Maryland-Michigan State Game Preview
10/18/2016 12:00:00 AM | Football, Terrapin Athletics
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COLLEGE PARK, Md. -- The Maryland football program welcomes Michigan State to College Park, Md., for just the third time in history this Saturday, Oct. 22. The Terrapins and Spartans are set to square off in primetime on Big Ten Network with a 7:30 pm kickoff.
Quick Hitters
- Maryland head coach DJ Durkin and the Maryland football team looks to bounce back from its first home loss of the season last Saturday against Minnesota. The Terps have won seven of their last 11 contests following a home loss dating back to 2013.
- The Terrapins have had tremendous success in the red zone this season, both offensively and defensively. On the offensive end, Maryland ranks second in the Big Ten and 21st nationally with a 91 percent conversion rate, while the defense ranks third in the Big Ten and 11th nationally holding opponents to a 68 percent scoring rate.
- The Maryland defense held Purdue to just seven completions and Minnesota to 10 completions in its last two outings. The Terrapins last held conference opponents to 10 completions or less in back-to-back games in 1996 against Duke (9) and Clemson (8).
- Maryland started three true freshmen against Minnesota (QB Tyrrell Pigrome, OL Terrance Davis and DB Tino Ellis), marking the first time for the feat since Nov. 24, 2012 at North Carolina (Stefon Diggs, Mike Madaras, Shawn Petty).
- True freshman running back Lorenzo Harrison ranks fifth nationally among true freshmen with 66.2 rushing yards/game. He is currently on pace to break LaMont Jordan's freshman record of 689 rushing yards in a single-season, set in 1997.
Maryland Offense: By the Numbers
1 - True freshman quarterback Tyrrell Pigrome made his first career start for the Terrapins in relief of the injured Perry Hills last Saturday against Minnesota. He became the first true freshman to start at QB for Maryland since Shawn Petty against Georgia Tech on Nov. 3, 2012. The 2015 Alabama Gatorade Player of the Year completed 18 passes for 161 yards and a touchdown in the game, in addition to running for 71 yards.
3 - The Maryland offense has received tremendous support from true freshmen this season, namely quarterback Tyrrell Pigrome, running back Lorenzo Harrison and offensive lineman Terrance Davis. Harrison is the lone player of the three without a start this season, but has played in all six games and currently leads the team in rushes (48), rushing yards (397) and touchdowns (4). Harrison and Davis both attended nearby DeMatha Catholic High School and are cousins.
7 - Senior quarterback Perry Hills scored a rushing touchdown in overtime at UCF to become the seventh Terrapin to score a rushing touchdown this season through only three games (six different players scored in the opener). It is a remarkable feat for the team considering Maryland last had seven players score a rushing TD in an entire season in 2002. That 2002 team would go on to score 32 rushing touchdowns. This year's team has 16 rushing touchdowns through six games.
8.8 - While Maryland has been prone to spread the ball across its bevy of running backs, its top-two ball carriers, Lorenzo Harrison and Ty Johnson, have made the most of their carries by averaging 8.8 yards collectively. The freshman Harrison is averaging 8.3 yards/carry, while Johnson is averaging 9.7 yards per carry. Harrison carried just four times against Minnesota, but still ran for 35 yards (8.8 yards/c).
10 - After recording just three catches through the first five games of the season, senior Levern Jacobs finally broke through with a career-high 10 catches against Minnesota. Jacobs was the favorite target of Tyrrell Pigrome, as the pair connected for 82 receiving yards. Jacobs is the first Terp to reach 10 catches in a game since current NFL star Stefon Diggs recorded 10 catches against Stanford on Dec. 30, 2014, in the Foster Farms Bowl.
14 - Sophomore D.J. Moore currently leads all Maryland receivers with a reception in 14 consecutive games dating back to Oct. 3, 2015. Moore leads all offensive players with 16 consecutive starts, and leads the team in receptions (19), receiving yards (258), yards-per-catch (13.6) and receiving touchdowns (3).
102 - Senior Levern Jacobs' 10-catch day against Minnesota vaulted the veteran five spots on the Maryland career receptions chart into 11th all-time with 102 receptions. Jacobs, who started the day with 92 career catches, passed: Mancel Johnson (94), Greg Hill (97), Frank Russell (100), Marcus Badgett (100) and Ferrell Edmunds (101). Jacobs also moved into 19th in career reception yards with 1,207, passing Frank Wycheck and Dean Richards.
397 - Freshman running back Lorenzo Harrison has totaled 397 rushing yards through his first six games, and is currently on pace to break LaMont Jordan's Maryland freshman record of 689 rushing yards set in 1997. For comparison's sake, Jordan had 327 rushing yards through his first six career games.
Maryland Defense/ST: By the Numbers
1 - Head coach DJ Durkin has proclaimed numerous times that the best players will play special teams. That sentiment rang true against Penn State when star freshman running back Lorenzo Harrison broke through for his first career punt block. The Terrapins are one of just seven teams nationally with two blocked punts this season.
5.5 - Junior defensive lineman Jesse Aniebonam has taken full advantage of his first season as a full-time starter for the Terps, ranking second in the Big Ten with 5.5 sacks (0.92/g). He also ranks third in the Big Ten and 22nd nationally with 1.4 tackles for loss/game. Aniebonam, who is the cousin of former great New York Giants pass rusher Osi Umenyiora, was held without a sack for the first time this season against Minneosta.
12 - Senior defensive tackle Azubuike Ukandu earned the starting nod against Minnesota and made the most of his opportunity, doubling his career-high with 12 tackles. Ukandu was a disruptive force throughout the day against the Golden Gophers run game. Ukandu's previous career-high of six tackles came at Michigan State on Nov. 14, 2015.
17.4 - The Terrapins' defensive special teams unit has been excellent this season, ranking second in the Big Ten in kickoff return defense (17.4 yards/KO) and third in punt return defense (5.7 yards/PR). Terrapin opponents have returned kickoffs on 31-of-34 kicks this season.
45.3 - Senior Wade Lees turned in one of the best games of his career against Minnesota, punting seven times for a career-high average of 45.3 yards. Among the seven punts was a career-long 50-yard punt. Lees is the oldest freshman in the nation at 28-years-old, having played Australian Rules Football previously.
68 - The Maryland defense has held strong in the red zone this season, ranking third in the Big Ten Conference and 11th nationally in red zone defense. The Terrapins are holding opponents to points on just 68 percent (13-of-19) of their red zone chances. Maryland has allowed just five field goal attempts, with opposing teams hitting just 3-of-5 attempts.
176.5 - Maryland ranks fifth in the Big Ten allowing just 176.5 passing yards/g to opponents this season, having held teams under 200 yards passing in 4-of-6 games. The Terps have yet to allow a 300-yard passer in 2016 after giving up more than 300 yards passing five times in 2015.
429 - The Terrapins have allowed just 429 passing yards over its last three games - the fewest during a three-game span in conference action since 2004, when it allowed just 374 yards total against Virginia (114), Virginia Tech (137) and Wake Forest (123).
-TERPS-
