Football Game Notes -- #20 Maryland at #15 Georgia Tech
10/8/2001 8:00:00 AM | Football
Oct. 8, 2001
COLLEGE PARK, Md. -
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The Game
- The University of Maryland football team (#20 ESPN/USA Today/#22 Associated Press) looks to keep its strong start alive in this week's Thursday night battle with the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets (#15 in both polls) in an Atlantic Coast Conference matchup at Bobby Dodd Stadium. Kickoff for the game, which can be seen nationally as ESPN's Thursday night game of the week, is set for 7:38 p.m.
- This week's game -- and main storyline -- marks head coach Ralph Friedgen's return to Georgia Tech, a school at which he was a part of eight successful seasons and one national championship as the Yellow Jackets' offensive coordinator. In the last three years of his most recent stint in Atlanta (from 1998-2000), Friedgen orchestrated an offensive unit that averaged 36.7 points and 444 yards of offense per game.
- The Terrapins are ranked No. 20 in the ESPN/USA Today and No. 22 in the Associated Press polls. The national ranking marks the Terps' second week in the Top 25 and is Maryland's first since 1995, when the Terrapins made their way to 17th before dropping from the rankings. The last time the Terps finished the season in the Top 25 was 1985 when they finished 18th and went to the Cherry Bowl.
- Maryland has begun its 109th season of college football and the Ralph Friedgen era in impressive fashion, winning its first five games and sitting atop the Atlantic Coast Conference standings with a 3-0 conference mark. Last weekend, the Terrapins beat Virginia by leading wire-to-wire in a 41-21 victory at Byrd Stadium.
- Georgia Tech enters this weekend's game at 4-1 and 1-1 in the Atlantic Coast Conference. The Ramblin' Wreck beat Duke last week, 37-10, getting back on track after falling in an overtime thriller to Clemson two weeks ago.
- This week, the Terps are attempting to inch closer to the start of the 1978 team. In that 1978 season, the Jerry Claiborne-led Terrapins opened the season with eight straight wins and worked their way to a No. 5 ranking in the Associated Press poll (Maryland went on to lose three of the final four that year and finish ranked 20th).
Virginia Streak Snapped
- The Terps once again used a balanced offensive attack (243 rush/237 pass) and big plays on defense and special teams (two turnovers, one blocked kick and one blocked punt recovered for a TD) in handing the Cavaliers their first loss in the series between the two schools since 1991. In the game, sophomore Bruce Perry continued his amazing start to the 2001 season, rushing for 143 yards on 25 carries (5.7 ypc). Perry has now run for 100 yards in each of his five starts this year, the first five of his career.
- With the win over the 'Hoos, the Terps moved to 5-0 for the first time since 1978. It was the first win over Virginia in the last 10 meetings between the two teams and, should Maryland beat Georgia Tech this week, it would mark the first time that the Terps will have beaten both the Cavaliers and the Yellow Jackets in the same season.
Elite Company
- With the Terrapins' 32-20 win over West Virginia and resulting 4-0 record two weeks ago, Friedgen joined some elite company at the University of Maryland. With the win, Friedgen joined legendary Maryland coach H.C. "Curley" Byrd as the only two coaches to open their first season as a Terp head coach with four consecutive wins. Byrd accomplished the feat in 1912.
- With Maryland's win over Virginia last weekend, Ralph Friedgen became the only Terp head coach to open his first full season at 5-0.
- Byrd actually opened his coaching career with six straight wins as he took over the 1911 team with two games remaining. He won the two games in '11 and then came back and opened his first full season in 1912 with four straight wins. (Note: among Byrd's four wins in 1912 was an opening day victory over Tech High, a regular opponent for Maryland from 1903-1912).
Series Notes
- Thursday's game marks the 14th meeting between the Terrapins and Yellow Jackets. The series began in 1988 and Georgia Tech owns a 10-3 advantage in the all-time series.
- Georgia Tech owns a four-game win streak in the series. The Terrapins' last win came in 1996, a 13-10 win at Byrd Stadium. Should the Terps pull out a win this week, it would be their first on the road in the series.
- Last year, the then 22nd-ranked Yellow Jackets' win closed the curtain on the 2000 season for the Terrapins as Tech's 35-22 victory ended Maryland's hopes for a winning season. That game served as the last for Ron Vanderlinden at Maryland. In addition, it was Ralph Friedgen's last look at his alma mater from the opposing sideline. The positives that he saw out of the team that he would assume coaching responsibilities for 11 days later included three touchdown passes by Shaun Hill, all coming in the second half and all including WR Guilian Gary on the receiving end.
- In that game, Maryland and Georgia Tech had comparable passing numbers (354-318 in Tech's favor), but the Yellow Jacket defense stifled the Terp running game (20 yards) while Tech ran for 193 yards on 53 carries.
- Georgia Tech is the first ranked team Maryland will face this year. The Ramblin' Wreck has been ranked in each of the last three meetings between the two teams, while this year will mark the first time since 1995 (and the second time in the series) that the Terrapins have gone into the matchup ranked.
- Thursday's game marks the first time in the series history that both teams enter nationally ranked.
Friedgen/O'Leary Pitted Against Each Other
- Maryland coach Ralph Friedgen and Tech coach George O'Leary spent plenty of time going head-to-head in practice in their time coaching opposite sides of the ball at Georgia Tech and with the San Diego Chargers. This week's game marks the first time, however, that the duo have squared off against each other since the 1985 Cherry Bowl.
- In that contest, Friedgen was the Terrapins' offensive coordinator and O'Leary was Syracuse's assistant head coach and defensive line coach. The end result was a 35-18 Maryland win behind a then school-record 22 second-quarter points and 223 passing yards from Stan Gelbaugh.
Offense Finds Success in Balance
- As the season has progressed, the Terrapin offense has seen improvement. In the last few weeks, it has gotten the job done with a balanced attack. In the season's first three games, the passing attack was lagging behind the ground game by an average of 78 yards per game. But in the last two contests, the deficit has been minimal with the output in each facet almost identical (181 rush/192 pass vs. WVU, 243 rush/237 pass vs. UVa).
- Maryland scored one touchdown in the first three quarters of 2001, but has since gone on a scoring rampage by scoring 164 points in the 17 ensuing quarters (an average of 9.6 points per quarter).
- The Terrapins posted a robust 480 yards of total offense against Virginia. Since a 247-yard performance in the season opener against North Carolina, Maryland has had no fewer than 373 yards (against West Virginia) and is averaging 462 yards per game. In 11 games last year, Maryland gained more than 373 yards just twice and averaged just over 335 yards of total offense per game.
- With 519 yards of total offense against Wake Forest two weeks ago, the Terps posted their best offensive performance since last year's Middle Tennessee game and the most yards against an ACC opponent since racking up 589 yards in a 52-0 win over Wake in 1996.
- The Terps piled up 297 rushing yards against Wake Forest. That total was more than it gained on the ground in any single game last year and most since the last game of 1999, when the Terps rambled for 445 versus Virginia (LaMont Jordan for a school record 306).
- Against Eastern Michigan, Maryland ran up 476 yards of total offense and outgained the Eagles by 352 yards.
Defense Off and Running
- Five games into the 2001 season, the Terrapin defense has already shown that it is a much improved unit over the one that took the field a year ago. Though the personnel is not drastically different, the results have been as Gary Blackney's unit has used a high-pressure, blitzing style that has either limited its opponents' overall effectiveness or simply caused them to make costly mistakes.
- In the Virginia game, Maryland gave up 345 total yards but held the Cavaliers to just 64 yards on the ground, over 70 yards below their season average. The Terps were stingiest in the first half, giving up just one rushing yard to UVa.
- Against West Virginia, the Terps forced six turnovers (four interceptions and two fumbles). The four interceptions were the most by a Terrapin defense since they picked off the Mountaineers four times in a 33-0 rout in 1999.
- Maryland allowed just one touchdown through the air and went more than nine consecutive quarters without allowing a touchdown before Wake Forest scored in the third quarter three weeks ago.
- Last season's top defensive performance was in giving up 276 yards of total offense to Duke in a 20-9 win in Durham. That game was one of just two games in which Maryland held its opponent under 300 yards (UNC the other). Five games into this season, Maryland has already matched that total and were it not for a 77-yard run on the first play of the North Carolina game, the Terps would have held two of five opponents this year under 200 yards.
- The 124 yards of total offense that Eastern Michigan was held to were the fewest by a Maryland opponent since 1980 when the Terps held Virginia to a sum of 90 yards. The EMU game marked just the sixth time since 1980 that the Terrapins held an opponent under 200 yards of offense. All but one of those games (Wake Forest in '96) came prior to 1983.
- Last season's lowest point total allowed was Duke's nine points, and opponents averaged 25.8 points per game. This year, the Terps are holding opponents to 14.2 points per game, a total that ranks 10th in the NCAA Division I-A ranks.
- Terp opponents are averaging 2.9 yards per carry this season.
- Last year's unit allowed an average of 440 yards per game. This year's "D" is thus far yielding an average of 311 yards per contest.
Three-For-One
- With the hiring of Ralph Friedgen and Friedgen's ensuing hires of offensive coordinator Charlie Taaffe and defensive coordinator Gary Blackney, the Terrapins got the equivalent of three head coaches atop one coaching staff. Though Friedgen is in his first stint as a head coach, Taaffe was most recently the head coach of the Canadian Football League's Montreal Alouettes while Blackney spent 10 successful years (1991-2000) as Bowling Green's head coach .
- Taaffe and Blackney have been able to maintain success virtually everywhere they have been. While in Montreal, Taaffe guided the Alouettes to a combined 25-14 record (two seasons) and an appearance in the 2000 Grey Cup. In 1999 and 2000, he was named the CFL's Coach of the Year, making him only the second coach to earn such an honor in back-to-back seasons (Marv Levy the first in 1974) and the first ever to do so in his first two campaigns. In addition, he is the winningest coach in The Citadel's history.
- Blackney was able to achieve in his own right as a head coach at Bowling Green. In 10 successful seasons, Blackney won 60 games (third most in school history), was the only coach in school history to win a bowl game (his Falcons won the 1991 California Raisin Bowl and the 1992 Las Vegas Bowl) and was the only coach to win more than 10 games in back-to-back seasons (11 in 1991, 10 in 1992).
- Though they are new to Maryland, the trio comprises one of the most experienced triumvirates in college football. With their 83 years of combined, full-time experience at the college and/or pro levels, Friedgen, Taaffe and Blackney are the fifth-most experienced trio in Division I-A. Below is a list of the company they keep:
Rk. School Yrs. Staff (Pos./Yrs. of Experience) 1 Penn St. 101 J. Paterno (HC/52), F. Ganter (OC/28), T. Bradley (DC/21) 2 Florida St. 89 B. Bowden (HC/41), J. Bowden (OC/14), M. Andrews (DC/34) 3 Mississippi St. 86 J. Sherrill (HC/31), S. Woods (OC/13), J.L. Dunn (DC/29) 4 Air Force 83 F. DeBerry (HC/33), C. Petersen (OC/13), R. Bell (DC/39) 5 Maryland 82 R. Friedgen (HC/28), C. Taaffe (OC/23), G. Blackney (DC/31) Note: Totals reflect years coaching prior to the 2001 season.
Maryland Coaches in Year One
- In the modern era of college football at Maryland (i.e. since 1950), there have been 11 different head coaches to take over the reigns of the Terrapin program. By and large, those coaches have not had success in that inaugural campaign, but many have gone on to great heights as their careers in College Park progressed. Below is a look at the 10 coaches since 1950 who preceded Ralph Friedgen:
Coach 1st Year (ACC) Overall Tenure Highlights/Notes
Tommy Mont ('56-58) 2-7-1 (2-2-1) 11-18-1 Beat No. 14 UNC in '57
Tom Nugent ('59-65) 5-5 (4-2) 36-34 Went 7-3 and beat No. 7 Syracuse in '61
Lou Saban ('66) 4-6 (3-3) Same Returned to coaching pros after one year
Bob Ward ('67-68) 0-9 (0-6) 2-17 Last Terrapin alum to serve as head coach
Roy Lester ('69-71) 3-7 (3-3) 7-25 3-3 ACC record T3rd in the conference
Jerry Claiborne ('72-81) 5-5 (3-2-1) 77-37-3 Three ACC titles, 2nd most wins at Md.
Bobby Ross ('82-86) 8-4 (5-1) 39-19-1 Three ACC titles, 24-5-1 all-time in ACC
Joe Krivak ('87-91) 4-7 (3-3) 20-34-2 1990 Independence Bowl
Mark Duffner ('92-96) 3-8 (2-6) 20-35 6-5 season in '95, finished T5th in ACC
Ron Vanderlinden ('97-00) 2-9 (1-7) 15-29 Beat UNC 45-7 to move to 5-2 in '99
Ralph Friedgen ('01-) 5-0 (3-0) Same 1st first-year Terp to open 5-0 since '12
Perry Leads NCAA
- This season began with Maryland having a situation at tailback that could best be described as a big question mark. Sophomore Bruce Perry was joined by senior Marc Riley and freshman Jason Crawford in a backfield that started '01 touted as a possible three-headed rushing attack. After five games, that three-pronged attack has been replaced by a single back who is working his way into, surprisingly, mention as a Heisman Trophy candidate.
- Bruce Perry has opened the season with five straight 100-yard games and leads NCAA Division I-A in yards per game with 164.2. He opened the season with a 116-yard effort against UNC. Against Eastern Michigan, he took it a step further with 133 yards (on 16 carries) and three touchdowns. Against Wake, he went above and beyond, rushing 30 times for a robust 276 yards with touchdown scampers of 80 and 50 yards. His latest venture was a 25-carry 143-yard performance with one TD against a Virginia defense that was geared with the sole intent of stopping him.
- Perry's 821 yards are second most nationally, trailing only Mewelde Moore's (Tulane) 932 (who accomplished that feat in six games, one more than Perry).
- In Perry's first three games of this season, he had actually eclipsed the 100-yard mark by halftime.
- The Philadelphia, Pa., native's 276-yard effort against Wake Forest was the second-best single game total in Maryland history and the sixth-best in Atlantic Coast Conference lore.
- The 276 yards were also the most ever against the Demon Deacons, besting the 237-yard effort of South Carolina's George Rogers in 1978.
- With three TDs against Eastern Michigan, Perry became just the 13th player in school history to find the end zone three times in one game via the run.
Rising Star
- Sophomore Bruce Perry is doing his best to help Terp faithful forget about departed star and all-time rushing leader LaMont Jordan. Below are a couple of comparisons between Perry's start and Jordan's Maryland record-setting season of 1999:
Perry '01 Jordan '99
Yards per game 164.2* 106.2*
Yards thru 5 games 821 531
Rush TDs thru 5 games 7 8
Yards Per Carry 6.7* 6.1*
(*averages for Jordan is for the season, Perry through 5 games)
Gary Coming on
- Senior wideout Guilian Gary began this season with uncertainty as a week before the Terps' first game, he suffered a spinal injury in practice that had him airlifted from the practice fields with his football future in question. Five games into the season, the Horseheads, N.Y., native has returned at full strength and has been one of Maryland's offensive leaders.
- Gary has led or tied for the team lead in receiving in four of five games this season. Against UVa, he finished with five receptions for a career-high 99 yards, including a 53-yard touchdown late in the second quarter. The 99 yards were a career high and left him one shy of his first 100-yard effort.
- With his five receptions against UVa, Gary has now caught at least one pass in each of the last 16 games.
- Gary, Maryland's leading receiver the past two seasons, entered 2001 with a chance to both crack the school's top 10 for receptions and become the first Terrapin since All-American Gary Collins (1959-61) to lead the team in three consecutive seasons.
- With his five catches last week, Gary moved into 13th on the Terp career charts with 88 receptions. He is also now 14th on the all-time yardage list with 1,184, moving ahead of Frank Wycheck ('90-92).
- In addition to his receiving skills, Gary is also one of the top punt returners in school history. Last season, he became the first Terp to lead his team in punt return yards for three straight years. He currently ranks fourth on the school's career list with 518 return yards.
On This Date
- The Terrapins have played 14 games in their history on October 11 and own a 6-8 record on the date. Of note, Maryland has had just one road game on the date since 1931, and it was the only time a Maryland game on the 11th featured a pair of ranked opponents. In that game, the fourth-ranked Terps beat No. 19 Georgia, 37-0, at Athens. The ledger:
Year Result Opponent Site 1997 L, 14-31 West Virginia College Park 1986 L, 25-30 Boston College College Park 1980 L, 10-24 #14 Penn State College Park 1975 W, 37-22 NC State College Park 1969 L, 9-20 Syracuse College Park 1958 L, 10-14 Texas A&M College Park 1952 W, 37-0 #19 Georgia Athens, Ga. 1941 L, 0-50 #4 Duke College Park 1930 L, 21-28 UNC Chapel Hill, N.C. 1924 W, 38-0 Richmond College Park 1919 W, 13-0 Virginia Charlottesville, Va. 1916 L, 7-14 Navy Annapolis, Md. 1913 W, 26-0 Johns Hopkins Baltimore, Md. 1903 W, 28-0 Washington Coll. College Park
Hill Fuels Offensive Attack
- Though his numbers are not eye-popping, there is no questioning that senior Shaun Hill is the leader of the Terrapin offense.
- Five games in, the Parsons, Kansas, native is a key component in an offense that has helped lead to five impressive wins. With Hill under center, the Terps have committed just four turnovers (the fifth was a fumble by backup Latrez Harrison against EMU).
- After a slow start, Hill may have played his best game of the season against Virginia. He opened 1-for-6 with an interception early, then rallied and went 21-of-29 the rest of the way to finish 22-of-35 for 237 yards, two passing TDs and one rushing TD.
- In eight games as a Maryland starter (dating back to last year), Hill has a record of 6-2 and orchestrated the biggest win of 2000 when he came off the bench against NC State a year ago.
Fowler Anchors O-Line
- Senior honors candidate Melvin Fowler heads up an offensive line that has become a unit to watch as the season progresses and in the future. Fowler, who was named to this season's "watch list" for the Lombardi Award (recognizing the top interior lineman in Division I-A), has now started 38 consecutive games at center and is the lone senior listed on the offensive line's two-deep heading into the Georgia Tech game.
- Of the 10 players listed on the depth chart for the Tech game, only three (Fowler and juniors Todd Wike and Matt Crawford) are not underclassmen. All told, the breakdown includes one senior, two juniors, three sophomores and three redshirt freshmen (Kyle Schmitt backs up at multiple spots).
- Despite its youth, the line is not without experience as four starters (Fowler, Wike, Bryant, Crawford) return from a year ago.
- Through five games, the Maryland O-line has allowed just eight sacks and has helped the Terps churn out an average of 232.4 rushing yards per game, 11th-best in the nation.
- The Terp offensive line held Virginia without a sack last week while leading the way to 243 rushing yards.
Man in the Middle
- Junior E.J. Henderson is quickly becoming a player to watch on a defense that has been nothing short of outstanding in 2001. The team leader in tackles in 2000 with 109 (despite missing a game-and-a-half due to injury), Henderson has opened 2001 by leading the Terps in tackles in four of five games.
- Henderson currently leads Maryland in tackles (60) and tackles for loss (12). He is currently on pace to post 132 tackles this season.
- Against West Virginia, Henderson tied his career high with 18 tackles (14 unassisted). He also had three tackles for loss, a sack and a PBU.
- In his two-plus years at Maryland, Henderson has notched double-digits in tackles 10 times.
- Dating back to last year, Henderson has finished with double-digit tackle performances in seven of the last nine games.
- Henderson finished seventh in the ACC in tackles a year ago and is third among those who returned in 2001. A viable All-American candidate, Henderson has averaged 12.8 tackles per game (115 total) in his last nine games dating back to last year.
Thompson on Butkus List
- Senior linebacker Aaron Thompson is one of 69 players (and one of five ACC players) who have been named to the "watch list" for the 2001 Butkus Award which recognizes Division I-A's top linebacker.
- Thompson enters the Georgia Tech game having started all 38 games of his career at Maryland.
- Through five games, Thompson leads the Terps in sacks (2.5) and is tied for second in TFLs (6).
- With four tackles for loss in the UNC game, Thompson moved to the top of the Maryland career list (which began being tracked in 1974) with 39. He broke the school record of 37 held by Charles Johnson (1976-78) and now has 41 for his career.
- In addition, Thompson now needs just 25 TFL yards to become the school's all-time leader.
- With 1.5 more sacks, Thompson will move into the career top 10 at Maryland. Should he match his total of 6.5 sacks from a year ago, Thompson would move into sole possession of the number eight spot.
- The Baltimore native's 17 TFLs in 1999 rank tied for third on the Terps' single-season charts.
Bootin' Barnard
- Junior All-America candidate and Ray Guy nominee Brooks Barnard has picked up where he left off a year ago, ranking 12th nationally and first in the ACC with a 44.5 yard punting average.
- Of Barnard's 28 punts on the year, eight have been downed inside the 20 (six inside the 20 and two inside the 10) and 12 have been 50 yards or further.
- Barnard was one of the primary keys to the Terps' success in owning prime field position in the season opener against UNC as he averaged 50.4 yards on eight punts.
- Barnard finished fourth nationally a year ago in punting average with a school-record 44.7-yard mark and was the second-leading punter among the nation's returnees, trailing only Minnesota's Preston Gruening who led the nation with a 45.2-yard average a year ago.
- Barnard's 44.7-yard average last season bested the previous Maryland mark of 43.8, set by Scott Milanovich in 1993. For his efforts, Barnard was named an honorable mention All-ACC selection as well as an honorable mention All-American by the Football News.
- In 2000, Barnard had a total of 13 punts that traveled further than 50 yards and eight punts downed inside the 20. After four games in 2001, he has already had 12 go further than 50 and eight downed inside the 20.
Local Ties
- The Terrapins have three players who call the state of Georgia home. Starting offensive tackle C.J. Brooks (Rex) is joined by backup tackle Eric Dumas (Atlanta) and second-string QB Latrez Harrison as natives of the Peach State.
- Ralph Friedgen isn't the only member of the Terp coaching staff with ties to Georgia Tech. Offensive coordinator Charlie Taaffe was with the Jackets as a graduate assistant in 1974 and defensive line coach Dave Sollazzo served as defensive tackles coach there from 1999-2000.
- The Yellow Jackets have a pair of players from the Old-Line State, and both are linebackers. Anthony Lawston is a Baltimore native while Sterling Green graduated from nearby Northwestern HS in Hyattsville.
- Georgia Tech's coaching staff has a pair of coaches who have ties with Maryland past and present. Defensive tackles coach Peter McCarty was the Terrapins' defensive ends/linebackers coach from 1992-96. Defensive ends coach Lance Thompson has not worked or played at Maryland, but was a linebacker at The Citadel in 1987 under current Terp coaches Charlie Taaffe and Al Seamonson.
Opportunistic Terps
- After forcing eight turnovers in the last two games, Maryland now ranks second in the nation with a +2.0 turnover margin average.
- The Terps' success has come in their ability to hang onto the ball as much as anything else. The team has gained 15 turnovers (four fumbles, 11 interceptions) and has lost only five (2 fumbles, three interceptions).
- Maryland's 11 interceptions are just one shy of its total from the entire 2000 season.
In The Zone
- The Terps have been solid thus far in 2001 in the red zone both offensively and defensively.
- Through five games, Maryland is 19-of-25 in the red zone with 15 touchdowns. The six stumbles have been three missed field goals, two loss of downs and an interception.
- Opponents have made it into Maryland's red zone just 12 times this season and have come away with four TDs and three field goals (7-of-12 overall).
- When have been in the red zone this year, they have scored touchdowns 60 percent of the time. Opponents have scored TDs 33 percent of the time against them.
Coaching Connections
- Ralph Friedgen is not the only new member of the Terrapin coaching staff with ties to College Park, though this is his fourth stint at Maryland (player from 1965-68, graduate assistant from 1969-72, offensive coordinator/offensive line coach from 1982-86 and the present stint).
- Inside linebackers coach Rod Sharpless played linebacker at Maryland from 1972-74, was an outside linebackers coach from 1977-80 and a wide receivers coach for the Terps in '90 and '91. Defensive line coach Dave Sollazzo was a graduate assistant for the Terrapins in 1984 and defensive line coach in '86-87.
- Sollazzo is also one of several coaches with a connection to another institution -- The Citadel. Sollazzo played for (1974-76) and helped coach (1989-98) the Bulldogs, while Friedgen coached there from 1973-79, Charlie Taaffe was a head coach there from 1987-96 and outside linebackers coach Al Seamonson served there from 1987-99.
Homeboys
- On national signing day, 2001, Ralph Friedgen said that in addition to landing some of the top recruits nationally, one of his goals was to make sure that all of the best players in the state of Maryland stayed in state and became Terps.
- Over the course of the past five years, the Maryland-D.C.-Northern Virginia recruiting area has been tapped more successfully in each ensuing year. In 1993, just 23 players on the Maryland roster hailed from either Maryland, D.C. or Northern Virginia, with six of those serving as opening-game starters. Since that time, however, numbers in both categories have risen steadily. Below is a look at the trend:
Md./D.C./No. Va. '97 '98 '99 '00 '01 Players on the Roster 23 34 39 46 49 Opening-Day Starters 6 5 7 12 10
Anniversary of Perfection
- The start of this football season marked the end of 50 years since the only season of perfection at the University of Maryland. The 1951 Terps went 10-0 and defeated top-ranked Tennessee, 28-13, in the Sugar Bowl.
- Led by All-Americans Bob Ward and Ray Krouse, brothers Ed and Dick Modzelewski and QB Jack Scarbath, the Terrapins ran through the entire '51 campaign allowing more than seven points only three times and ultimately sharing the Southern Conference championship with VMI before defeating the Vols to close the season.
- In '51, national champions were anointed prior to the bowl season, thus, Tennessee was that season's national champ while the Terps ranked third.
Consecutive Starts
- Several Terrapins currently own significant streaks of consecutive starts. By number of starts: C Melvin Fowler - 38, OLB Aaron Thompson - 38, OG Todd Wike - 26, CB Tony Okanlawon - 19, and LB Mike Whaley - 16.
- Terps not listed above who have started the most games overall (not consecutive) include: OT Matt Crawford - 25, NT Charles Hill - 20, and LB E.J. Henderson - 16.
Iron Terps
- As a team, Maryland had its strongest offseason in recent history, literally. In preseason strength and conditioning testing this year, the Terrapins set four team strength records.
- This year's Terps set team records for strength index, power clean, squat and bench press, improving on the previous all-time team highs that had been established since such records have been kept (started in 1983).
- Individually, eight Terrapins set records in disciplines at their respective positions, but none were more impressive than DE Durrand Roundtree.
- Roundtree, a junior from Baltimore, set the all-time record for strength index with an incredible 844 (700 is considered high), and set D-line records in the bench (490), squat (760) and vertical jump (36.5 inches).
Scouting The Jackets
- Georgia Tech hosts the Terrapins with a 4-1 (1-1 ACC) record. The Yellow Jackets have been an offensive juggernaut this year with their lone stumble coming on a defensive lapse against Clemson.
- In four wins this year, Georgia Tech has allowed an average of 7.8 points per game. In its lone loss this year (an overtime defeat at the hands of Clemson), Tech gave up 47, pushing its season average up to 15.6 points allowed per contest.
- The Yellow Jackets are 1-1 against teams with a winning record in 2001 (beat Syracuse, lost to Clemson). Their other three wins have come against teams (The Citadel, Navy and Duke) with a combined 1-10 record.
- The Georgia Tech offense has been a three-man show this year. George Godsey has followed up his strong 2000 campaign with 1,115 yards and eight TDs passing (vs. three interceptions) through five games. His favorite target has been speedster Kelly Campbell who has caught 25 passes for 371 yards, both second best in the ACC (behind Virginia's Billy McMullen). The rushing attack has been spearheaded by Joe Burns who is third in the league with 458 yards and eight touchdowns.
- On defense, a trio of players (Keyaron Fox, Recardo Wimbush and Jeremy Muyres) all are above 30 tackles, but Greg Gathers has been the star with seven sacks and 12 TFLs.
Tech's George O'Leary
- Georgia Tech head coach George O'Leary is in his seventh full season as head coach at Georgia Tech. Since taking over in 1994 on an interim basis, the Yellow Jackets have risen as one of the top teams in the ACC and for his efforts, he was named last year's recipient of the Bobby Dodd Coach of the Year Award.
- O'Leary and Maryland's Ralph Friedgen have had many stops together along the way. Starting in 1987, the pair of New York natives have spent 11 of the last 15 years on the same coaching staff (1987-91, 1997-2000 with Georgia Tech, 1992-93 with the San Diego Chargers).
- In his seven-plus seasons as a head coach at Georgia Tech, O'Leary has compiled a 45-28 record. The Yellow Jackets' best season of his tenure came in 1998 when the team went 10-2, was co-ACC champs and won the Toyota Gator Bowl.
- O'Leary's coaching career began in 1968 as a prep coach at Central Islip (N.Y.) High School. He was named the school's head coach in 1975 and continued on as a high school head coach until 1979.
- O'Leary is the godfather of Ralph Friedgen's youngest daughter, Katie.
- A 1968 graduate of the University of New Hampshire, O'Leary was a three-year letterwinner who spent time as an offensive lineman and fullback.
Terp Alley
- In an effort to restore some tradition on gameday in College Park, the football staff has come up with something that will likely become tradition outside of Byrd Stadium.
- For every football home game in 2001, the entire football team will make its first appearance at "Terp Alley." The team will be dropped off at the circle at the top of Field House Drive (between the football press box and Ludwig Field) approximately two hours before kickoff and it will be led through fans gathered along the street to the football complex by the Maryland band and cheerleaders.
Byrd Stadium
- Now in its 52nd year of operation, Byrd Stadium continues to serve as the home of the Terps. Opened on September 30, 1950, and constructed for a sum of $1 milliion, Byrd was named after Dr. H.C. "Curley" Byrd, a multi-sport star at Maryland who later became the school's head football coach and ultimately its president.
- The Terrapins are 160-99-1 within the friendly confines of Byrd (capacity 48,055).
Ticket Information
- Individual game tickets for Terp home games may be purchased locally at any Ticketmaster outlet or by visiting the Maryland ticket office at Cole Field House. Tickets may also be purchased online at www.ticketmaster.com.
- For additional info or to order by phone, call (800) 462-TERP.
