Maryland Gearing Up for Humanitarian Bowl
12/22/2008 7:00:00 AM | Football
Dec. 22, 2008
COLLEGE PARK, Md. - With final exams in the rear view mirror, the Maryland football team now has its sights set on preparing for the Nevada Wolf Pack.
The Terps, who will face Nevada (7-5, 5-3 WAC) on Tuesday, Dec. 30 in the Roady's Humanitarian Bowl, hit the practice field for the first time in nearly a week on Saturday (finals ended that morning).
Maryland strung its third straight day of practice together Monday and will work out again Tuesday, the team's final home session of the year.
"We had a pretty good walk-through this morning in the bubble," Maryland head coach Ralph Friedgen said after practice. "Then we got to work in some of the elements (this afternoon). We're making progress. We keep adding a couple things every day."
Friedgen is concerned about the break in between days of practice. After Tuesday's morning workout, the team will not practice again until Saturday. The team will be off Wednesday and Thursday for the holiday and then leave campus Friday morning for the trip to Boise.
"No matter how we look now, it's how we look after a two-to-three day break," Friedgen said. "When we come back (to the practice field) in Boise, Idaho, how much do they retain? We'll just have to see how we are (in Boise). We still have a week before we play."
The Terps (7-5, 4-4 ACC) will face a formidable foe in the Wolf Pack who have a high-powered offense and one of the top rushing defenses in the country, yielding just 74.5 yards per game (third nationally).
Nevada's pistol offense ranks fifth nationally in total yards (510.6 yards per game), including second in rushing yards (291.4 pg). The Wolf Pack has scored 30 or more points in nine straight games.
Colin Kaepernick is the triggerman for the Nevada offense. The sophomore has thrown for 2,479 yards and rushed for 1,115. Running back Vai Taua has tallied 1,420 rushing yards and caught 29 passes.
Friedgen has been impressed by Nevada's unconventional offense, which places the quarterback in the shotgun with a tailback lined up directly behind the signal-caller.
"The first time I saw it I was pretty intrigued by it," Friedgen said. "On TV you don't get to appreciate it as much as when you start watching tape. It really has some wishbone principles to it. It's pretty tough to handle all the different reads. And the reads are a little delayed because it's out of the gun. It's a pretty unique situation. They isolate you. If you miss tackles, it's going to be a big play."
Terp Notes:
Steffy to be Honored at Sugar Bowl: Senior quarterback Jordan Steffy will be among 22 student-athletes honored at halftime of the Allstate Sugar Bowl, which will be played Jan. 2 in New Orleans. Steffy was selected to the 2008 AllState AFCA Good Works team earlier this season and all members of the squad will appear at the game. He will also be featured during Fox's broadcast of the game. Steffy, a native of Leola, Pa., was interviewed earlier this month for a special feature which will run at halftime of the broadcast. Among his many charitable contributions is his foundation - Children Deserve a Chance - which aids in the financial, emotional, as well as spiritual development of underprivileged and disabled youth. Allstate Insurance teamed with the AFCA to honor the college football players whose involvement with charitable organizations and community service stood out among their peers.
Friedgen to Appear in Chick-fil-A Alma Mater Thursday: Thirteen top NCAA head coaches including Ralph Friedgen, Nick Saban, Steve Spurrier, Frank Beamer and Rick Neuheisel will team up with celebrity alumni and hit the links to battle for $350,000 in scholarship money in the Chick-fil-A Bowl Alma Mater on Christmas Day. Fans can tune in to a tape-delayed broadcast at 2:30 p.m. ET on CBS. The event features pairings that include a university head coach and a celebrity alumnus from the same school competing in a scramble format against other university teams from around the country. The event will award scholarship winnings among the 13 university teams and will donate another $115,000 to charity. Friedgen was joined by former Terp QB Neil O'Donnell in the competition, which took place in April 29 on the Oconee Course at Reynolds Plantation in Greensboro, Ga.
