Football Game Notes -- No. 19 Terps At Clemson

Nov. 11, 2002

Terps vs. Clemson Game Notes in PDF Format
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The Game

The University of Maryland football team hits the road in search of win No. 9 and its eighth in a row as it travels to Clemson, S.C., for an Atlantic Coast Conference matchup this Saturday with the Clemson University Tigers. Kickoff is set for 7:47 p.m. (EST) for the game which will be televised by ESPN2 and can be heard locally on the Terrapin Sports Network.

Maryland (8-2, 4-1 ACC) continued on its hot streak last weekend and is now in the midst of a seven-game win streak after its come-from-behind, 24-21 win over then 13th-ranked NC State. The homecoming win was the Terrapins' first over an opponent with a ranking as high as the Wolfpack's (13th, ESPN/USA Today; 14th, Associated Press) since Maryland beat No. 8 Virginia, 35-30, in the last game of the 1990 season.

With its win over NC State, Maryland is now in the midst of a seven-game win streak, matching its amazing start to the 2001 season. With a win this weekend, this year's Terps will become the first team in school history to win eight consecutive games since Jerry Claiborne's 1978 squad opened the year with eight-in-a-row.

Maryland's seven-game win streak is the fourth-longest current streak in Division I-A football.

The win over the Wolfpack moved the Terps into sole possession of second place in the ACC standings and gave it a shot in the arm in regards to the national rankings. Maryland heads into this weekend's game ranked No. 19 in both the ESPN/USA Today and the Associated Press polls, moving up six and seven spots in each poll, respectively.

Clemson awaits the Terrapins having won two straight after last weekend's 42-12 victory over North Carolina. After a 4-4 start, the Tigers are now 6-4 (4-3 ACC) and searching for their second consecutive bowl appearance under head coach Tommy Bowden.

The Clemson game is the third in a string of five conference games for Maryland in which it will be the road team four times. After the victory over NC State, the Terrapins are now 13-1 under Ralph Friedgen at Byrd Stadium and have lost just once in seven road games under the second-year coach.

Heading into the Clemson game, Maryland has won five straight games on the road, something it had not accomplished since 1984-85. With a win against the Tigers this week, the Terps will match the road winning streak of the 1977-78 team which also won six straight.

Series Notes

Saturday's game marks the 51st meeting between the Terrapins and Tigers. Clemson leads the all-time series -- which began in 1952 -- 27-21-2.

With a win this weekend, the Terps will accomplish several notables in regards to the series. Should it come away victorious, Maryland will have beaten the Tigers in Death Valley for the first time since 1985 -- a 16-year drought -- and it will have won two straight in the series for the first time since 1984-85.

Clemson has been in control of the series since 1982, winning 15 of the 20 games between the two schools (the Terps have won four and the two teams tied in 1986). Prior to 1981, Maryland had a stronghold as the more dominant team as the Terrapins held a 17-11-1 record from 1952-80.

The last time a ranked Maryland team played at Clemson was in 1983. In that meeting, the Terps were ranked 11th and were without a loss in the ACC while the Tigers were ranked 17th. Clemson won the game at Death Valley, 52-27, but because of NCAA sanctions, the Tigers were ineligible for a league title and the game was counted in the ACC standings as a Maryland victory (it was considered a loss in the overall record). The Terrapins were conference champions that year and ultimately played Tennessee in the Citrus Bowl.

In last year's meeting between the two schools, the Terrapins snapped an eight-game losing streak against the Tigers and, in the process, gained a share of their first ACC title since 1985. In the 37-20 win, Maryland intercepted four passes -- a career-worst three thrown by Woodrow Dantzler -- and coasted after going up 34-6 with under 11 minutes left in the fourth.

Maryland's 37 points in last year's game were three more than it had scored on Clemson in the previous three years combined.

In its last trip to Clemson, Maryland scored a pair of touchdowns in a 35-14 loss. The touchdowns were significant, however, as it marked the first time in four trips to Death Valley that the Terps had found the end zone. Since 1989, Maryland has averaged just 4.4 points per game in seven trips to Clemson, a trend that should change in 2002 with the Terrapins owning the nation's 12th-best scoring offense at 34.6 points per contest.

Friedgen Moving Up The Charts

Ralph Friedgen opened his career as a head coach by setting one Maryland coaching record after another and while this season started like many of those had prior to his arrival, the second-year mentor is once again working his magic in College Park.

With two more wins this season, Friedgen will break the ACC record for wins by an ACC coach in his second year. With 20 wins, he will break the mark of Clemson's Ken Hatfield (1990-91) who posted a 19-4-1 record. Friedgen is currently in second with an 18-4 record and needs a win this weekend to tie Hatfield's mark. With the win over NC State Friedgen surpassed Lou Holtz on the win list while tying another Clemson coach, Charley Pell (1977-78), who owned an 18-4-1 mark in his first two seasons.

With the Terps' win over North Carolina, Friedgen became the first coach in Maryland history to win 17 games in his first two years at the helm. Now with an 18-4 record, his win total bests that of 16 set by Bobby Ross in his first two years (1982-83) with the Terps. Friedgen was an assistant coach under Ross during that time at Maryland.

TouchDowns

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 sixth time this season as he rushed 17 times for 77 yards in the Terps' win over NC State.

The week previous against UNC, Downs topped the century mark for the third time this season, going for 157 yards on 19 carries while rushing for four touchdowns, a feat accomplished only three other times in Maryland history (Bob Shemonski, 5 vs. Va. Tech (1950); LaMont Jordan, 4 vs. Clemson (1999); and Charlie Wysocki, 4 vs. UVa (1981).

Downs has now rushed for 13 touchdowns this year, nine more TDs than he had carries coming into this season. He has found paydirt in all but two games (Duke, NC State) in which he has carried the ball this season, and his touchdown total ranks sixth on the Maryland single-season list. With three more, he will tie the school record set by LaMont Jordan in 1999.

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 what was a span of 12 games.

On 143 rushing attempts this season, Downs is averaging 6.3 yards per carry (best among the ACC's top 10 backs) and 89.4 yards per game (tied for the best among active ACC players).

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. Below is a list of the company they keep:

Rk. School Yrs. Staff (Pos./Yrs. of Experience)
1 Penn St. 104 J. Paterno (HC/53), F. Ganter (OC/29), T. Bradley (DC/22)
2 Florida St. 92 B. Bowden (HC/42), J. Bowden (OC/15), M. Andrews (DC/35)
3 Mississippi St. 89 J. Sherrill (HC/32), S. Woods (OC/14), J.L. Dunn (DC/30)
4 Air Force 86 F. DeBerry (HC/34), C. Petersen (OC/14), R. Bell (DC/40)
5 Maryland 85 R. Friedgen (HC/29), C. Taaffe (OC/24), G. Blackney (DC/32)

Note: Totals reflect years coaching prior to the 2002 season.

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.

One For The Record Books

Steve Suter's 77-yard punt return for a touchdown in the second quarter of the North Carolina game was his fourth of the season, tying the NCAA record. He ties the single-season mark shared by eight other players:

2002 -- Derek Abney (Kentucky)
2000 -- Santana Moss (Miami, Fla.)
1998 -- David Allen (Kansas State)
1997 -- Quinton Spotwood (Syracuse)
1997 -- Pinker Keck (Cincinnati)
1987 -- James Henry (Southern Mississippi)
1971 -- Cliff Branch (Colorado)
1971 -- Golden Richards (Brigham Young)

For more on Suter and his efforts at UNC, see pg. 7 of this release.

Turtle Whacks -- NC State

With their win over NC State, the Terps claimed their third straight victory in the series between the two schools (their longest streak since 1983-85) and evened the all-time series at 27-27-4.

The win over No. 13 NC State also marked Maryland's first victory over an opponent ranked as high as the Wolfpack since a 35-30 win at No. 8 Virginia, Nov. 17, 1990 (a span of 132 games).

Nick Novak's game-winning field goal of 26 yards with 34 seconds remaining in the game marked the first time they have had a game decided by three points or less since last season's Georgia Tech contest when Novak also made a 26-yarder to lift the Terps to a 20-17 win in overtime.

The Terps trailed by as many as 14 points before coming back to claim victory against NCSU. The comeback marked the first time since Nov. 4, 2000, (also against NC State) that the Terps were able to come back from a deficit of 14 points or larger. The Terps trailed 21-6 at halftime before coming back to win 35-28 in double overtime on a Shaun Hill one-yard run that year.

Steve Suter's 64-yard touchdown in the second quarter was the first rushing TD of his career and Maryland's 12th touchdown this season of 60 yards or longer. Half of the TDs over 60 yards have been by Suter.

Tailback Bruce Perry scored his first touchdown of the season with 2:47 left in the third quarter. The nine-yard run was actually his first TD since Nov. 3, 2001, and marked the first time this season that the 2001 ACC Offensive Player of the Year has been able to contribute (injuries had limited the junior to one carry for 19 yards coming into last week's game).

The 21 points allowed by Maryland were the most it has given up since Florida State scored 37 in their 37-10 win on Sept. 14, 2002. It was the most points allowed by the Terps in a win since Virginia scored 21 points last season in Maryland's 41-21 victory at Byrd on Oct. 6, 2001. The Terps had allowed an average of 14.4 points per game coming into the game, then eighth-best in the NCAA.

Ray Custis' interception to seal the Terps' victory was the first of his career.

Andrew Smith has recorded two sacks in each of the last two games after not tallying one in his first three seasons.

Saturday's attendance was 52,915, the fourth-largest in Byrd Stadium history. In five home games this season, Maryland has averaged 47,450 fans per contest.

The Bottom Line

Though the Terrapins' yardage numbers on offense and defense continue to improve each week, none of their averages or national rankings would qualify as eye-popping. Where the team does impress, however, is where it matters most -- in scoring.

On offense, Maryland is averaging a robust 34.6 points per game, a total that ranks second in the ACC and 12th nationally.

The Terps have posted 346 points this season, and with three games remaining now need 45 more (or an average of 15 per game) to break the single-season school record of 390 set last season.

On defense, the Terrapins are allowing just 15.1 points per game. That figure is tops in the conference (by over three points) and seventh best nationally.

Only two schools (Kansas State and Oklahoma) can claim an offense and defense that both rank higher than the Terps in scoring offense and defense.

Terps Tough On Average

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 64.6 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 20 yards shy of their current per-game average).

Last weekend, the Terps held NC State to 109 rushing yards, 47 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"

As mentioned previous, Gary Blackney's unit has allowed just 15.1 points per game this season, seventh-best nationally and tops in the ACC. In the last seven games, the Terp defense has been particularly good, yielding just 11.1 points per outing.

The Terps have been toughest to score on this year at the start of each half, yielding just 30 and 27 points in the first and third quarters, respectively. That is an average of three points per quarter.

In the last seven games, Maryland has allowed just 10 touchdowns. And though it allowed three TDs to NC State (most by a Terp opponent in any win this year), the 21 points by the Wolfpack were still over 17 below their average coming in.

The Terrapin defense ranks second in the ACC in opponent first downs (178) and sacks (27).

In The Zone

As a team, Maryland is the best in the ACC at getting it done in the red zone. On offense, the Terps rank second in the league in red zone efficiency while they rank first on the defensive side of the ball, a composite claim that no team in the league can match.

On offense, the Terrapins have scored 89.2 percent of the time they have crossed the opponent's 20-yard line, an average which ranks behind only Georgia Tech's 90.6 percent.

On defense, Maryland has allowed its opposition points just 62.5 percent of the time once it enters the red zone, best in the league. Four times this season, it has intercepted the opposition inside the 20.

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 three 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 stepped up and had a huge game against NC State, notching a team-high 16 tackles and two tackles for loss in the 24-21 win.

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 55.5 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 113 tackles.

Henderson has led Maryland in tackling in all but four games the last two years (18 of 22 games).

Now 10 games into the season, the '01 Butkus finalist has posted 411 career tackles. He currently stands sixth on the Maryland career charts and now needs just four to move into the top five.

Henderson has averaged 12.7 tackles per game (318 total) in his last 25 games dating back to the 2000 season.

In his two-plus years as the starter at Maryland, Henderson has notched double-digits in tackles 23 times. Dating back to his sophomore season, Henderson has finished with double-digit tackle performances in 20 of the last 25 games. On five occasions he has had 17 tackles or more. His season high this year was the 16 last week against NC State.

Bruce On The loose

After missing each of the first seven games of this season recovering from a torn groin muscle suffered on August 20 and another after spraining his shoulder against Duke, 2001 ACC Offensive Player of the Year Bruce Perry seems to have found his way back to the Terrapin lineup.

Against NC State, Perry rushed 10 times for 23 yards and scored his first touchdown of the season, a nine-yarder that cut NC State's lead to 21-14 at the end of the third quarter.

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 seven games and has had the Terrapin offense improving as his comfort level with the system continues.

Last week against NC State, McBrien continued doing exactly what the Terp offense calls for out of him -- playing solid, mistake-free football. Against the Pack, he completed 10-of-18 passes for 130 yards -- a total that would have been better were it not for several drops -- while rushing nine times for 33 yards and a touchdown.

McBrien's 21-yard touchdown in the fourth quarter was a career long and was the product of perfect execution as he faked a draw to Chris Downs -- while faking out everyone in the stadium -- before running untouched into the end zone, tying the game at 21.

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 a touchdown.

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 seven weeks, McBrien has completed 76-of-125 passes (61 percent) for 1,372 yards with eight touchdowns and just one interception.

McBrien's quarterback rating for the past six games has been 172.52. For the season, he has a 145.48 rating, 13th-best in the NCAA.

Bootin' Barnard

Senior All-ACC punter and All-American hopeful Brooks Barnard is at it again in 2002, leading the ACC and ranking near the top of the NCAA charts in punting while serving as a weapon in the field position wars for Maryland this season.

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 15th nationally with a 42.9-yard average.

Against NC State, Barnard averaged 41.6 yards per kick on seven attempts while downing two inside the 20 and giving his team time to cover as it held the Wolfpack to an average of 2.3 yards per return.

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 40 punts this year, nine have been downed inside the 20 (three inside the 10) and 11 (28 percent) 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 15th 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.

Josh The Frosh

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.

In the win over North Carolina, Allen showed his big-play ability again as he rushed six times for 91 yards (a 15.2-yards per carry average) and two touchdowns including a 60-yard scamper in the fourth quarter.

At 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 7.0 yards per carry this season and has scored eight TDs in the six games he has played.

Living In Allen/Downs

In the past seven games, Maryland has gotten a shot in the arm from the running of senior Chris Downs and freshman Josh Allen. With the recent return of Bruce Perry, the Terps seem to be in even better hands, present and future.

In Perry's absence, the duo of Allen and Downs 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 194.8 yards per game which moves them to 28th nationally and third in the conference.

Since the Florida State game, the Terps have averaged 236 rushing yards per game and have had a back go over 100 yards four 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 26 of his last 30 field goal attempts, with three of the misses coming from further than 50 yards.

Against the Wolfpack, Novak broke his own record for PATs in a season with his 43rd. He is now also two field goals shy of tying the school record of 17 set by three players (most recently Dan Plocki in 1988).

Last weekend, Novak made the second game-winning kick of his career, a clutch 26-yarder with 34 seconds left to complete Maryland's comeback from a 14-point deficit against NC State.

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).

The sophomore has made 73 straight PATs and 11 straight field goals of 50 yards or less (his lone miss in his last 13 came from 57 yards).

With 1.5 field goals per game, Novak now ranks second in the ACC and 13th 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 currently ranked ninth 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.

In the NC State game, the 6-4, 302-pound tackle from Waldorf came up big, recording nine tackles, one tackle for loss, two pass breakups and four QB hurries.

The knocked-down passes by Starks were among the biggest defensive plays of the game for the Terps. The first came on a 4th-and-4 play from the Maryland 35-yard line with the score tied at 21. Maryland took over on downs. The second came on a Philip Rivers' pass on a 3rd-and-7 situation with 3:41 remaining in game and the score tied 21-21. NC State was forced to punt.

Against West Virginia, Starks had what was then his best career game, notching 12 tackles (nine solo) and three sacks (minus 15).

Through 10 games this year, Starks has posted some eye-popping numbers for an interior defensive lineman. He is third on the team in tackles with 68, second in TFLs (8.0) 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 ninth 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 the likes of which have never been seen in a Maryland uniform.

In the NC State game, Suter did it again, coming up with two of the biggest offensive plays of the game. He got the Terps on the board in the second quarter with a 64-yard TD run (first of his career) on an end around. Later in the game, he caught a 36-yard pass late in the fourth quarter to set up Nick Novak's game winning field goal.

Suter had a record-breaking day against UNC, returning four punts for 92 yards. In the process, he returned his fourth of the year for a touchdown (77 yards), tying the current NCAA Division I-A record for punt return TDs in a season. (Note: Heading into the game, UNC had allowed an ACC-low 3.6 yards per return.)

In addition, the Carroll County native has now totaled 609 yards worth of punt returns, most ever in a single-season in ACC history. Against UNC, he surpassed the record of 515 set by Georgia Tech's Kelley Rhino last year (Rhino set the record on 48 attempts; Suter did so on 39).

Against Duke, Suter returned six punts for 104 yards including a 63-yarder for a touchdown.

As a team this season, Maryland has had 12 touchdowns go for 60 yards or more. Half have been by Suter.

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.

Against Wofford, Suter 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 18th in the nation and tops in the ACC in punt returns (14.2 ypr).

Newcomer Invasion

The Terrapins have had a significant number of newcomers contribute already this season, including several freshmen who have played significant roles.

Nine games in, a total of 23 players have seen action for the first time as Terps (four juniors, three sophomores, nine redshirt freshmen and eight true freshmen).

The eight true freshmen seeing action are three more than the Terps had play last year.

Local Ties

The Terps do not have any players who call the state of South Carolina home.

Terrapin offensive coordinator Charlie Taaffe, however, played quarterback at Clemson in 1969. Defensive line coach Dave Sollazzo coached high school ball in South Carolina (Stratford HS, North Charleston HS and Fort Johnson HS) after graduating from The Citadel, and he is one of four Maryland coaches who spent time as a coach at the Charleston military school (Sollazzo, Friedgen, Taaffe, and Seamonson).

The Tigers do not have any players with ties to the state of Maryland.

Clemson QB coach Mike O'Cain was an offensive backfield coach at The Citadel for two years (1978 and '79) that Ralph Friedgen was an offensive coordinator at the school.

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.

This week, the football Terps are ranked 25th nationally while the Maryland hoopsters are ranked 15th in the preseason.

Scouting The Tigers

Afer a 4-4 start, Clemson has now won two straight games and is now in search of its second consecutive bowl appearance under Tommy Bowden. The Tigers are 6-4 overall and 4-3 in the ACC.

After nearly falling at Duke, the Tigers came out last week and posted a 42-12 win over UNC at Chapel Hill. In its last two wins, CU has racked up 1,014 yards of total offense, paced by 699 yards through the air.

Clemson's strength this year has been passing the ball while limiting its opposition's aerial attack. Through 10 games, the Tigers are averaging 242.1 yards per game (349.5 in the last two games) while holding its opponents to an ACC-low 176.0 yards per game.

Clemson's success in the passing department is almost mirrored by its struggles running the football. The Tigers rank third-to-last in rushing offense (130.2 ypg) and defense (153.7 allowed).

The Tigers' success throwing the football in the last two games has come from a change at quarterback as freshman Charlie Whitehurst has taken over as the team's starter. At 2-0, Whitehurst is the first Clemson freshman quarterback to win his first two starts since Dexter McCleon did it in the last two games of the 1993 season.

In six games overall this year, Whitehurst has thrown nine TDs and just one interception.

Behind its strong pass defense, Clemson ranks second in the ACC in total defense, allowing 329.7 yards per game. The team has two of the league's top three tacklers in linebackers Rodney Thomas (122) and Thomas Leake (121).

Clemson's Tommy Bowden

Now in his fourth year at Clemson, Tommy Bowden has posted a 28-18 record since taking over at the South Carolina school. He has a career record of 46-24.

Bowden came to Clemson three years ago after leading Tulane to a 17-4 record in two seasons and an undefeated season in 1998.

At the start of 2000, the second season seemed to be the charm for Bowden. His second season at Tulane resulted in a 11-0 mark and a berth in the Independence Bowl and he started 8-0 last year. The Tigers stumbled down the stretch, however, losing three of their last four including a 41-20 defeat at the hands of Virginia Tech in the Gator Bowl.

The son of Florida State legend Bobby Bowden, Tommy began his coaching career in 1978 as a defensive backs coach under his father. Since that time, he has had stints as an assistant at Auburn ('80, '92-96), Florida State again ('81-83), Duke ('84-86), Alabama ('87-89) and Kentucky ('90) before taking over at Tulane in 1997.

Bowden is a graduate of West Virginia, where he walked on while his father still coached there in 1973. The younger Bowden graduated from WVU in 1976 under head coach Frank Signetti.

Byrd Stadium

Now in its 53rd 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 million, 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.

Heading into the Georgia Tech game, the Terrapins are 167-100-1 within the friendly confines of Byrd (normal capacity 48,055).

With temporary bleachers installed for the remainder of this season, Byrd Stadium can hold up to 50,861.

Last season, Maryland went 7-0 at Byrd, notching the best record at home in any season in school history. The Terps are currently 13-1 under Ralph Friedgen at home.

Terp Alley

In an effort to restore some tradition on gameday in College Park, the football staff created Terp Alley last year, a tradition that has become a part of the gameday experience outside of Byrd Stadium.

For every football home game, the entire football team makes its first appearance of the day at "Terp Alley." The team is 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 is led past fans gathered along the street to the football complex by the Maryland band and cheerleaders.

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 11-1 at home.

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