Orange Bowl), Wake Forest (Franklin American Mortgage Music City), Virginia (Chick-fil-A Bowl), NC State (Belk Bowl), Georgia Tech (Hyundai Sun Bowl), Clemson (Discover Orange Bowl), Florida State (Champs Sports Bowl) and UNC (AdvoCare V100 Independence Bowl).

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Maryland-NC State Series History

• Saturday’s game marks the 69th meeting between Maryland and North Carolina State. The schools first met in 1909 when NC State shut out Maryland 33-0. The teams have met every season since 1956, and the series is split evenly (32-32-4).

• The Wolfpack took eight of nine from the Terps from 1991 to 1999, before the Terps turned things around in the new millennium. Maryland has won eight of 12 in the series since 2000, with the games frequently ending in dramatic fashion. Aside from a 37-0 Maryland win in 2007, the 10 games since 2000 have been decided by an average of 6.5 points. Nick Novak hit game-winning field goals for the Terps in the final seconds in 2002 and 2003, and Maryland scored the decisive touchdown in 2001 with 41 seconds left. Quarterback Shaun Hill rallied the Terps from a 15-point halftime deficit in the 2000 game for a 35-28 double-overtime victory.

• Maryland has won three straight in College Park: 26-20 in 2006, 27-24 in 2008 and 38-31 in 2010. The Terrapins hold a 17-12-2 all-time advantage in the series in College Park and have lost to the Wolfpack just once at home since 2000.

• Last year, NC State overcame a 27-point deficit by scoring 35 points in the fourth quarter for a 56-41 win. It was the second biggest comeback in ACC history.

Hill to be Honored
• The University of Maryland department of athletics will celebrate the 50th anniversary of Darryl Hill becoming the first African-American player to play at the University of Maryland and in the Atlantic Coast Conference, when the Terrapins take on NC State Saturday afternoon. Hill, head coach Randy Edsall and director of athletics Kevin Anderson will also hold a press conference at noon on Tuesday, which can be seen here.

• Hill transferred to Maryland in 1962 and after sitting out one year he broke the color barrier in 1963, playing his first home game against NC State in College Park. Hill was also the first African-American to play at Gonzaga High School and the Naval Academy.

• Hill emerged as Maryland’s top wide receiver in 1963, finishing with 43 receptions, only three short of the school record at the time. Hill’s seven touchdown receptions that year are tied for the fifth most in a single season in school history.

• He played with the New York Jets for a short period before returning to school and earning a master’s degree from Southern Illinois. He has started businesses in China, Russia as well as the Pacific Energy Corporation. He also returned to Maryland for a period to serve as a Maryland’s director of major gifts.

 

COLLEGE PARK, Md. – Quotes from Tuesday’s press conference at the University of Maryland celebrating the 50th anniversary of Darryl Hill becoming the first African-American to play at Maryland and in the ACC; and quotes from head coach Randy Edsall’s weekly press conference.

 

Kevin Anderson, Director of Athletics

“This is a very special time for me because if it wasn’t for pioneers like Darryl, I wouldn’t be sitting in this chair today. There are many people in this room, outside of this room and that play on this football team that have that deep appreciation for someone like Darryl in terms of what he did in trying times and becoming the man we all know. Darryl’s success isn’t only on the football field but in business and he was a very good student as well.

“Not too many people live a lifetime and display the kind of courage Darryl has demonstrated not only at that time but throughout life and where he is today. We all have a strong appreciation for him.”

Randy Edsall, Head Football Coach

“From a coach’s perspective, one of the things that you always tell your players is to believe in who you are and have a belief in things you want to get done but also be a leader and blaze a trail where no one else has gone. Here’s Darryl who is that person who stood out here for Maryland and the ACC and to know he blazed that trail for other people to have the opportunities to go to school in the ACC and play football and get a great education is something that goes down in history. As the head football coach at Maryland, it’s great to have him as part of the family. That he can teach our guys and talk to our guys about what he did is very significant.”

 

Darryl Hill

“First let me thank Kevin [Anderson] for letting me do this and creating this event and taking our great athletic program in the right direction. Kevin has done a tremendous job and the future is rosy and bright. I have to commend Coach for a tremendous victory Saturday and we are on top of the ACC and I can’t be more proud of the football team this year. I think this is a team that’s persevered against all odds and have come out on top and the future is bright there too. I would like to thank Zack Bolno – the SID at Maryland – too, for putting this event on. It’s a tremendous effort by him.

“I want to thank my teammates personally. Tom Rae, John Langton, Joe Mona and Bob Everd. They’ve all been supporters and I tell you what back in the day when times were tough without this team I never would have made it.

“Maryland took the lead in the nation in terms of taking the walls of segregation down from sports.  Before Maryland brought me here and if you were black and you lived in the south, you could not play for your home team. When I came along I was the first varsity athlete to receive a scholarship in any sport at any major university in the south. So it was a big deal. Things changed. The good thing is they changed rapidly.”

“My career here was a memorable career and one I’ll never forget.”

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Head coach Randy Edsall

Opening statement:

“We’ve got a tough challenge coming up Saturday against North Carolina State here for Homecoming. You see a team there who has a quarterback Mike Glennon who’s playing very well for them. They have a big offensive line. They are a team that is running the ball well and throwing well with good skill athletes.

“We are going to have our hands full defensively and again a big aggressive pressure defense we seem to face every week and I think we are getting better at that. Our guys will be ready to get back out there today and we’ll see how some of these guys perform who got nicked up last week and hopefully they’ll all be ready to play.

“One thing that is really interesting and what stood out to me is when you look at Perry Hills in the fourth quarter. He’s 24 of 35 for 390 yards and two touchdowns. So when the game is on the line he is performing at his best and again, very pleased about that.

“Also we have very high expectations about what we want to accomplish and I know for us to continue to get better and move forward we have to eliminate a lot of those explosive plays against us. They’ve been playing hard. I just thought last week for a little bit that we weren’t as sharp as we needed to be. It’s something I know that will get cleaned up this week. Our guys have been playing hard and competing. We had two opportunities that I thought we really had to put the game away. Those are things as we continue to move forward and head into the second half of the season we need to get better at. Again, one thing is we are overcoming some of those things because of how hard we are playing and the effort we are giving for 60 minutes.”

On developing a knockout punch:

“I just think it is execution. If we just throw and catch the ball, the plays are there. I think it all comes down to focus and concentration. You might lose focus for a little bit and you miss those explosive plays.”

On where becoming bowl eligible ranks in his goals for the season:

“I haven’t addressed that with our team at all. We have our goals that we have each and every year. The prizes that you have when you play this game are, first, winning your conference, and then if you win enough games, you get to a bowl. And those are things that you hope for each and every year. But to me, you can’t look at the big picture until you address the small things first. You win a game, you put it in the bank, and you gain interest. We have four wins, but four wins aren’t enough to accomplish what we want to accomplish. But all we need to focus on now is NC State and this weekend.”

On the urgency of improving the running game to keep winning:

“We know that have to continue to work on it and improve. We can’t do any more than what we are doing in terms of practice time. When it comes down to running the football, to me it is very basic. It’s coming off the line of scrimmage, it’s the offensive lineman blocking the guy against him until the whistle blows, and the running back getting the ball. Maybe we are going to be a team that has to throw the ball to set up a run. But we do have to run the football and we won’t give up on it.”

On looking at last year’s game vs. NC State:

“We look at it as a coaching staff, but there is not that much you can get from a year ago. This team is a different team, so we focus on what this team can do. You can go back and you can see how things were a year ago, but my focus is what NC State is doing this year. It’s not always good to look in the past. We need to focus on moving forward and hopefully getting a win this weekend.”

On what makes NC State quarterback Mike Glennon special:

“He’s your true, pro-style pocket passer. He’s tall, so he can see over the line of scrimmage. He has a good arm and can make all of the throws. They’re going to stretch you vertically and horizontally. And he has a pretty good release. He’s a very well rounded player with experience. I think that when you look at him from a pro-prospect, he’s probably the best guy that we face all year long, no disrespect to Geno Smith.

On taking away positives from the offensive line’s performance against Virginia:

“I think that there were a couple of guys on Virginia’s front four that played better than we saw on film and made some things happen. But sometimes, people are going to try to take stuff away. You don’t want them to take away as much as they did but that happens in the game of football. You find a way to make plays in other areas to overcome those deficiencies that you have in one particular phase. I thought that the guys up front held in there pretty well in terms of doing things that we needed to do. And we still ended up going down and scoring some points in the second half. It is just a consistency situation. With the offensive line when you have young guys rotating in and out, you don’t get that kind of consistency that you need. I think that the offensive line needs to move forward and get better so we will keep drilling them as coaches and they will keep working on the practice field.”

On what he saw from NC State in its victory over Florida State:

“I saw them come back and beat Florida State. They played very hard and shut Florida State out. They made some plays, and blocked a punt and played very physically. I have known Tom O’Brien for years and Tom is a good football coach. His teams are always teams who are very hard-nosed and physical and they will be very fundamentally sound. You are in for a street fight and a physical game for 60 minutes. That is what you are going to get and that is what Florida State got. They never backed down, they gave themselves a shot to win at the end, and they capitalized.”

On whether NC State’s victory over Florida State got the attention of Maryland players:

“We didn’t start focusing on NC State until Sunday. Our players are just kids, so they do focus on what is going on, so they got a chance to watch those things. I am sure they have our attention. However, if we want to be the kind of team that we want to be, it should not take someone beating somebody else to get us motivated. That is not what I am looking for with this program. I am looking for us to be excited and motivated to play football regardless of who the opponent is. Our goal is play to the best of our abilities, play hard, and execute our game plan.”

On how to attack NC State defensive back David Amerson:

“Hopefully he will get hurt and won’t play. I’m just kidding, but all jokes aside, he is a good football player. He is a very good corner. It comes down to our coaches and receivers to look at all of his tendencies. But we are not trying to beat one guy, we are trying to beat 11 guys. He is a very good football player and we have a lot of respect and admiration for how he plays and he will be one of the best we will face all year, but we do have to worry about everyone, and not just him.”

On if he is happy with the production of the freshmen:

“It is hard to sit here and say that I am happy. We are 4-2 and we want to be 6-0, especially when you look at some of our mistakes. However, I am happy with how we are progressing. They are nowhere near where they can be and where they will be as they go on in their careers here at Maryland. With freshmen you will still have those moments where you scratch your head. But the thing that has been the most impressive to me with all of these young guys is their competitive nature and the leadership. You do not see them get down. They are able to, if something bad goes wrong, they can shake it off. That is tough for young kids, to let things go. But these guys can make a mistake and go out and make up for it. Look at Perry [Hills]. Even with all of his mistakes, when the game is on the line, look what happens. Look at Stefon [Diggs] and look at Anthony Nixon. Anthony Nixon got his second start and got a pick very early in the game to set up a score for us. They are coachable, they listen, and when something goes wrong, they can just move forward.”

On A.J. Francis’s progression on and off the field:

“With A.J. Francis, I see a guy who has really bought into what we want and is taking the lessons he is taught by Coach Gattuso and working on those things. I see a guy who has worked a lot harder and has gotten himself in really good shape. He has a great sense of humor and is very charismatic, but the attitude that he has this year is so different and is so much better. A.J., right now, is playing well and he needs to continue to play well for us to be successful. At first, I think we did not see eye-to-eye on everything, but he understood there was going to be change. There was change and he embraced it and I think he sees the benefits of what we are doing and how it has advanced him and his game. I give him a lot of credit, and its big for us to have a guy like A.J. step up and play the way that he has played and to be the kind of leader he has been. We just need him to keep getting better and I think he can take his game to an even higher level than it is right now.”

- Terps -

Postgame Quotes

Maryland 27, Virginia 20

Head Coach Randy Edsall

Thoughts on the game:

“You can hear that you have a pretty happy locker room right next door. They just keep playing, they keep playing hard and giving everything they have for 60 minutes. When you do that you give yourself a chance and I’m very proud of them. Our execution can still be better but again, bottom line is we’re 2-0 in the ACC and 4-2 overall and we found a way to come on the road and get another victory, which I think is very, very important.”

 

On opening kick return for a touchdown:

“As I said to the team today at the hotel, the one thing we have to do is start fast and finish strong. I just didn’t know we were going to start that fast. The problem is I forgot to tell them to play in between the start and the finish. With Stefon (Diggs), nothing he does surprises me. Someone told me it was five-yards deep in the end zone and I figure he’s going to go down and then I see him start and I go, ‘No, no, no. Go, go, go! Yeah!’ It was one of those deals. That was a great start, and to get the first three scores, to put 17 up. Give Virginia credit, they are a good football team. They want to win, so to start like that and finish strong, again outscoring our opponent in the fourth quarter, making plays we needed to make, that’s kind of what this program is about, playing as hard as you can each and every play, never say die, just keep battling to impose your will on people.”

 

Thoughts on win in rivalry on the road:

“We compete against each other in recruiting. We don’t want them coming to Maryland and taking the kids we want and we want to be able to come down to Virginia and take the kids that we want. When it’s your crossover game and you take a look at how many times each of us has played against each other, it’s significant. What’s even more significant is when you are able to come in their house and beat them. To me that’s tremendous credit to these players and to the assistant coaches.”

 

On juggling the offensive line:

“To tell you the truth it wasn’t much of a problem because we anticipated and practiced certain ways during the week in terms of possible scenarios that could happen. One of the scenarios we made in practice on Thursday, because I always meet with the specialty coaches on Thursday, but just in terms of substitutions and how we were going to pack things in, the one thing we said was if anything happens to Sal (Conaboy), we’re at the point now that we’re going to take Evan Mulrooney and let him go in and be the backup and we’ll evaluate his play afterwards because we have Bennett (Fulper), who has played there, and we put Josh (Cary) in because of what we’ve seen of Evan at practice. He has elevated himself, so when Sal went down, give Sal credit because he tried to sneak back in, showing you the kind of player he is, but Evan went in, I’ll have to look at the film because I’m sure he made mistakes, but we’ll put in whoever we have to put in to get the job done. That’s what I like, everyone has to contribute when it’s their time.”

 

On his defense’s performance:

“We gave up some big plays but Virginia is a good offense. If you look at their numbers they are a good offense, and they present you with some problems. The bottom line is, I think they were seven of 20 from the third-down line, but we made some plays when we had to and that’s all I want from my guys. They can move the ball all they want in between the twenties but our tight red zone defense was outstanding today. We block a field goal and we hold them to two field goals, that’s something that I’m really proud of in terms that they hung in there and found a way to get it done.”

 

On Rocco coming in over Sims at the game’s end:

“As I evaluate them, watching them on film, I think he is the best passer that they have so it didn’t surprise me that when they got into that situation where they had to throw the ball that he would come in because, as I said, I think that he is the best pure passer of the two so I’ll leave it at that.”

 

Freshman Wide Receiver Stefon Diggs

 

On winning:

“A lot of kids from my school play at UVa, so it felt good to come here and play so many people that I know. There was a great energy and a great vibe playing here. I’m glad we could come and win in their house.”

 

On running game: 

“We have had a lot of ups and down, but it’s all about how you look at it in the end. You have to have faith in your quarterback, and you can’t get down on him at all.”

 

On 100 yard kickoff return:

“I knew once I got the ball in the end zone that I was going to take it out regardless. I hesitated a little at first because they were telling me to ‘stay in, stay in’ but I was thinking, ‘No we’re going to take this one out.’ Last game we had a shot but we didn’t go for it. My front line guys did a good job so I didn’t want them to waste all their energy.”

 

Sophomore Wide Receiver Marcus Leak

 

On season so far:

“Everyone has such high hopes for the season, and we’re all expecting a lot of good things from each other. We struggle with playing all four quarters together. You can notice that in certain games we will play good the first half and the other team will come back the second half. We just need to learn how to put all four quarters together. We’re getting better each day.

 

On punt return:

“Coach told me to come in and make sure that I caught everything and that’s what I did. I think Stefon [Diggs] may have gotten a little nicked up, but he came and asked me to go in. It turned out ok.”

 

Senior Defensive Lineman Joe Vellano

 

On playing all four quarters:

“That’s the biggest thing, just fighting on every play and I think our team kept fighting. The Virginia offense had a lot of runs and combinations, they made some plays on us that were tough but we just had to step it up in the red zone, and we blocked that field goal which gave us great momentum.”

 

On Virginia turnovers:

“We’ve been working on that all week. We have to capitalize when we get them and really take advantage of that opportunity when they lose the ball like that.”

 

On season compared to two years ago:

“Everyone is just fighting harder and taking it week by week. Everyone really wants it and we’re focusing on the ACC now. Next week [vs NC State] is one of our biggest games that we’ve ever played, so we’re just glad to get this one and now we need to get ready for next week.

 

On defense:

“We do two minute drills and a lot of guys take a lot of pride in those last two minutes, so we were just stepping it up. We try to prevent easy reads and hold them to their line.”

 

Postgame Notes

 

Kicking Off: Maryland improved to 4-2 overall and 2-0 in the ACC with the win, while Virginia dropped to 2-5 and 0-3 in the league … the road team has won six of the last seven games in the series … Maryland leads the all-time series, which began in 1919, 43-32-2 overall and 22-18 on the road … the last time the Terrapins started 2-0 in the ACC was 2001.

 

Diggs’ Return: Stefon Diggs gave Maryland a lead it wouldn’t surrender by taking the game’s opening kickoff 100 yards for a touchdown. That was just the fourth 100-yard kickoff return for a TD in school history and the first since Josh Wilson had one in 2006. The others were Kenny Ambrusko vs. Navy (1964) and Dick Novak/Dennis Condie vs. Virginia in 1960 (Novak returned to the 9-yard line, then lateraled to Condie who returned 91 yds. for TD).

 

More on Diggs: Diggs came into Saturday’s game leading the ACC with 21.4 yards per catch and exceeded that against the Cavs with 89 yards on four catches (22.25 ypc). On the day, Diggs had a season-high 239 all-purpose yards (147 kick return, 89 receiving, 3 rushing).

 

Pass Rush: The Terps had a season-high five sacks, the fourth time this year they’ve had at least three in a game (4 vs. William & Mary, 3 vs. Temple, 3 vs. Wake Forest). Joe Vellano and Darin Drakeford delivered two each, while Keith Bowers had one.

 

Steady Signal Caller: Perry Hills was steady all game and helped seal the win by leading Maryland on a 6-play, 47-yard drive early in the fourth quarter to increase Maryland’s lead to 24-13. Hills went 14 of 26 for 237 yards and a touchdown on the day, and added a 6-yard touchdown run which capped the touchdown drive in the fourth quarter.

 

Defensive Notes: Joe Vellano tallied a team-high nine tackles including three for a loss and two sacks. Vellano now has 11 tackles for loss on the season, a team high … Darin Drakeford had two sacks, a forced fumble and seven total tackles (five unassisted) … Maryland totaled 10 tackles for loss.

 

Tidbits: Maryland’s 14 first quarter points were its most in the opening quarter this season … freshman Anthony Nixon’s interception in the first quarter was the first of his career … A.J. Francis recorded his second blocked field goal of the season (also vs. Temple) … Maryland lost the battle for time of possession, 33:32 to 26:28, but still won. The Terps are 2-1 when they fail to win TOP (win over William & Mary, loss to Connecticut) … the Terps committed just one penalty in the game and committed one turnover, while Virginia had two turnovers and seven penalties.

COLLEGE PARK, Md. - Led by a defense that ranks as one of the nation’s best, Maryland will look to build on its ACC-opening victory over Wake Forest when it travels to Virginia for a 3 p.m. game that will be broadcast on Comcast SportsNet Mid-Atlantic locally. The Terps and Cavaliers will be meeting for the 77th time, the most between Maryland and any other school in the Terps’ 120-year football history.

First-and-10

• For the first time since 1999, Maryland has held its opponent under 300 yards of total offense in four of the season’s first five games. Only No. 5 West Virginia, which is averaging 570.8 yards of total offense per game, exceeded the 300 mark against the Terrapins (363). The Terps rank seventh nationally in total defense (257.2 ypg), seventh in rushing defense (81.0 ypg) and 15th in passing defense (176.2 ypg). Maryland has been very tough against the run with an experienced front seven highlighted by senior defensive linemen Joe Vellano and A.J. Francis, and senior linebacker Demetrius Hartsfield. Those three have played a big role in holding opponents to an average of just 2.3 yards per rush, which ranks third nationally. The Terps received a major boost to their linebacking corps with the return of Kenneth Tate in the West Virginia game. Tate, a 2010 consensus first team All-ACC choice, had missed the previous 11 games dating back to the 2011 season due to a knee injury. The fifth-year senior has already made an impact in his two games back: he has eight tackles, two for a loss, a sack, two pass breakups, a forced fumble and a fumble recovery. He and Hartsfield helped seal the victory over Wake Forest by providing back-to-back sacks late in the fourth quarter, preserving a 19-14 win. Hartsfield earned ACC Linebacker of the Week honors for his play.

• Offensively, wide receiver Stefon Diggs continues to be Maryland’s most dynamic playmaker. The freshman has put together back-to-back 100-yard receiving games by catching three passes for 113 yards and two TDs against West Virginia and then hauling in five passes for 105 yards vs. Wake Forest. Against the Demon Deacons, his 63-yard reception midway through the fourth quarter setup the game-winning score. Diggs, who ranks second in the ACC and 19th nationally with 154.8 all-purpose yards per game, is the only player in the conference with 350 receiving yards, 150 punt return yards and 150 kickoff return yards. He has been named ACC Rookie of the Week in each of his last two games.

• Quarterback Perry Hills, who is just the third true freshman quarterback to start for Maryland in school history (Randall Jones in 1998; Latrez Harrison in 1999), is directing the offense. Hills had his best collegiate game against West Virginia when he finished 20 of 29 for 305 yards and three touchdowns, all season highs. He led Maryland on the game-winning touchdown drive in the fourth quarter of the season opener against William & Mary, and was named ACC Rookie of the Week after going 11 of 21 for 190 yards and two touchdowns in the win at Temple.

• The Maryland running game has been a work in progress as four capable backs have all seen time this season. SophomoreJustus Pickett, the most experienced of the four, and true freshman Wes Brown received the bulk of the carries against Wake Forest. Brown leads the team with 150 rushing yards and 4.5 yards per carry, while Pickett is second with 137 rushing yards and is a threat on screen passes, having caught 13 passes for 70 yards. True freshman Albert Reid, who started against William & Mary, and redshirt freshman Brandon Ross, who started the last two games, have also been in the mix.

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Quick Hitters

• A Terrapin has received Rookie of the Week honors three times in Maryland’s last four games. Quarterback Perry Hillsearned the award for his play against Temple (9/8), while Stefon Diggs received the honor for his play against West Virginia (9/22) and Wake Forest (10/6). Hills became the first Maryland true freshman QB to earn the award since Calvin McCall on 9/20/99, while Diggs became the first Maryland freshman receiver to earn it since Darrius Heyward-Bey on 10/30/06.

• Diggs ranks ninth in the conference and first among freshmen with 72.8 receiving yards per game. Diggs, who has 17 catches for 364 yards, is averaging 21.4 yards per catch. That leads all ACC receivers with 15 or more catches. It also ranks third among the top-100 receivers (yards per game) nationally.

• Diggs is the only Maryland freshman to record back-to-back 100-yard receiving games since at least 1985, the earliest game-by-game statistics were recorded at the school.

• Maryland allowed Wake Forest to complete just 32.4 percent of its passes (13 of 38). That is the lowest percentage by an opponent with at least 30 passing attempts since Duke went 13 of 42 (30.9%) on Nov. 14, 1998.

• Joe Vellano’s father, Paul Vellano, was inducted into the Maryland Athletics Hall of Fame on Oct. 5. The elder Vellano was a first team All-American in 1973, while Joe was a second team All-American in 2011. The father-son combo represent one of four known father-son All-America combos to attend the same FBS school (also Lee and Travis McGriff at Florida; Kevin and Drew Butler at Georgia; Archie and Eli Manning at Ole Miss).

• Thirteen players have made their first career starts at some point this season. In the season opener against William & Mary, quarterback Perry Hills, running back Albert Reid, safety Sean Davis, defensive back Jeremiah Johnson, linebacker Cole Farrand, nose tackle Darius Kilgo and offensive lineman Nick Klemm debuted. Against Connecticut, wide receiver Stefon Diggs made his first career start; defensive back Isaac Goins and running back Brandon Ross made their starting debuts at West Virginia. Defensive back Anthony Nixon and offensive linemen Mike Madaras and Andrew Zeller made their first starts vs. Wake Forest.

• Fourteen players saw their first career action for Maryland against William & Mary, and 22 players have seen their first career action for Maryland at some point this season (12 true freshmen, seven redshirt freshmen, two juniors, one senior).

• Maryland’s defense allowed just 682 total yards to opponents through its first three games (William & Mary – 229, Temple – 230, Connecticut – 223). That marks its best defensive performance in a three-game span since 2004, when it held The Citadel (137), West Virginia (156) and Eastern Michigan (275) to a total of 568.

• Maryland held a high-powered West Virginia offense that came in averaging 226 rushing yards per game to just 25 yards on 25 attempts.

• West Virginia came into its game with Maryland averaging 612 yards of total offense and 55.5 points per game. The Terps held the Mountaineers well below those averages, surrendering 363 yards and 31 points, seven of which came on a fumble return for a TD by the WVU defense.

• The Terps surrendered just 45 yards to Wake Forest in the second half, including just four in the fourth quarter. Maryland has been at its best in the second half all year, surrendering just 121.4 yards in the second half.

• The Terps are holding opponents to 2.3 yards per carry, which ranks third nationally. Of the opponents’ 174 rushing attempts this season, 122 (70.1%) have been for three yards or less (28 of 41 vs. William & Mary; 28 of 39 vs. Temple; 25 of 40 vs. Connecticut; 20 of 25 vs. West Virginia; 21 of 29 vs. Wake Forest).

• Demetrius Hartsfield leads the team with 43 tackles and three sacks, and has had a hand in three turnovers, also a team high (one interception, two fumble recoveries).

• The Terps have done a good job controlling the clock. In five games, Maryland has had the ball for an average of 31:43 to 28:17 for the opponent. That’s a major upgrade compared to 2011, when Maryland averaged just 25:16 a game to 34:44 for the opponent. Against Wake Forest the Terps did their best job of clock control all season, holding the ball for 35:48 to just 24:12 for Wake.

• Head coach Randy Edsall hands out game balls for each win. In the win over William & Mary, Marcus Leak got the game ball for offense, Joe Vellano for defense and Nathan Renfro for special teams. In the win over Temple, Sal Conaboy got the game ball for offense, Demetrius Hartsfield for defense and A.J. Francis for special teams. Against Wake, Kevin Dorsey got the offensive game ball, Jeremiah Johnson the defensive and Anthony Nixon special teams.

• Against William & Mary, Perry Hills became the first true freshman starter at quarterback for Maryland since Latrez Harrison in 1999. He also became the first freshman to start a season opener since redshirt freshman Calvin McCall on Sept. 2, 1999, in a 6-0 win over Temple.

• Nine bowl teams from last year appear on Maryland’s 2012 schedule: Temple (Gildan New Mexico Bowl), West Virginia (Discover Orange Bowl), Wake Forest (Franklin American Mortgage Music City), Virginia (Chick-fil-A Bowl), NC State (Belk Bowl), Georgia Tech (Hyundai Sun Bowl), Clemson (Discover Orange Bowl), Florida State (Champs Sports Bowl) and UNC (AdvoCare V100 Independence Bowl).

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Maryland-Virginia Series History

• Saturday’s game will mark the 77th meeting between the Terrapins and Cavaliers, the most between Maryland and any other school in the Terps’ 120-year football history. The schools have met every season since 1957.

• Maryland leads the all-time series, which began in 1919, by a 42-32-2 margin.

• Maryland is 21-18 all-time against Virginia on the road, and has won two of the last three meetings in Charlottesville. The road team has won five of the last six meetings.

• Virginia has won four out of the last five in the series, with Maryland’s win coming in Charlottesville in 2010.

• From 1969 through 2000, play between the two schools was feast or famine for one team. From 1969-87, the Terrapins held an 18-1 advantage in the series and at one point ran off 16 wins in a row, the longest streak in the series. Then from 1988 to 2000, the series swung almost exclusively to the Cavs as they were 11-2 in that span. Over the last 11 meetings, Virginia holds a 6-5 edge.

• Maryland’s 41-21 win in 2001 broke a string of nine straight losses to Virginia. In the win, the Terps allowed a 24-7 lead to be cut to three in the third quarter before scoring 17 unanswered points in the fourth to win going away.

 

COLLEGE PARK, Md. – The University of Maryland department of athletics will celebrate the 50th anniversary of Darryl Hill becoming the first African-American player to play at the University of Maryland and in the Atlantic Coast Conference.

Hill will be joined at a press availability with director of athletics Kevin Anderson and head coach Randy Edsall on Tuesday, Oct. 16 at noon at the Gossett Football Team House. In addition, Hill will be recognized during the Maryland-NC State game on Saturday, Oct. 20 at 3:30 p.m. at Capital One Field at Byrd Stadium.

Hill transferred to Maryland in 1962 and after sitting out one year he broke the color barrier in 1963, playing against NC State in College Park. Hill was also the first African-American to play at Gonzaga High School and the Naval Academy.

Hill emerged as Maryland’s top wide receiver in 1963, finishing with 43 receptions, only three short of the school record at the time. He played with the New York Jets for a short period before returning to school and earning a master’s degree from Southern Illinois. He has started businesses in China, Russia as well as the Pacific Energy Corporation. He also returned to Maryland for a period to serve as a Maryland’s director of major gifts.

Head Coach Randy Edsall

Opening statement:

“It will be good to get back out there and practice this afternoon for Virginia and the guys are looking forward to it. We know we have a tough challenge going down to Charlottesville for the game on Saturday. We see a talented team in Virginia and we have to prepare well.  I like how our guys are competing and how they are finishing, playing hard for 60 minutes and winning games in the fourth quarter. We’ve lost our games by a total of 13 points. That bodes well but we must continue – especially when we are playing all the young guys we are playing – to be patient and understand there are going to be mistakes.  We have to go out to work today and rectify those mistakes on all three phases.  That approach is what we are going to take this week and work to get a little better. We have a quarterback who is very tough and when you look at it, when we needed to make drives in our games in the fourth quarter, he’s stood up tall.  That’s what you look for in a quarterback.  There are things we have to approve upon with Perry (Hills) as well. When the time came in the games we have won, he’s stood up and made those drives he’s needed to make and I think that says a lot about our quarterback.”

 

On what the running back corps needs to improve on: 

“It’s just a matter of getting better with guys and their footwork and hat placement and running backs making sure they’re reading their keys correctly in terms of who we are reading whether it’s a one technique or the three technique or a five technique.  It’s just that consistency part with everybody.  We have to push on the line of scrimmage, we have to get movement, we have to sustain blocks and receivers need to get in sometimes and dig people out.  Backs need to make the right read. I think when you take a look at the offensive line, we’re going through some growing pains there with those guys playing together and meshing.  Add to that the young guys who are still learning and those are things that take some time. We need to keep working at it and get better at it.  We need to be able to run the football because I want to be a physical team.”

 

On what makes Demetrius Hartsfield good and what he is like off the field:

“I think that the biggest thing with [Demetrius] is that he puts the time and effort into studying the game and watching film. He wants to be good, so he will do what he has to do physically and mentally to make himself better. Off the field, he’s just a really quiet guy. He’s a great guy to be around. Never gets too high, never gets too low, very steady. I see a big difference in him from last year in the knowledge and the confidence that he has been playing with. He understands the importance of practicing hard. Watching him practice, you can tell that he is very competitive and wants to win.”

 

On which direction they’re going in with the running backs:

“That’s one thing that we are going to look at again this week. I have some ideas in mind about the direction we want to go in, but we have to see how the guys go about their business and how we practice.”

 

On how much of an influence Bennett Fulper his on the line:

“We expect a lot out of him. He’s an experienced guy that all of those guys on the line can look to. He’s a guy that should be helping them out with the little adjustments. He really helps Mike out on the left side with the experience over there. He is a guy that who played center but we moved to guard because we felt he would be stronger there. He works hard in the weight room and is a smart guy. But again, he has to do a little bit more than everyone because he’s like the shepherd looking over the flock.”

 

On whether or not he’d like to play multiple running backs:

“I’d like to have it where we’d have three guys: two that would carry the bulk of it and maybe a third as a specialist for those certain situations that come up in the game. I think that we are getting closer to that and hopefully we’ll have something like that worked out going into the game on Saturday.”

 

On if he is looking at avenging last year’s loss to Virginia:

“We have been able to avenge two; we were beat by Temple and Wake Forest last year but we beat both of them this year. We weren’t able to do that with West Virginia. You have the past there to look at, but I just want our guys to go out, play hard and execute to the best of their ability. If we practice the right way, go out and compete for sixty minutes, and play hard every play, then we will give ourselves the opportunity to win at the end of the day. Every week we are just trying to get better at what we do. We are trying to minimize mistakes and improve fundamentally and with technique. We talk to the guys about certain things from past games, but ultimately, what has to happen is we have to go out and earn it during the week on the practice field. Then we will be able to put ourselves in a better position and beat those teams that we didn’t beat a year ago.”

 

On who they might see as QB for Virginia, and if there is anything different between Michael Rocco and Philip Sims:

“You really don’t see anything different in terms of what they do offensively. You watch film and see what Rocco does in there and then what Sims does in there, and you don’t notice much difference in their offense. They are pretty much the same type of guy. I’ve read some things the past week and they are expected to change some things up with their running or passing games, but again, I think that they have a bit of a dilemma. They’ve got two quarterbacks down there and how do you decide who plays because it might affect the outcome. You might have guys that are in the Rocco camp and some that are in the Sims camp. So they might have a bit of a controversy themselves in terms of playing time. We will make sure that we are ready to defend Virginia, regardless of who the quarterback is.”

 

On what concern he has about Virginia:

“Offensively, they are going to run the football. They have good people there to run the ball. Perry Jones and Kevin Parks are two seasoned guys that run very hard and give them multiple looks from a personnel standpoint, especially with Darius Jennings who is their leading receiver. They have athletes that can make plays and they have a big offensive line. Two tackles are very good, and Morgan Moses is very good. They are rotating four guards in there. Because of the multiple personnel looks you have to be careful with what you do. Defensively, they are a team that is going to bring pressure and they are sound and solid up front. I have been impressed with Steve Greer, their middle linebacker. I have been watching him make a lot of tackles out there. They are going to play zones and bring pressures and they are going to bring both backers off the edge and bring coverage. You just have to be able to execute and if you do that you have a chance to stop them. And if you do that, you have a chance to put points on the board.”

 

On how Joe Vellano has played:

“I think Joe is playing a lot better this year from a fundamental standpoint. He might not be making as many tackles as he did a year ago but he is playing better this year. Because of what Joe is doing, other guys are being freed up to make plays. I think the biggest difference between last year and this year is that he is a better fundamentalist and is using better technique this year. I think he has listened to Greg Gattuso, his position coach, and he is understanding how technique is a big factor in terms of how well you can play and how it make you a better player.”

 

On the differences this year with the defense:

“Anytime you are successful, it is because, number one, everyone is buying into what you are doing and believes your philosophy and that everyone can do their job pretty well. The reason we are having the success that we are having is that our defensive coaches are preparing our players very well and the guys are really preparing themselves on the practice field and watching film and then taking all of the things the coaches are giving them so that when they go out on the practice field they are practicing that way. One of the things I talked to the team about after the game in the locker room is that defensively we are playing with a lot of confidence. We have some moxie. That is what we need to get on offense. We have to play with more confidence on offense. You get that by going out and practicing the right way. I think that is what the defense is doing; they are enjoying themselves and they are having fun. They are doing all of the things they are being asked to do and they are going out there and executing at a high level.”

 

On if it is a major difference that this team is competing for 60 minutes:

“I don’t like to look back, but we did not play for 60 minutes [last year]. When you have the chance the play the same teams this year that you played last year, you can watch some things on film and get a feel for the game. If you take a look at the game last year against Virginia, we went up 13-7, then it became a 14-13 game at halftime and I think we lost 31-13. To me, that is not finishing. That was one of the things we talked about during the offseason, and we need to learn how to finish and how to compete for those 60 minutes. So far, through our first five games this year, we have seen that. However, we have to do a whole lot more to elevate our level of play to our high standards on both sides of the ball.”

On the rivalry with Virginia:

“In terms of Virginia, they have played us second most among teams that they have played. It is a built-in rivalry in the ACC because it is the one game we are going to play every year with someone from the other division. We are bordering states and we compete for the same kids in recruiting and a lot of the kids know each other. So, to me, it is a rivalry and it is one of those things where there is a bit more meaning to it. “

– Terps –