Terps Gearing Up For Second Road Game
10/20/2011 8:00:00 AM | Football
Oct. 20, 2011
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COLLEGE PARK, Md. - The Maryland Terrapins are in the midst of gearing up for their second road game of the season.
Following its third defeat of the season to a top-20 team, Maryland (2-4, 1-2 Atlantic Coast Conference) will travel to Tallahassee, Fla., Saturday to face the Florida State Seminoles (3-3, 1-2) who are tied with the Terrapins for third in the Atlantic Division standings.
While the Terps were unable to hold off then eighth-ranked Clemson which rallied for a 56-45 victory last Saturday, head coach Randy Edsall likes how the team has bounced back this week in practice.
"I thought we had a good two days of practice so far," Edsall said to reporters on a Thursday afternoon conference call. "[Wednesday] was in the rain a little bit. I don't think there's been a week where we haven't had rain in some capacity whether we were playing or practicing. Now we need to go out and have another good day [on Thursday]."
The Terps have a formidable task ahead as they face a squad which has won the last four meetings in the series and lost twice to teams (Oklahoma and Clemson) this season currently residing in the top 10 nationally.
Florida State leads the league and ranks 11th in the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) in total defense (284.7 yards per game).
However, the Terps piled up 537 rushing yards in the past two games and moved up to 38th in the FBS in rushing offense (186.5 ypg).
That ground attack, led by quarterback C.J. Brown and tailback Davin Meggett, will be one of the keys for Maryland which would like to keep the potent Florida State offense off the field.
Junior quarterback E.J Manuel returned from injury last week and sparked the Seminoles offense, throwing for 239 yards and two touchdowns. Manuel ranks second in the ACC in total offense (264.6 ypg) and fifth in passing yards (239 ypg).
Edsall is hopeful the Terps can turn the tide this weekend after either holding the lead or being in a position to score the go-ahead touchdown in the final 5:00 in three of the four losses this season.
"The kids are working," Edsall said. "They're working and they're getting better. You can see them getting better. We just need to get more consistent and we need to be able to finish."
Saturday's game is scheduled to kick off at 3:30 p.m. and will be broadcast regionally on ABC and to parts of the nation on ESPN2. The game can also be heard over the Terrapin Sports Radio Network (TSRN) which includes ESPN 980 in Washington, D.C. and 105.7 FM in Baltimore.
Terp Notes:
Drakeford Expected to Return: Junior linebacker Darin Drakeford, who had a career-high 14 tackles in the season opener vs. Miami (9/5), is expected back in the lineup for the Terps Saturday after missing the last three games with an injury. However, Edsall is not quite sure if he will be in the starting lineup, one which featured three freshmen linebackers (Mario Rowson, Lorne Goree and Alex Twine) last week. "That's something that we'll take a look at in practice [Thursday], but he's in pretty good shape right now to be able to do that," Edsall said.
Scout Team Players of the Week: Each Thursday during the season Edsall announces the scout team players of the week. This week's honorees are offensive lineman Gary Harraka (offense), defensive back Daniel Thomas (defense) and defensive back Lukas Foreman (special teams).
Flag Bearers: Matt Furstenburg (American) and Eric Franklin (Maryland) will carry out the flags during Saturday's introductions.
Inside Maryland Football: The sixth edition of Inside Maryland Football will air at 11 a.m. Saturday on Comcast SportsNet Mid-Atlantic. The 30-minute coaches show goes behind the-scenes with the team. The first five shows are available on Terps TV Premium. The show airs each Saturday during the regular season until Dec. 3 (there was no show on Sept. 17 due to a bye the previous Saturday).
Injury Report vs. Florida State: Out for the Season: WR Tyrek Cheeseboro, OL Andrew Gonnella, DB Avery Graham, LB Garrett Lederman, DB Matt Robinson, DL Isaiah Ross, TE Dave Stinebaugh; Out for the Game: DL Justin Anderson, WR Kevin Dorsey, OL Justin Gilbert, LB Shaquan Virgil; Doubtful: LB Demetrius Hartsfield, LB Kenny Tate; Questionable: DL Andre Monroe; Probable: OL Pete White
