Football Game Notes -- Terps At North Carolina
10/28/2002 7:00:00 AM | Football
Oct. 28, 2002
COLLEGE PARK, Md. -
Terps at UNC Game Notes in PDF Format
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-- The University of Maryland football team returns to the Research Triangle this week in hopes of winning its second game in the area in as many weeks and taking its sixth in a row overall as it will head to Chapel Hill, N.C., to take on the University of North Carolina on Saturday in an Atlantic Coast Conference matchup. Kickoff is set for 1:30 p.m. for the game which can be heard locally on the Terrapin Sports Network (no television).
-- Maryland (6-2, 2-1 ACC) is in the midst of a five-game win streak after continuing its run of impressive performances. Against Duke, the Terrapins held the Blue Devils scoreless for three quarters while hitting double-digits in points in each of the first three frames in an eventual 45-12 victory. In the win, Maryland scored from all angles as it got points from the offense, defense, returns and the kicking game in moving over the .500 mark in conference play.
-- The Terps are once again getting attention from the pollsters and continue to inch closer to reappearing in the national rankings after falling out of the Top 25 after their season opener. This week, Maryland ranks an unofficial 28th in both the ESPN/USA Today coaches poll (80 votes) and the Associated Press poll (84 votes).
-- With a win this week, Ralph Friedgen would become the first coach in Maryland history to win 17 games in his first two years at the helm. The Duke game was his 16th win in two seasons, tying the win total of Bobby Ross in his first two years (1982-83) with the Terps. Friedgen was an assistant coach under Ross during that time at Maryland.
-- North Carolina has struggled in recent weeks after blowing a 21-point halftime lead at Virginia before falling 31-0 at Wake Forest last weekend. The loss to the Demon Deacons marked the first time since 1966 that the Tar Heels had been shut out in the series with Wake.
-- The UNC game is the second in a string of five conference games for Maryland in which it will be the road team four times. The Terrapins are 5-1 all-time on the road under Friedgen and are looking for their third win in their last four tries against North Carolina.
Series Notes
-- Saturday's game will mark the 65th meeting between the Terrapins and Tar Heels with UNC leading the all-time series 35-28-1.
-- The Maryland/North Carolina series is one that can best be defined by spurts by one team or the other. The series began with Maryland winning four of seven, but from there it went UNC 9-0-1 from 1927-50; Maryland 8-3 from 1951-62; UNC 6-2 from '63-72; Maryland 9-3 from '73-85; UNC 11-5 since 1986.
-- The Terrapins are seeking their first win in Chapel Hill since 1988, a string of seven losses to the Tar Heels on their home turf. In the 41-38 win at Kenan Memorial Stadium, Neil O'Donnell threw for 259 yards and what was then a career-high three touchdowns as the Terps scored the game's final 13 points to escape with the win.
-- North Carolina holds a 7-3 edge in the last 10 meetings between the two teams, but the Terrapins have won two of the last three in the series and fell just shy of a win in 2000 (13-10) and having a current streak of three straight. In that 200 game, both offenses struggled with the Terps holding UNC to four first downs through more than three quarters, but Maryland could not hold the 10-7 advantage it had staked itself with 14:14 remaining in the game. Ronald Curry scored the game-winner on a 25-yard run with 7:24 left. For more on the Maryland/UNC series, see page 10 of this release.
-- Last year's game was the first of a magical season for the Terrapins and the first for Ralph Friedgen as Maryland's head coach. In that game, the Terps allowed a 77-yard touchdown to Willie Parker on the game's opening play but did not allow another Carolina score in an eventual 23-7 win. Bruce Perry showed glimpses of what was to come in a season that would garner him ACC Offensive Player of the Year as he rushed 21 times for 116 yards.
-- In the 2001 Terp victory, Friedgen became the first Maryland head coach to win his first game at the helm since Tom Nugent in 1959.
DownsTown
-- Senior Chris Downs began the 2002 season as a player who had earned the respect of his coaches for his hard work, but little more in terms of playing time at tailback as he entered this season with four career carries. That respect -- which was one of the main reasons noted when his mentors named him the starter in week two -- is now something shared by the opponents he has run through this season.
-- Last weekend, Downs led the Terps in rushing for the fourth time this season, going for 60 yards on 16 carries against a Duke team that came into the game as the league's second-rated run defense.
-- Against Georgia Tech, Downs woke up a sluggish Terrapin offense in the second half by rushing 19 times for 183 yards and three TDs (26 for a career-high 212 yards, overall), boosting the Terps from a 6-3 halftime lead to an eventual 34-10 victory.
-- The 212-yard effort by Downs against Georgia Tech was the 12th-best single-game rushing performance in Maryland history.
-- With 147 yards rushing against Wofford, Downs became the first Terp tailback to go over the 100-yard mark in the previous 12 games.
-- The Duke game marked the first game this season in which Downs has played tailback that he did not find the end zone. For the season, he has nine TDs, five more than he had career carries coming into this season.
-- On 107 rushing attempts this season, Downs is averaging 6.2 yards per carry and 82.5 yards per game (third-best in the ACC).
Three-For-One
-- With the hiring of Ralph Friedgen and Friedgen's ensuing hires of offensive coordinator Charlie Taaffe and defensive coordinator Gary Blackney prior to the 2001 season, the Terrapins got the equivalent of three head coaches atop one coaching staff. Though Friedgen is in just his second season as a head coach, Taaffe (Montreal Alouettes and The Citadel) and Blackney (Bowling Green) each bring head coaching experience to the table.
-- Taaffe and Blackney were able to maintain success virtually everywhere they had been as head coaches. 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).
-- Now in their second seasons at Maryland, the trio comprises one of the most experienced triumvirates in college football. With their 85 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.
A Wealth of Experience
-- The coaching experience does not end on the Terrapin coaching staff with Coach Friedgen and his coordinators. The Maryland staff overall possesses a combined total of 206 years of full-time experience at either the collegiate or pro levels.
-- That total includes five coaches (excluding Friedgen, Taaffe and Blackney) who have been at it for 18 years or more, and the 206 years means an average of almost 21 years of experience per coach on the 2002 staff.
Odds & Ends -- Duke
-- Maryland's win over Duke was its third straight over the Blue Devils and continued a pattern of recent dominance in the series. Overall, the Terps own a 28-18 advantage in the series, but 24 of Maryland's wins have come in the last 29 meetings between the two schools.
-- After not having a 100-yard receiving game since 1997, Maryland has now had one in two consecutive games. Against Georgia Tech, Scooter Monroe broke the drought with a five-catch, 106-yard outing. In the Duke game, converted quarterback Latrez Harrison became the latest to cross the century mark as he had three receptions for 103 yards.
-- Harrison also saw his first action of the season at QB, primarily running the option. The junior rushed three times for 31 yards.
-- In the last two meetings with the Blue Devils, the Terrapins have been dominant. Since 1986 (and prior to last year), Maryland had not beaten Duke by more than 17 points but in the last two meetings the Terps have won by a 104-29 margin.
-- Scott McBrien had another strong outing, completing 16-of-21 passes for 264 yards and two touchdowns with one interception. The 16 completions were a career high for McBrien, as was his 76 percent completion percentage. He also rushed for one touchdown.
-- Shawne Merriman became the first true freshman to start for the Terps this season as he got the call at the "LEO" spot. In his starting debut -- which was necessitated due to an injury to Jamahl Cochran -- Merriman notched five tackles, two pass breakups and one QB hurry.
-- Safety Madieu Williams intercepted a Duke pass in the end zone for his team-high fourth interception of the year. Williams is now second in the ACC in interceptions with .50 per game.
-- Steve Suter returned his third punt of the year for a touchdown on a 63-yarder in the first quarter. The return broke the ACC single-season record for punt returns for a TD and also set a Maryland record for single season yardage. For more on Suter and his efforts at Duke, see page 7 of this release.
Defense Stepping Up
-- In its win over West Virginia earlier this year, the Maryland defense held the nation's No. 1 rushing offense 159 yards below its season average of 345.5 yards per outing. Though the effort was impressive, it should have come as no surprise as it is a trend the Terps have maintained nearly all year.
-- In all but one game this year (Akron), the Terrapin defense has held its opposition at or below its season average. As a group, Terp opponents are averaging 72.9 yards less than their average coming into the game. (Note: Notre Dame was not included because it was the season's first game, however, the 130 yards Maryland held the Irish to is 34 yards shy of their current per-game average).
-- Last weekend, the Terps held Duke to 139 rushing yards, 28 below its season average.
-- The Terps' impressive work has not come against weak competition, either, as two of its most impressive outings have occurred against two of the nation's top rushing teams.
-- West Virginia averaged 345.5 rushing yards per game coming into its game against the Terps, had the nation's leading rusher in Avon Cobourne and was coming in on the heels of a game which saw it run for 536 yards. Maryland held WVU 159 yards below its average and Cobourne 36 yards below his average even with him carrying the ball 30 times and having a 43-yard run mixed in.
-- Florida State was the nation's No. 3 rushing offense coming into the Maryland game, averaging 318 yards per game largely behind Greg Jones, who was then the nation's eighth-leading rusher at 143 yards per game. The Terrapins held the 'Noles to 169 yards (149 below their average) and Jones to 106 (37 below his average), with Jones gaining most of his yardage late in the game (54 yards on 16 carries heading into the fourth quarter).
More on the "D"
-- Through games of October 27, Gary Blackney's unit has allowed just 15.4 points per game, ninth-best nationally and tops in the ACC. The Terps' pass defense ranks 38th nationally, allowing an average of 200.1 yards per game.
-- The Terps have been toughest to score on this year at the start of each half, yielding just 16 and 20 points in the first and third quarters, respectively. That is an average of under three points per quarter, and the team currently has a streak of five straight games without allowing a point in the opening stanza.
-- In the last five games, Maryland has allowed just six touchdowns and opponents have scored an average of only 10 points per game. In fact, the Terrapins' 45 points against Duke were just five shy of what the defense has allowed in the last five outings combined.
-- The Terrapins have allowed the fewest first downs (137) of any team in the ACC.
In The Zone
-- As a team, Maryland is the best in the ACC at getting it done in the red zone. On offense and defense, the Terps rank second in the league in red zone efficiency, a composite claim that no team can claim to be better than.
-- On offense, the Terrapins have scored 89.7 percent of the time they have crossed the opponent's 20-yard line, an average which ranks behind only Georgia Tech's 92 percent.
-- On defense, Maryland has allowed its opposition points just 65.4 percent of the time once it enters the red zone, an average that ranks only behind NC State's 64 percent.
Big Play E.J.
-- Senior All-American and 2002 Butkus Award semifinalist E.J. Henderson burst onto the national scene last season and -- despite an offseason of worries about his back -- has returned to the form that had him rated by many publications as the nation's best defensive player in 2002.
-- With five regular season games remaining, Henderson has come on and looks like the E.J. of old, a relief to the Terps considering he had back surgery on April 8 and missed all of spring practice. Henderson had a team-high nine tackles (seven solo) and one sack against Duke.
-- With his sack against Wofford (9/28), Henderson set the Maryland career record for tackles for loss with his 46th. That total broke the mark of 45 set by former teammate Aaron Thompson (1998-2001). He now has 49.5 for his career.
-- The 2001 ACC Player and Defensive Player of the Year, Henderson has led the Terrapins in tackles in each of the past two seasons and leads the Terps again in '02. In 2000, he notched 109 tackles despite missing a game-and-a-half due to injury before posting an ACC-leading 150 tackles last season. This year, Henderson tops the Terps' charts and is fourth in the ACC with 92 tackles.
-- Henderson has led Maryland in tackling in all but three games the last two years (17 of 20 games).
-- Eight games into the season, the '01 Butkus finalist has posted 390 career tackles. He currently stands sixth on the Maryland career charts and now needs two to move into 25 to move into the top five.
-- Henderson has averaged 12.9 tackles per game (297 total) in his last 23 games dating back to the 2000 season.
-- In his two-plus years as the starter at Maryland, Henderson has notched double-digits in tackles 22 times. Dating back to his sophomore season, Henderson has finished with double-digit tackle performances in 19 of the last 23 games. On five occasions he has had 17 tackles or more.
Hard Luck For Perry
-- After missing each of the first seven games of this season recovering from a torn groin muscle suffered on August 20, 2001 ACC Offensive Player of the Year Bruce Perry returned to the starting lineup against Duke. Unfortunately, his return did not last long.
-- On the game's opening play, Perry burst through the line for 19 yards and was stopped by Duke's safety, the last line of defense from a 57-yard TD on the Terps' first offensive play. On the tackle, however, Perry was driven into the turf, suffering a sprain of the "SC" joint in his left shoulder. He did not return to the game.
-- Perry's status for the North Carolina game is undetermined as of October 28. He has a scheduled MRI on the date of this release.
-- Perry entered the '02 season as the lone returning finalist from last year's Doak Walker Award. He ran for 1,242 yards as a sophomore last year, his first as the Terps' starter. In addition, he finished ninth in the nation in all-purpose yards with an average of 156.2 yards per outing.
Lean On Seniority
-- Despite the fact that this year will be the last for several big names on the Terrapin roster, the team is one that will not need to do a significant amount of replacing next year.
-- Though people will ask at season's end how the Terps will replace players like E.J. Henderson, Todd Wike and Brooks Barnard, a closer look shows that there will not be a lot of turnover between this season and next. Amazingly, this year's team features a total of only 11 seniors, with just seven figuring as starters on the latest depth chart.
-- The lack of seniority will be particularly helpful on defense next year when only three players who see significant playing time -- Henderson, Durrand Roundtree and Ty Stewart -- will be lost to graduation, leaving nine returning starters from opening day 2002.
McBrien Heating Up
-- Junior signal caller Scott McBrien has come on the last five games and has had the Terrapin offense improving with each week.
-- Last weekend against Duke, McBrien had one of his best games as a collegian, completing 16-of-21 attempts for 264 yards with two TDs and one interception. McBrien posted career highs for completions (16), yardage (264) and completion percentage (.762) in the win while rushing for his third touchdown on the ground of the season.
-- Against his former school, West Virginia, McBrien led four scoring drives in the first quarter alone, the first of which he capped with a 21-yard option keeper that fooled the entire Mountaineer defense. All told, he finished the quarter 4-of-5 for 95 yards and one TD through the air while rushing three times for 21 yards and a TD on the ground.
-- In the last five weeks, McBrien has completed 60-of-96 passes for 1,052 yards with seven touchdowns and just one interception.
-- McBrien's quarterback rating for the past five games has been 176.5. For the season, he has a 142.98 rating, 17th-best in the NCAA.
Bootin' Barnard
-- Senior All-ACC punter and Ray Guy Award hopeful Brooks Barnard thought his punting was not up to snuff in 2001. Despite those feelings, Barnard ranked seventh nationally and first in the ACC with a 44.6-yard punting average. As the 2002 season progresses, it appears that he may have been right as he has only gotten better and better.
-- Barnard opened the 2002 season kicking off of a bad left ankle (his plant foot) after one of his teammates was pushed into him at practice two days before the Notre Dame game. He has since begun to return to form and now ranks first in the ACC and sixth nationally with a 44.0-yard average.
-- Against Duke, Barnard averaged 43.3 yards per punt on three attempts.
-- On a wet turf in the Georgia Tech game, Barnard posted one of his best efforts of the season as he punted four times for a 49.5-yard average, including three punts over 50 yards and one which was downed inside the 10. Another punt was placed perfectly to be downed inside the five, but one of his teammates was unable to avoid sliding into the end zone after covering the loose ball.
-- Barnard kicked twice for a 56.5-yard average against Wofford with one kick sailing 60 yards and one landing inside the 20.
-- Against Florida State, Barnard averaged 47.5 yards on six punts with four kicks traveling over 50 yards and one going out of bounds inside the one-yard line.
-- Of Barnard's 26 punts this year, five have been downed inside the 20 (five inside the 20 and two inside the 10) and 10 have traveled 50 yards or further.
-- Barnard has finished each of the last two seasons ranked in the top 10 in the nation. Last year, he finished seventh with a 44.6-yard average while the year before, he finished fourth with a school-record 44.7-yard average. After starting slow this season, he now ranks sixth in the NCAA.
-- As impressive as any of Barnard's punting stats may be the numbers he has posted in the weight room. In offseason testing, he benched 400 pounds, cleaned 286 and was timed at 4.65 in the 40-yard dash.
Frosh Josh Chips In
-- This season began with the likelihood of true freshman Josh Allen redshirting, but with an improved grasp of the offense showing in practice, Allen's talent made his playing in 2002 inevitable.
-- Against West Virginia, Allen had the first 100-yard rushing day of his career, gaining 116 yards on 16 carries and adding a pair of touchdowns. He became the first Terp true freshman to rush for over 100 yards since QB Randall Jones ran for 115 against Duke on November 14, 1998. In five games of work, Allen has rushed 48 times for 286 yards, second-best on the team.
-- Allen is averaging 6.0 yards per carry this season and has scored six TDs in the five games he has played.
Living In Allen/Downs
-- In the past five games, Maryland has gotten a shot in the arm from the running of senior Chris Downs and freshman Josh Allen.
-- The duo has gotten better each week and has been outstanding since the Florida State game. Following the game with the Seminoles, Maryland averaged 94.0 yards per game, a total that ranked 100th nationally and last in the ACC. This week, the Terps average 169.8 yards per game which moves them to 43rd nationally and fourth in the conference.
-- Since the Florida State game, the Terps have averaged 212.8 rushing yards per game and have had a back go over 100 yards three times.
Nick the Kick
-- Nick Novak came on midway through last season to help shore up the Terrapins' kicking game and help Maryland -- with the aid of punter Brooks Barnard -- stake a claim to having one of the best kicking tandems in the country.
-- Starting with his game-tying kick at Georgia Tech a year ago, Novak has made 24 of his last 28 field goal attempts, with three of the misses coming from further than 50 yards.
* Against Duke, Novak tied his career-long with a 51-yard kick to open scoring for the Terps.
-- In the West Virginia game, Novak showed a powerful leg, successfully hitting from 37 and 46 yards while driving 5-of-9 kickoffs into the end zone for touchbacks.
-- Novak has made five of eight for his career from 50 yards or further (and 4-of-5 this season).
-- Novak set the school record for PATs in a season in 2001 with his 41st at NC State and fell just one field goal shy of tying that single-season record (17 - Dan Plocki ('88), Jess Atkinson ('84).
-- The sophomore has made 62 straight PATs and nine straight field goals of 50 yards or less (his lone miss in his last 11 came from 57 yards).
-- With 1.63 field goals per game, Novak now ranks second in the ACC and eighth nationally.
Homeboys
-- In his first signing day with the Terps (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 1997, 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 '02 Players on Roster 23 34 39 46 49 54 Opening-Day Starters 6 5 7 12 10 14
Coaching Connections
-- Ralph Friedgen is not the only 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.
Tough Losses
-- Maryland's four losses in the last two years have come at the hands of the stiffest of competition.
-- FSU was ranked 19th last year and fifth this year when the Terps took it on. Florida was the fifth-ranked team in the nation when it faced Maryland in the Orange Bowl and Notre Dame -- although unranked at the start of the season -- is still undefeated and ranked the top six in both polls.
Starks Manning the Trenches
-- Sophomore defensive tackle Randy Starks has continued his improvement after a strong true freshman campaign a year ago and now is shaping up as one of the better defensive linemen in the conference.
-- Against West Virginia, the 6-4, 302-pound tackle from Waldorf had probably his best game as a Terrapin, notching 12 tackles (nine solo) and three sacks (minus 15).
-- Through eight games this year, Starks has posted some eye-popping numbers for an interior defensive lineman. He is third on the team in tackles with 54, second in TFLs (7.0) and first in sacks (5.0).
-- Starks' tackle total is tops in the ACC among defensive tackles (second among defensive linemen overall) and his five sacks is tied for fourth on the league charts.
Iron Terps
-- For the second consecutive season, Maryland boasted record strength numbers and again posted its highest number of student-athletes earning "Iron Terp" status. In preseason strength and conditioning testing this year, the Terrapins again 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, six Terrapins set 11 records in disciplines at their respective positions, but the star in the weightroom was again DE Durrand Roundtree.
-- Roundtree, a senior from Baltimore, did not break his records of a year ago, but still posted amazing numbers. Among them: an 826 strength index (700 is considered high), a 490-pound bench, a 720-pound squat and a 35-inch vertical jump.
Super Suter
-- This season, sophomore Steve Suter has brought an excitement to the return game that the Terps haven't seen since the likes of Jermaine Lewis and is starting to surpass the standard set by the former Maryland standout.
-- As a team last season, Maryland had just one play (Bruce Perry's 80-yard TD vs. Wake Forest) of 80 yards or more. This year, Suter alone has already had three plays go further.
-- Against Duke, Suter had a record-setting day as he returned six punts for 104 yards including a 63-yarder for a touchdown.
-- Suter's punt return for a TD against Duke was his third this year, making him the only player in the 50-year history of the ACC to return more than two for a score.
-- The Carroll County native has now elapsed 482 yards of punt returns, most ever in a single-season at Maryland and third-best ever in any ACC season. With 33 more yards, Suter will surpass the record of 515 set by Georgia Tech's Kelley Rhino last year (Rhino set the record on 48 attempts; Suter enters the UNC game with 35).
-- In the WVU game, Suter put the capper on a 28-point opening quarter for Maryland with an 80-yard punt return for a TD, his second of the year.
-- Suter has also shown that the spark he gives the Terps will not be limited to returns this year. Against Wofford, he caught his second touchdown of the season, a 10-yarder from Scott McBrien. In the second quarter of the Eastern Michigan game, Suter scored on a 91-yard strike from McBrien. The effort was the second-longest passing touchdown in Maryland history (longest was Ed Bolton (92 yards) vs. South Carolina in 1949).
-- Suter's first career TD was an 81-yard punt return which gave the Terps a 21-7 lead at the start of the second quarter against Akron. It was the first by a Terp since Lewis went 66 yards versus NC State in 1995.
-- Suter enters this week ranked 24th in the nation and tops in the ACC in punt returns (13.8 ypr).
Newcomer Invasion
-- The Terrapins have had a significant number of newcomers contribute already this season, including several freshmen who have played significant roles.
-- Eight games in, a total of 22 players have seen action for the first time as Terps (four juniors, two sophomores, nine redshirt freshmen and seven true freshmen).
-- The seven true freshmen seeing action are two more than the Terps had play last year.
Local Ties
-- The Terrapins have two players who call the state of North Carolina home as redshirt freshman OG Russell Bonham is from Winston-Salem (Carver HS) and true frosh William Kershaw is from Raeford (Hoke County HS).
-- Terp inside linebackers coach Rod Sharpless is a native of Jacksonville, N.C.
-- North Carolina has three players who hail from the state of Maryland. All three are from areas close in proximity to College Park as DE Alden Blizzard is from Laurel (Laurel HS); TE Zach Hilton is from Silver Spring (Good Counsel HS); and CB Derrick Johnson is from Upper Marlboro (Eleanor Roosevelt HS).
-- North Carolina head coach John Bunting was a 1968 prep graduate of Springbrook High School in Silver Spring.
-- UNC quarterbacks coach Gary Tranquill was Navy's head coach from 1982-86 and an assistant at the academy from 1973-75.
Watch Out
-- When last year began, the Terps' lone mention on any "watch lists" for national awards was punter Brooks Barnard. By season's end, the team had Barnard as a semifinalist for the Ray Guy Award, E.J. Henderson as a finalist for the Butkus Award, Bruce Perry a finalist for the Doak Walker Award and Melvin Fowler a finalist for the Rimington Trophy.
-- This season, those who vote did not take any chances as Barnard is again on the Guy list; Henderson is the only returnee among Butkus finalists and was recently named to the list of 11 semifinalists; and offensive lineman Todd Wike is on the watch list for the Outland and Lombardi trophies. (Bruce Perry was the lone returnee from last year's group of Doak Walker finalists, but will fall shy of a return due to his groin injury prior to this year).
Grid & Hardwood Harmony
-- Last year marked the first time in University of Maryland history that the school's football and basketball teams were both ranked in the nation's top six during the same week.
-- The Terrapins, ranked at No. 6 heading into the Orange Bowl, were joined by the basketball Terps who -- at the same time -- had been ranked second nationally. In the end, the basketball Terrapins went on to claim the national title while its football brethren were ACC champs.
Scouting The Tar Heels
-- North Carolina awaits Maryland with a 2-6 record (0-4 ACC) and seeking to overcome two of the tougher losses it has endured in years.
-- Two games ago, the Tar Heels went into the locker room with a 21-0 lead at Virginia and seemingly on their way to their third win. They ultimately allowed 37 second-half points to the Cavs en route to a 37-27 loss. A week later, they continued the slide, falling 31-0 to Wake Forest, the first time they have been shut out by the Demon Deacons in 36 years.
-- From a statistical standpoint, UNC's strengths are a sign of its struggles. The Tar Heels have the ACC's top passing offense, averaging an impressive 286.9 yards per game through the sky. A closer look shows that the passing success is likely a result of struggles in the running game as the team is averaging an ACC-low 102.8 yards per game and has posted just four touchdowns on the ground all season.
-- The Tar Heels' offensive leader, Darian Durant, broke his right thumb in the Virginia game and had season-ending surgery the week of the Wake Forest game. Prior to the injury, Durant was putting up a league-best 265.9 yards per game while throwing 15 TDs.
-- In Durant's absence, junior C.J. Stephens has earned the starting nod at QB. Stephens will count on help from Sam Aiken, the ACC's second-leading receiver with an average of five receptions and a league-high 90.6 yards per game.
-- Like on offense, North Carolina's struggles on defense have come in the rushing department as it is allowing an ACC-high 216.1 yards per game to its opponents.
-- Individually on defense, UNC has been paced by free safety Dexter Reid. Reid is the ACC's leading tackler with 111 tackles, an average of 13.9 per game.
UNC's John Bunting
-- John Bunting is in his second year as a head coach at his alma mater. He carries a 10-11 record into this weekend's game.
-- Bunting, a 1972 grad of Chapel Hill and standout linebacker, came back to UNC after serving as a linebackers coach for the NFL's New Orleans Saints. That job came on the heels of posts with the St. Louis Rams (1997-99) and Kansas City Chiefs (1993-96).
-- Prior to being hired in Chapel Hill, Bunting had previously worked as a head coach, but not at the Division I-A level. His first head coaching job came at Rowan University from 1988-92 after working as the team's defensive line coach in 1987. That head job came after just three years as a full-time coach as he started with his former pro team, the USFL's Baltimore Stars, in 1985 before working a year (1986) at Brown and then moving on to Rowan.
-- Bunting is the first Carolina alum and first football letterwinner to become the school's football coach since Jim Tatum in 1956.
-- As a player, Bunting was an All-ACC performer at linebacker before spending 13 years at the professional level (11 with the Philadelphia Eagles; two with the USFL's Baltimore Stars).
New-Look Terps ... Again
-- The Terrapins of 2001 had a new head coach, a new look to their uniform and helmet and in the end, a whole new way of playing football compared to recent years. Though the hope is that the brand of football will remain the same under the coach who is back for year two, the Terrapins' uniforms are seeing a change -- again.
-- This year, the Terps' helmets remain the same as a year ago but the uniforms are a new look designed for Maryland by Nike. The uniforms were created with the past in mind even though the look is modern; the stripes on the shoulders are reminiscent of Terp uniforms of the '50s and '60s.
The Graduates
-- Maryland has four players who earned their bachelor's degree before they even set foot on the field this season.
-- Linebacker E.J. Henderson and offensive linemen Todd Wike and Matt Crawford all earned their degrees and are working toward additional degrees. All three earned their degrees this past spring, with Henderson and Crawford receiving bachelor's in criminology and criminal justice while Wike earned his degree in philosophy.
-- Finally, after applying to graduate next spring and not knowing he already had enough credits, offensive lineman Ed Tyler learned last week that he has earned his degree in economics -- after just three years at Maryland.
-- From the membership has its benefits file: Ralph Friedgen lets players line up to eat by grade point average and after questioning Henderson for heading up to the front of the line last week, that line is now led by Terrapin graduates. (Henderson had responded that he thought graduation was the pinnacle anyway so "shouldn't (he) be allowed to go first?").
Building For The Future
-- When the Terrapins take the field at Byrd Stadium this year, there will be many changes to the stadium that has been home to the Terps since 1950. Some will be apparent as soon as one sets foot in the stadium and others would only be noticeable to the men who wear the Maryland colors on game day.
-- The most glaring change at Byrd Stadium rests above Gossett Team House in the form of a brand new, state-of-the-art video scoreboard. The new board features a high-resolution screen that is 21-feet tall by 28-feet wide and is capable of displaying in excess of 281 trillion colors.
-- In addition to the bright visible new video board, it may go overlooked by some that expansion has taken place on the building below it, the Gossett Football Team House. Thus far, the coaches' offices have been refurbished as have meeting rooms and the equipment room.
-- Other phases that await completion will include the addition of a new academics support and career development unit; a new multi-purpose room that will feature a kitchen and dining facilities; a new team meeting auditorium; and an expanded entrance and lobby area.
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 Comcast Center. Tickets may also be purchased online at www.ticketmaster.com.
-- For additional info or to order by phone, call (800) 462-TERP.
2001: A Look Back
-- The 2001 season was an amazing one for the Maryland football team. It was a season that saw the Terps catch the eye of the ACC before drawing the attention of the nation. The following are some of the more notable accomplishments of the 2001 team and their efforts to return Maryland to national prominence.
-- The '01 Terrapins gave the school its first Atlantic Coast Conference title since 1985. The team won 10 games, marking the first time since 1976 that a Terp squad had hit that mark.
-- Maryland's' seven ACC wins were the most in school history. The seven wins matched the combined total of the previous four Maryland teams and bettered the mark of four other teams (1974, 1983, 1984, 1985) that won six ACC games.
-- In securing sole possession of the league title, Maryland became the first team other than Florida State to win the ACC outright since the Seminoles joined the conference in 1992 (the Seminoles had either owned or shared the crown every year from 1992-2000).
-- Last year's team was the first in school history to win seven games at home as the Terps went a perfect 7-0 at Byrd. Under Ralph Friedgen, Maryland is now 10-1 at home.
