Football Game Notes - Maryland vs. West Virginia
9/24/2001 8:00:00 AM | Football
Sept. 24, 2001
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The Game
- The University of Maryland football team takes on regional rival West Virginia University in a game originally scheduled for September 15. The date of the contest was changed as all NCAA Division I-A games were postponed due to the national tragedies which occured on September 11. Kickoff for the game is set for 12:05 p.m. at Byrd Stadium.
- Maryland has begun its 109th season of college football in impressive fashion, winning its first three games and moving to 2-0 and atop the Atlantic Coast Conference standings. Last weekend, Maryland won its first road game of 2001, a 27-20 nailbiter at Wake Forest. In the win, sophomore tailback Bruce Perry continued his outstanding work spearheading the Terp rushing attack, going for 276 yards with two touchdowns.
- Perry's 276-yard effort was the second-best rushing performance in Maryland school history and was the best ever turned in by a Demon Deacon opponent. The previous best against Wake came in 1978, a 237-yard performance by South Carolina's eventual Heisman Trophy winner, George Rogers.
- West Virginia enters this weekend's game at 2-1 (0-1 Big East) after defeating Kent State, 34-14, in Morgantown. The Mountaineers have now won two straight non-conference games after falling to Boston College, 34-10, in their season opener.
- Should Maryland beat the Mountaineers, the Terps would move to 4-0 for the first time since 1996 and just the second time since 1978. It would also mark just the third time in the last 16 years that the Terps will have beaten both West Virginia and North Carolina in the same season.
- The Maryland/WVU tilt is also one of seven home games on the 2001 dockett, the most Maryland has played in the modern era.
Elite Company
- Should the Terrapins emerge victorious against West Virginia, their 4-0 record would help propel coach Ralph Friedgen into some elite company. With a win, Friedgen would join 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.
- 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
- Saturday's game marks the 39th meeting between the Terrapins and Mountaineers. West Virginia leads the all-time series -- which began in 1919 -- by a 19-17-2 margin.
- Maryland and WVU have met every year since 1980. The Mountaineers have won seven of the last 10 meetings between the two schools and 12 of the 21 meetings since 1980.
- Despite the Mountaineers' recent success, the series between the two Mid-Atlantic schools has been very evenly matched over the years. So much so, in fact, that if the Terps had been able to pull out a victory in Morgantown last year, the series records for the two teams at home and on the road would have been an identical 9-9-1 (as it stands, Maryland is 9-9-1 at Byrd and 8-10-2 at Morgantown).
- In last year's 30-17 WVU win, Maryland trailed 20-3 at the half before scoring 14 third-quarter points to cut the deficit to three. The Terrapins threatened to take the lead with 6:38 remaining but QB Calvin McCall was ruled short on a dive from the one and the Mountaineers went on to tack another TD onto their 23-17 lead for the final tally.
- In the 2000 game, Maryland's LaMont Jordan ran for just 38 yards, but it was enough to give him the school record for rushing yards.
- The lone Terp remaining from last year's game who found the end zone is, surprisingly, linebacker Leon Joe, who returned an interception 55 yards in the third quarter for a TD that cut the Maryland deficit to three (20-17).
- The West Virginia game marks the second time in three games this year that the Maryland game involves a pair of new head coaches. Rich Rodriguez was Clemson's offensive coordinator a year ago while Ralph Friedgen served the same post at Georgia Tech. The coordinators were both key cogs in last year's thrilling 31-28 Georgia Tech win at Clemson where the Yellow Jackets scored 15 points in the fourth quarter, the final strike being a 16-yard pass from George Godsey to Kerry Watkins who made a diving one-handed grab with seven seconds remaining on the clock. Clemson went into the game undefeated and ranked fourth nationally.
On This Date
- The Terrapins have played 12 games in their history on September 29 and own a 9-3 record on the date. The ledger:
Year Result Opponent Site 1990 L, 17-45 #6 Michigan Ann Arbor, Mich. 1984 W, 38-17 Wake Forest College Park 1979 L, 7-14 Kentucky Lexington, Ky. 1973 W, 31-3 Villanova College Park 1962 W, 13-2 Wake Forest Winston-Salem, N.C. 1956 W, 6-0 Wake Forest Winston-Salem, N.C. 1951 W, 54-14 Washington & Lee Lexington, Va. 1944 L, 0-12 Hampden-Sydney College Park 1934 W, 13-0 St. John's (Annapolis) College Park 1928 W, 31-0 Washington College College Park 1928 W, 53-0 Randolph Macon College Park 1906 W, 5-0 Tech High College Park
Offensive Breakout
- Maryland scored one touchdown in the first three quarters of 2001, but has since gone on a scoring rampage by scoring 91 points in the nine ensuing quarters.
- With 519 yards of total offense against Wake Forest, 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 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).
- The Terrapins held a 44-0 lead midway through the fourth quarter against Eastern Michigan, the largest lead by a Maryland team since it held a 45-0 lead in an eventual 45-7 win over UNC in 1999. The Terps' 47-point margin of victory was their largest since a 52-0 home win over Wake Forest in 1996.
- Maryland ran up 476 yards of total offense and outgained Eastern Michigan by 352 yards.
Defense Off and Running
- Though the season is only three weeks old for Maryland, one fact seems apparent -- the Terrapin defense is much improved over last year. Though the personnel is not drastically different, the results have been. A unit that allowed an average of 440 yards per game a year ago is thus far yielding an average of 200 yards per contest.
- 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). Three 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 three 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 10.0 points per game, a total that ranks ninth in the NCAA Division I-A ranks.
- Terp opponents are averaging 2.7 yards per carry this season.
- Maryland has 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 last weekend.
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)
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 Highlghts/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-) 3-0 (2-0) Same 1st first-year Terp to open 3-0 since '47
Ray Guy Candidate Brooks Barnard
- Junior All-America candidate and Ray Guy nominee Brooks Barnard hasn't taken long in picking up where he left off a year ago. Barnard had a sub-par performance against Wake Forest (39.4 average on five punts), but is still ranked 10th nationally and first in the ACC.
- 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.
- Of Barnard's 15 punts on the year, six have been downed inside the 20 (five inside the 20 and two inside the 10) and nine have been 50 yards or further.
- 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 two games in 2001, he has already had eight go further than 50 and six downed inside the 20.
Perry Leads the Nation in Rushing
- The 2001 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 three games, that three-pronged attack has been replaced by a single, definitive every-down back who is turning heads.
- Bruce Perry has opened the season with three straight 100-yard games, has gotten better with each outing, and now leads NCAA Division I-A in yards per game with 175.0. 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. Last week, he went above and beyond, rushing 30 times for a robust 276 yards with touchdown scampers of 80 and 50 yards. He also added three receptions for 34 yards.
- The Philadelphia, Pa., native's 276-yard effort is the second-best single game total in Maryland history and the sixth-best in Atlantic Coast Conference lore.
- The 276 yards was also the most ever against Wake Forest, besting the 237-yard effort of South Carolina's George Rogers in 1978.
- In each of the Terps' three games this year, Perry has hit the 100-yard plateau by halftime.
- 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 175.0* 148.3* Yards thru 3 games 525 363 TDs thru 3 games 5 4 Yards Per Carry 7.8* 6.1* (*averages for Jordan is for the season, Perry thru 3 games)
Hill a Vital Cog at QB
- Though his numbers are not yet eye-popping, there is no questioning that senior Shaun Hill is the leader of the Terrapin offense.
- Three games in, the Parsons, Kansas, native is a key component in an offense that has helped lead to three impressive wins. With Hill under center, the Terps have committed just two turnovers (the third was a fumble by backup Latrez Harrison against EMU).
- Although he threw two interceptions against Wake (his first of the year), Hill continued a strong display of accuracy that began against Eastern Michigan. In his last two games, Hill has completed 31 of 44 passes, which is over 70 percent of his attempts.
Fowler Anchors O-Line
- Senior honors candidate Melvin Fowler heads up an offensive line that will be a unit to watch as the year 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 36 consecutive games at center and is the lone senior listed on the offensive line's two-deep heading into the West Virginia game.
- Of the 10 players listed on the depth chart for the WVU 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 two spots).
- Despite their youth, the line is not without experience as four starters (Fowler, Wike, Bryant, Crawford) return from a year ago.
- Through three games, the Maryland O-line has allowed just five sacks and has helped the Terps churn out an average of 246 rushing yards per game, 9th-best in the nation.
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 each of their first three games.
- In the win over Wake, Henderson was all over the field, racking up a team-high 17 stops (one shy of his career high) including 11 of the solo variety. Among his 17 tackles were three TFLs.
- Against Eastern Michigan, Henderson spent most of his day in the opponent's backfield, making eight total tackles (five solo), with three of those coming behind the line of scrimmage in about one half of play.
- Henderson currently leads Maryland in tackles (37) and tackles for loss (9).
- In his two-plus years at Maryland, Henderson has notched double-digits in tackles nine times.
- Dating back to last year, Henderson has finished with double-digit tackle performances in six of the last seven 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 averaged 13.8 tackles per game (55 total) in the four games after his injury last year including 18 in the finale versus Georgia Tech.
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 West Virginia game having started all 36 games of his career at Maryland. His 10 tackles against Wake Forest were second among Terps and a personal season high.
- Through three games, Thompson leads the Terps in sacks (2.5) and is tied for second in TFLs (4).
- 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).
- In addition, Thompson now needs just 30 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.
Gary Regaining Form
- 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. Three weeks 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 all three games this season. Against Wake, he finished with five receptions for 77 yards, getting most of his yards after the catch.
- With his five receptions against WFU, Gary has now caught at least one pass in each of the last 14 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 a tie for 18th (with Dean Richards, 1975-78) on the Maryland career charts with his 77th reception.
- 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 501 return yards.
Local Ties
- Maryland does not have any players who were born in the state of West Virginia, but that is not to say that it does not have any ties. A pair of quarterbacks, Scott McBrien and Hunter Cross, were each on the West Virginia roster as early as this past spring and transferred to College Park prior to the start of the season (both players are natives of the state of Maryland).
- The Mountaineers have a total of six players from the Old-Line State. By hometown: DT Antwan Lake (Cambridge), WR Mike Page (Cumberland), DB Brian King (Damascus), DB Joe Scritchfield (Gaithersburg), DT David Upchurch (Hyattsville), FB Moe Fofana (Silver Spring).
In The Zone
- The Terps have been solid thus far in 2001 in the red zone both offensively and defensively.
- Through three games, Maryland is 11-of-14 in the red zone with nine touchdowns. The three stumbles have been a pair of missed field goals and an interception.
- Opponents have made it into Maryland's red zone just three times this season and have come away with a pair of touchdowns.
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 - 36, OLB Aaron Thompson - 36, OG Todd Wike - 24, CB Tony Okanlawon - 17, and LB Mike Whaley - 14.
- Terps not listed above who have started the most games overall (not consecutive) include: OT Matt Crawford - 23, NT Charles Hill - 18, and LB E.J. Henderson - 15.
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).
Terps Earn Votes
- Maryland received votes in both the USA Today/ESPN and the Associated Press polls this week. The Terrapins were given 26 votes and an unofficial rank of 32nd in the coaches' poll and 60 votes and an unofficial rank of 30th in the AP.
- The Terps got no votes in either poll in the preseason and earned six votes in just the coaches' poll after week one.
Tragedy Hits Home
- Several Maryland players and a coach were personally affected by the national tragedy of September 11th. Fortunately, all involved escaped unharmed.
- Offensive line coach Tom Brattan's brother and C Melvin Fowler's brother both worked in the World Trade Center, DB Sal Aragona's mother worked near the twin towers, WR Aaron Smith's father worked at the Pentagon as did CB Curome Cox's sister.
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.
Scouting West Virginia
- West Virginia comes to College Park with a 2-1 (0-1 Big East) record after defeating Kent State, 34-14, this past weekend.
- West Virginia has out-passed its opponents in '01, but has had troubles on the ground. The Mountaineers are averaging a solid 168.0 yards on the ground per game themselves, but have allowed an average of 241.3 yards per game to their opponents.
- WVU's top offensive player is junior TB Avon Coburne. Coburne is averaging an impressive 138.7 rushing yards per game and leads the team in scoring with four TDs.
- The West Virginia defense is allowing an average of 389.7 yards per game thus far in '01. The team's top tackler has been LB Kyle Kayden (45 tackles, 22 solo) but their top player is LB Grant Wiley, a 2000 freshman All-America who has missed the last two games due to injury.
- The Mountaineer's pass protection has been solid, allowing just four sacks, but its pass rush has only produced the same number on its side of the ball.
WVU Coach Rich Rodriguez
- Rich Rodriguez is in his first year as the head coach at West Virginia. Like Ralph Friedgen, Rodriguez joins his alma mater after serving as an offensive coordinator a year ago.
- Rodriguez is WVU's 31st head coach and comes to Morgantown after two successful two-year stints under Tommy Bowden. The first was as offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach at Tulane from in 1997 and '98. In 1999 and 2000, he served under Bowden as offensive coordinator and associate head coach at Clemson.
- In their years together, Rodriguez and Bowden took little time to turn things around at Tulane and Clemson. At both schools, teams struggled somewhat in year one (a combined 13-10 record) only to have strong second years (21-3).
- The best year Rodriguez had as an assistant was at Tulane in 1998 when the Green Wave rode the strong play of quarterback Shaun King to a perfect 12-0 record and a berth in the Liberty Bowl.
- A native of Grant Town, W. Va., Rodriguez was a three-time letterwinner at defensive back for WVU from '82-84.
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 158-99-1 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.
