April 6, 2008
COLLEGE PARK, Md. -
The University of Maryland football team closed out its second week of spring practice Sunday afternoon with one its most spirited workouts.
Maryland won't hold its first official scrimmage until Saturday, but the Terps warmed up for that by spending seven periods, or about an hour, of Sunday's workout in a scrimmage-type setting.
The offense scored on six of its 14 possessions, which all started on the 40-yard line, but five of those drives ended with field goals.
The defense stiffened in the red zone on four of those field-goal attempts and also forced one turnover.
"I was pretty impressed," Maryland Coach Ralph Friedgen said of scrimmage portion of the team's sixth practice of the spring. "I thought the kids got after each other. I thought the execution wasn't bad on either side (of the ball). We had some procedure penalties and that's probably going to happen. I thought far as with the 40-second clock went, we did a pretty good job."
Friedgen saw a lot of intensity throughout the workout, which was postponed Saturday due to the threat of inclement weather.
"I thought it was a good first scrimmage from the first through fourth teams," Friedgen said. "The competition was even right down to the last play."
Senior Obi Egekeze was involved with most of the scoring. He nailed all of his five field-goal attempts, including a 42-yarder.
Senior Jordan Steffy completed 8 of 10 passes for 65 yards and junior Josh Portis was good on 4 of 5 pass attempts for 78 yards. Returning starter Chris Turner went 2-for-3 for 34 yards in limited action.
"I think Jordan has made a move, although I thought Chris played better today," Friedgen said of the team's top three quarterbacks. "I thought Josh did some things also, though he was with the third team. We alternated Jordan and Chris with the first team."
As far as the difference with the quarterbacks in the new offense, Friedgen noted that "Jordan's decisions are little quicker than Chris' right now."
Portis led the lone touchdown drive, taking the No. 3 offense 60 yards in 10 plays. He hit wide receiver Ronnie Tyler for gains of 19 and 30 yards, and scrambled for 10 yards.
Reserve running back Pha'Terrell Washington capped the drive with a 2-yard touchdown run on a sweep around the right side.
"(Pha'Terrell) did some good things in the scrimmage," Friedgen said. "He has a burst."
Senior Rashad Henry rushed for a team-high 64 yards on 14 carries, including runs of 11 and 13 yards. Morgan Green, who is No. 2 on the tailback depth chart, carried the ball 14 times for 49 yards.
Junior Jamari McCollough had a team-high eight tackles and Dominique Herald added six stops, including four solo.
McCollough is vying for time at safety, while Herald has been a pleasant surprise since moving from safety to strongside linebacker prior to the spring.
Senior Trey Covington had two tackles, but made them both count. He stopped Da'Rel Scott behind the line of scrimmage on the opening play of the ninth possession and followed up by sacking Turner for a 7-yard loss.
Sophomore linebacker Alex Wujciak had two stops and forced a Scott fumble on the fourth possession.
Senior Jeremy Navarre, a three-year starter at defensive end who was moved to tackle in the off-season, made his presence felt in limited action with three stops, including one for a loss.
"Jeremy Navarre has had a great spring so far," Friedgen said. "He's really playing well."
Other players singled out by Friedgen for their solid play, included Chase Bullock, Michael Carter, Tony Logan and McCollough.
The Terps hit the field again Tuesday afternoon. The team is scheduled to practice each Tuesday (4 p.m.), Thursday (4 p.m.) and Saturday (10 a.m.).
They have nine practices remaining, including with the Red-White Spring Game on Saturday, April 26 (3:30 p.m. ET at Chevy Chase Bank Field at Byrd Stadium).
With the exception of the spring game, all spring workouts are closed to the general public, though members of the Maryland Gridiron Network and Terrapin Club, as well as players' parents and University of Maryland students, are allowed to attend the workouts.
Terp Notes:
Fallen Terps: Receivers LaQuan Williams (broken foot) and Isaiah Williams (broken hand) both suffered injuries during the individual portion of Sunday's practice. They are likely to miss the rest of spring practice. In addition, reserve offensive lineman Maurice Hampton is expected to miss the remainder of the spring after suffering a meniscus tear in his knee last week. The redshirt freshman had surgery and will be out of action a few weeks.
Spring Game Info: The Terps will close out spring practice with the annual Red-White Spring Game on Saturday, April 26. Kickoff is set for 3:30 p.m. from Chevy Chase Bank Field at Byrd Stadium. Friedgen and the players will be available from 12:30 to 1:30 p.m. for an autograph session in the stadium. The spring game is the culmination of Maryland Day, a family celebration which takes place on campus. All events surrounding Maryland Day are free. Click here for the athletics schedule during Maryland Day.
Statistics
Offense
Rushing (Carries-Yds./TDs):
Henry 14-64; Green 14-49; Bonato 10-47; Scott 8-25; Washington 6-20/1; Portis 2-16; Turner 3-(-1).
Passing (Comp.-Att.-Yds./TDs):
Portis 4-5-78/1 TD; Steffy 8-10-65; Robinson 2-4-36; Turner 2-3-34
Receiving (Rec.-Yds./TDs):
Tyler 2-49; Logan 1-32; Smith 3-32; McCree 2-28; Cannon 1-26; Gronkowski 1-16; Heyward-Bey 2-15; Galt 1-7; Lariviere 1-4; Green 1-3; Brown 1-1
Defense
Tackles (Solo-Assisted-Total):
McCollough (2-6-8), Herald (4-2-6), Robinson (4-1-5), Hartsfield (2-3-5), Hargett (3-1-4), Davidson (1-3-4), Galt (1-3-4), Carter (3-0-3), Hughes (3-0-3), Bullock (2-1-3), Jackson-Mills (2-1-3), Navarre (2-1-3), Otulaja (2-1-3), Akinwande (1-2-3), Drummond (1-2-3), Schultz (1-2-3), Sule (1-2-3), Pooler (0-3-3), Covington (2-0-2), Russell (2-0-2), Armstrong (1-1-2), Clement (1-1-2), Walker (1-1-2), Clinton (0-2-2), Ivey (0-2-2), Muhtadi (0-2-2), Wujciak (0-2-2), Carroll (1-0-1), Skinner (1-0-1), Allen (0-1-1), Barnes (0-1-1), Dacosta (0-1-1), Wiseman (0-1-1)
Tackles for Loss (No.-Yards):
Covington (2-9), Russell (1-9), Akinwande (1-2), Hartsfield (1-2), Armstrong (1-1), Davidson (1-1), McCollough (1-1), Navarre (1-1)
Sacks (No.-Yards):
Russell (1-9), Covington (1-7)
Pass Breakups (No.):
Carroll (1), Carter (1)
Forced Fumbles (No.):
Wujciak (1)
Miscellaneous
Field Goals:
Egekeze: 5-5/ 42, 27, 22, 18, 22
