Aug. 28, 2006
COLLEGE PARK, Md. -
Terps vs. Tribe Game Notes (PDF)
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The University of Maryland opens its 114th season of college football and year six under Ralph Friedgen with a regional opponent who has not been on the Terps' slate in the Modern Era, William & Mary. Kickoff from Chevy Chase Bank Field at Byrd Stadium is set for 6:05 p.m., with the game being televised taped delay by Comcast SportsNet, available online live pay per view on ESPN360 and broadcast on the Terrapin Sports Radio Network (radio pregame starts at 4:30 p.m.).
The Terrapins open the season with area Division I-AA school William & Mary, the first meeting between the two schools in 60 years, and Maryland's first contest against a I-AA opponent since 2003 (vs. The Citadel, a 61-0 victory). Maryland finished last season 5-6 (3-5 ACC), is looking to return to postseason play for the first time since the 2004 Toyota Gator Bowl and will look to improve on its 41-20 mark under Friedgen, second-best by an ACC coach through five years.
William & Mary is coming off of a 5-6 (3-5 Atlantic 10) season as well. The Tribe got off to a strong start in 2005, opening with a 5-2 mark, but the team dropped each of its final four contests for its final record. The Tribe returns 14 starters (eight offense, five defense, one specialist) from last year.
Maryland is 68-43-2 (.611) all-time in season openers (regardless of site). The team is 3-2 in season openers under Friedgen, winning its last two. In season openers at home, the Terrapins are 53-26-1, winning their last four.
The Terrapins are not ranked in this week's national polls. Maryland received eight votes in this year's preseason USA Today Coaches' poll.
Series Notes -- Terps vs. Tribe
Saturday's game marks just the fourth meeting between the Terrapins and Tribe. The all-time series -- which began in 1905 -- favors William & Mary (2-1) with the two schools not having met since 1946.
This season will mark the first time the two schools have met earlier in the season than November.
The Terrapins lone win in the series came before the school even held its current monicker. Research of the first meeting between the two schools (at William & Mary) yielded the following recap in the Washington Post of Nov. 5, 1905: "Maryland Agricultural College defeated William and Mary College to-day in a brilliant game of football by the score of 17 to 0. The fine individual play of the local team was overcome by the splendid team work and variety of attack of the visitors."
In their second-ever meeting in 1945, the Terrapins let one slip away in front of 7,000 fans at Byrd Stadium. Maryland held a 14-6 advantage after the opening minutes of the third quarter, but struggled with fum bles and in stopping the "Indians" (as they were known at the time), eventually allowing three touchdowns in the third and a fourth in the start of the final frame before falling 33-14.
The 1946 contest in Williamsburg offered no hope for the Terps as William & Mary dominated from start to finish. The home team scored twice in the second quarter, three times in the third and one more time in the fourth to build a 41-0 lead (there was a missed extra point). The Terrapins lone score of the day came on the game's final play for the resulting 41-7 score.
For a recap of the last meeting between William & Mary and Maryland, see the Opponent/Series Info page of this release.
Select Company
Ralph Friedgen's 41 wins in his first five years as a head coach ranks tied for second in Atlantic Coast Conference history among coaches in their first five years.
Though he was the top second-, third- and fourth-year coach in ACC history by wins, Friedgen's win total fell short of the mark of 44 wins set by Clemson's Danny Ford from 1979-83. That mark ties him for second with former Terrapin great Jerry Claiborne (1972-76) on the list.
A look ahead already shows Friedgen ranked among sixth-year ACC coaches for victories. He would need 10 wins this season to match the six-year mark of Ford (51-15-2), but he stands just two victories from tying the win total of NC State's Dick Sheridan (1986-91) in the seventh position.
New, Old Faces
The loss of coordinators Gary Blackney and Charlie Taaffe this past season left what would seem to have been a gap in experience on the Terrapin coaching staff. With Friedgen taking over at offensive coordinator and Chris Cosh on the defensive side, Maryland is far from green, however.
The Maryland staff (head coach and full time assistants), overall, possesses a combined total of 202 years of full-time experience at either the collegiate or pro levels.
That total includes seven coaches (Friedgen, Coash, Brattan, Rychleski, Seamonson, Sollazzo and Zacharias) who have been at it for 20 years or more, and the 202 years means an average of over 20 years of experience per coach on the 2006 staff.
Only quarterbacks coach John Donovan (four years) has less than 10 years as a full-time assistant coach. Donovan's time around football is not quite so brief, however, as he spent four years at Georgia Tech as Friedgen's graduate assistant and four years with the Terps as an assistant recruiting coordinator.
Back in the Saddle
This season will be Ralph Friedgen's first coordinating the Maryland offense while also serving as head coach. Friedgen has not called offensive plays since leaving Georgia Tech in 2000.
In his last stint in college as a coordinator (1998-2000), Friedgen guided a Georgia Tech offense unit that averaged 36.7 points and 444 yards of total offense per game. During that span, the Yellow Jackets ran up a record of 27-8 (.771)
This stint is Friedgen's second coordinating the Maryland offense as he served in the same role under head coach Bobby Ross from 1982-86. In his time with Ross at Maryland, Friedgen helped lead the Terps to three ACC Championships and was instrumental in the development of quarterbacks Boomer Esiason, Frank Reich and Stan Gelbaugh.
Tough Road
The Terrapins road back to a bowl game will be a challenging one as its schedule is one of the toughest in the nation this season. An initial look shows that the Terps play just four teams ranked in the nation's Top 25, but a second look proves that a midseason stretch will be among the toughest in the nation.
On a Thursday night in week three on national television, the Terps play at No. 5 West Virginia, the first of eight 2005 bowl teams on the Maryland slate.
Once Maryland gets through its non-conference slate, the team plays at Georgia Tech and at rival Virginia to open its ACC season. It returns home for homecoming against NC State then a matchup against perennial power Florida State, then goes on the road to Death Valley and Clemson before returning home for its first game against Miami since 1987. The season ends at Boston College and then back home for Wake Forest.
In his online column, ESPN.com's Bruce Feldman ranks the Terps schedule as the 10th-toughest in college football this season.
A Look Back
Maryland has 41 wins in its five seasons under Ralph Friedgen, an average of 8.2 wins per season.
The Terps' total of 36 wins from 2001-04 was the second-highest four-year win total in school history. Maryland's top effort was 37 wins under Jerry Claiborne from 1975-78.
In the 108 years of football prior to Friedgen's arrival, Maryland had never put together three straight nine-win seasons. The Terrapins won 10 games in each of Friedgen's first three seasons (2001-2003).
Since 1892, Maryland has had seven 10-win seasons, three of which have come in Friedgen's five-plus years.
Sam Quarter-bach
For just the second time in the last six years, Maryland will begin the season with a returning starter at the quarterback position. And though the success Sam Hollenbach had a year ago is not that of Scott McBrien (the last QB to return as starter) in 2003, his success and early showings in camp of 2006 suggest that the Terrapin offense is in good hands.
Hollenbach finished last season ranked in the top five of three Atlantic Coast Conference offensive categories. He was fifth in the league in pass efficiency (132.75), fourth in total offense 229.2 and second in passing yardage per game (230.8).
Hollenbach is the only returning ACC quarterback to rank in the top five in pass efficiency, total offense and passing yardage last year. The lone QB who achieved that feat along with him was the now-departed Charlie Whitehurst of Clemson.
Consider that Hollenbach played just five plays due to injury against Florida State and his numbers become even more impressive. If one were to eliminate the Florida State game all together (he was 1-for-1 for 29 yards before re-injuring his shoulder), Hollenbach's per game averages in total offense (249.2) and passing yardage (251.0) would have each been the best in the ACC.
In the Terps' come-from-behind win at UNC, Hollenbach threw two interceptions that each led to Tar Heel scores, but he overcame the setbacks to post some career numbers. He finished 19-of-31 for 374 yards and three touchdowns. A career high, Hollenbach's 374 yards was the second-highest single-game total in the league last year.
Entering this season, Hollenbach is 6-5 in his career as a starter.
What a Difference a Year Makes
Heading into last season, Maryland was -- for the first time since 2001 -- in search of a tailback. Mario Merrills, Lance Ball, Keon Lattimore and J.P. Humber were all vying for the job and midway through last season, no single back had been named the every day starter. A year later, the Terrapins are as deep and talented at tailback as any team in the ACC and the only issue at hand is splitting up the carries.
Still only a junior, Lance Ball established himself as one of the league's top backs a year ago, rushing for 903 yards despite starting only four games. Ball was the league's third-leading rusher, doing so mostly behind his push later in the season. He rushed over 100 yards four times in the team's last seven games and was ultimately named second team All-ACC.
Now completely healed from an injury suffered in the final game of 2004, Josh Allen returns to give the Terps a home-run threat. Allen enters this year ranked sixth on the school's all-time list for rushing touchdowns and just outside of the career Top 10 for rushing yards at 11th with 1,860. With 140 yards, he will become just the ninth 2,000-yard career rusher in Maryland history.
Junior Keon Lattimore and senior J.P. Humber each have their own style to add to the mix for the Terrapins. Lattimore missed spring recovering from a shoulder injury, but returns as one of the surprises of fall camp. He has shown an amazing burst, quickness and comfort level he had not shown in his first two campaigns. Humber gives the Terps a powerful down-hill runner who can wear defenses down late in a game and, like the other backs, seems to be playing the best ball of his career right now.
O-Line Talented and Deep
Once a concern at Maryland, the Terps enter 2005 with likely the deepest and most talented offensive lines it has had under Ralph Friedgen.
The Terrapins return four starters from a year ago (Jared Gaither, Andrew Crummey, Donnie Woods and Brandon Nixon), needing only to replace departed center Ryan McDonald, a one-year starter. Though Nixon will not play this year, the Terps are likely better off at tackle with the return of its top lineman from 2004, Stephon Heyer.
In addition to the returning starters, Maryland's depth and the competition level is even improved as Scott Burley, Jaimie Thomas and Dane Randolph all saw significant time last year and are talented enough to compete to be in the starting lineup. In short, the Terps are in good hands as 2006 opens.
All Eyes on the Receivers
In Vernon Davis, Danny Melendez, Jo Jo Walker and Derrick Fenner, Maryland lost 76 percent (160 of 210) of its receptions due to graduation or the NFL draft. It is not a mystery that players will have to step up in their absence.
The Maryland two-deep returns just one senior (Drew Weatherly) and no other players with the exception of special teams guru Greg Powell with any more experienced than a sophomore. What the team does have that it did not have even last year in its talented trio of wideouts is an abundance of physical talent.
The average height and weight of this year's top five receivers is 6-2, 203. In that group, the average time in the 40-yard dash in spring drills was 4.46 with Darrius Heyward-Bey and Isaiah Williams each sub-4.4.
Noting the Terp Defense
When he was hired to come to Maryland, the talk about the mark Ralph Friedgen would make in College Park was all about offense. In each of the four seasons heading into 2005, however, the most consistent Terp unit was the defense.
Since 2001, the Maryland defense has allowed an average of 18.9 points per game. The 2005 campaign was the team's first in that time finishing a season with a scoring average above 20.0.
Last year's defensive scoring average of 25.0 points per game is somewhat deceiving. The Terrapins gave up 42 points without the defense even being on the field (four interception returns, one punt return and one fumble return). Factor that in and the team averaged 21.1 points allowed per game, which would have ranked 26th-best in the nation as opposed to 55th.
Since 2001, 39 of Maryland's 61 opponents (64%) have been held to 20 points or less.
Since 2002, Maryland has held its opposition scoreless in 87 quarters.
Maryland has held eight opponents to 100 yards or less passing since 2001 and two (Navy and West Virginia) last season.
Since `01, Maryland has held its opposition below 100 yards rushing 14 times.
Just twice since game two of 2003 has a quarterback been able to pass for more than one touchdown against the Terrapins (Virginia Tech's Bryan Randall last year and Clemson's Charlie Whitehurst in week two of 2005).
Terps Nation's Leaders in `05
Opposing offenses struggled to find the end zone through the air against Maryland's defense last year. The Terrapins finished the year as the national leaders in fewest passing touchdowns allowed and ranked 19th nationally in pass defense. The ledger:
Rk. Team Pass TDs Allowed
1. Maryland 4
2. Auburn 8
Georgia 8
Miami (Fla.) 8
Ohio State 8
6. Alabama 9
Tennessee 9
Tulsa 9
Turnover Low in `06
Maryland had just 15 seniors on its roster last season, with two of those seniors -- OT Stephon Heyer and TB Josh Allen -- back in uniform this year.
Only seven of those 15 seniors from last year were listed as starters (three offense, four defense).
Just four players from the entire defensive two-deep from last year were lost to graduation.
LB Unit Home of the Hardware
Three of the last five years, the Atlantic Coast Conference Defensive Player of the Year has been a Maryland linebacker. This season the Terps have to replace last year's honoree after losing eventual NFL second-round pick D'Qwell Jackson, so it may come as a shock that Maryland's linebacking corps may be better this season.
Focus will be on junior Wesley Jefferson as he will fill the spot where E.J. Henderson (2001 and 2002) and Jackson (2005) earned their hardware while also garnering national award attention at season's end. Jefferson, however, has a deeper and possibly more talented surrounding cast than either All-American was afforded.
Turtles in Name Only
The last two years, Maryland has seen an increased level of speed and athleticism among its players as the players on this years team have shown in offseason testing. (Last season was the first year that there were no remaining players from the previous regimes recruiting efforts).
The Terrapins had 14 players run in the 4.5-or-better range in the 40-yard dash in spring testing (note that all times are an average of six stopwatches on the same sprint).
Four of the 11 wide receivers who tested in the spring ran 4.44 or faster and six defensive backs ran under a 4.5.
Some notable times from players other than wideouts and corners who ran well include linebacker Dave Philistin (4.55), quarterback Josh Portis (4.53) and punter Adam Podlesh (4.44).
One other notable time, though it has as much to do with weight as it does speed, was the 4.83 time of 312-pound defensive tackle Dre Moore.
Podlesh Moving Up the Charts
Adam Podlesh is rated by NFL scouts as one of the top punting prospects. He has earned that distinction with as complete a resume as a punter can possess -- gross average, net average, directional punting and consistency -- and he has done it throughout his career at Maryland.
Last season, Podlesh maintained a 43.6-yard average (second-best in the ACC and 13th-best in the nation).
On 160 career punts, Podlesh has dropped 38 percent (60) inside the opponents' 20-yard line and 16 percent (26) inside the opposition's 10.
Podlesh has earned second-team All-ACC honors in each of his three years at Maryland. In each of those seasons, he was ranked just behind last year's Ray Guy Award winner Ryan Plackemeier of Wake Forest.
In being named the second team All-ACC punter in 2003, Podlesh became the first freshman in school history to be recognized by the league.
Heading into 2006, Podlesh's career average is ninth-best in ACC history and just a half-yard shy of Brooks Barnard's school record of 43.7.
Iron Terps
Maryland's strength numbers over the course of the last six years have been off the charts. This season, 22 players earned "Iron Terp" status, an honor that is based on a player's strength index (determined by a strength/weight formula).
Team averages (in categories used to measure index) this season include an average bench press of 338 pounds; an average squat of 489 pounds; an average clean of 294 pounds; and an average vertical jump of 33-1/2 inches.
Not only were new individual records set, but the team as a whole improved dramatically, as 78 percent of the players on this year's team elevated their personal bests in strength index.
Nine different all-time records were set for players at their given position. Among those records were the 40-yard dash time of punter Adam Podlesh (4.44), the vertical jump of linebacker Rick Costa (42 inches) and the bench press of quarterback Jordan Steffy (355).
Arguably the most amazing record set was by offensive tackle Jared Gaither. At 6-9 and 350 pounds, Gaither posted a 36-inch vertical jump.
Local Ties
The Terrapins have six players who call the state of Virginia home: S Jeff Allen (Woodbridge/DeMatha HS); FB Kyle Fraser (Herndon/Langley HS); CB Isaiah Gardner (Virginia Beach/Salem HS); DT Dean Muhtadi (Alexandria/T.C. Williams HS); CB Richard Taylor (Centreville/Centreville HS); and LB Brian Whitmore (Chesapeake/Oscar F. Smith HS).
On the Maryland coaching staff, offensive line coach Tom Brattan coached at a pair of Virginia high schools (Highland Springs and L.C. Bird) before entering the college ranks. Defensive coordinator Chris Cosh is a former player, former student assistant coach and a 1983 graduate of Virginia Tech. Running backs coach Phil Zacharias coached at St. Paul's College in Virginia from 1982-84.
The Tribe have 10 players who call the Free State home: DB/WR Michael Alvarado (Gaithersburg/Gaithersburg HS), RB Elijah Brooks (Largo/DeMatha), DL Cortenous Herbert (Germantown/Northwest HS), OL Luke Hiteshew (Baltimore/Mount St. Joseph), OL Chris Ilardo (Baltimore/St. Paul's School), TE Daniel Klatzkin (Potomac/Randolph-Macon Academy), WR Brian Lanning (Frederick/Frederick HS), LB Chris Ndubueze (Lanham/DeMatha), DB Richard Riley (Gaithersburg/Gaithersburg HS) and LB Josh Rutter (Union Bridge/Francis Scott Key HS).
ACC Football Power
Now in its second year as a 12-team conference with a championship game, the Atlantic Coast Conference is widely recognized as one of the premier conferences in college athletics.
Last season, eight ACC teams earned bowl bids.
The conference's schools have posted a 21-12 mark in postseason play in the last five years, best among all Division I-A conferences in that span.
With 10 of its 12 teams in the Sagarin ratings final top 45 last season, the ACC was ranked second among all conferences in the final Sagarin poll in 2005. Three of its schools were rated by Sagarin to have among the toughest 20 schedules in the country (UNC, 5th; Maryland, 10th; Georgia Tech, 16th).
Wm. & Mary's Jimmye Laylock
JImmye Laylock took over the head coaching position at William & Mary in 1980. Now in his 27th year leading the Tribe, he comes to College Park boasting a 175-119-2 (.596) record in his tenure.
Taking over a program that had just four six-plus winning seasons in the previous 25 years, Laylock's tenure has posted 18 in the near equal time since.
Currently the eighth-winningest active Division I coach (I-A and I-AA each represented), Laylock has led his team to the I-AA playoffs seven times, most recently taking it to the NCAA semifinals and a No. 3 ranking in 2004.
Laylock has experience coaching against ACC schools, having coached as an offensive coordinator at Clemson from 1977-79.
A native of Virginia, Laylock lettered as a defensive back and quarterback for William & Mary from 1966-69.
Scouting the Tribe
Like the Terrapins, William & Mary is hoping to rebound from a 5-6 season of a year ago. The Tribe were 3-5 in the Atlantic 10 Conference, ranking tied for third in the Southern Division.
The Tribe struggled down the stretch last season. After starting the season 5-2 and averaging 43 points per game in four consecutive wins heading to the end of October, the team averaged 19.5 points down the stretch and dropped each of its final four games.
Though it returns only 13 of 24 starters from last season, William & Mary appears to be in good shape offensively at the least. The Tribe returns each of its top three rushers, its top two passers and four of its top five receivers.
Elijah Brooks was a second team All-Atlantic 10 pick at running back last year, averaging 85.8 of William & Mary's 159.3 yards per game last season. Brooks led the team with nine rushing touchdowns and was also fifth on the team in receiving.
Though its rushing offense was impressive a year ago, the same could have been said about the Tribes' opposition. William & Mary's opponents averaged 164.5 yards per game last season.
W&M returns its top tackler from last season in sophomore inside linebacker Josh Rutter. As a freshman a year ago, Rutter posted 109 tackles and 6.5 tackles for loss.
The team's top defensive playmaker of a year ago departed in the form of Jonas Watson (50 tackles, 11 TFLs, 6.0 sacks).
Protecting the House
Despite a sub-.500 record in 2005, the Terrapins are 24-7 at Byrd Stadium under Ralph Friedgen.
The Terps finished the 2003 season with a perfect 6-0 record at home, marking the second time in three years that the team had finished its home slate unblemished.
In 113 previous seasons of football, Maryland has finished undefeated at home 19 times. Just eight of those occasions, however, have come since 1950 (when Byrd Stadium opened) and just three times has it happened since 1975 (`76, 2001 and `03).
The Terrapins' 6-0 mark in 2003 was a tie for the second-best record at home in school history. The 1976 team was also 6-0, only to be trumped by the 2001 team which won all of its games on a seven-game home slate.
More on Chevy Chase Bank Field at Byrd Stadium
Now in its 57th year of operation, Byrd Stadium continues to serve as the home of the Terps. Opened on Sept. 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 this weekend, the Terrapins are 179-104-1 within the friendly confines of Byrd.
With temporary bleachers installed again this season, Chevy Chase Bank Field at Byrd Stadium can hold up to 51,500.
Terp Alley
In an effort to restore some tradition on gameday in College Park, the football staff created Terp Alley in 2001, a tradition that has become a part of the gameday experience outside 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.
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.
Dinner with the Turtles
Maryland football games are replayed on Comcast SportsNet every Sunday evening at 7:30 p.m. Fans can also tune in at 7:00 p.m. Sundays and catch the Ralph Friedgen Show.
Three times this season, the date and time will change for the show and replay -- William & Mary (Monday, 9/4, 7:00 p.m.); NC State (Tuesday, 10/24, 7:00 p.m.); and Miami (Tuesday, 11/14, 7:00 p.m.).
Fans can also see game highlights by tuning in to FridgeTV on the UMTerps.com website every week.
