Maryland football opened its season Saturday with a convincing 50-7 win over UConn.
The Terps dominated on both sides of the ball. The offense, led by Billy Edwards Jr., posted 629 total yards — 381 passing and 248 rushing — and did not turn the ball over. Meanwhile, UConn struggled to earn first downs for most of the day. While Maryland certainly was not flawless, it was a promising start to the season.
Here are three takeaways from Saturday’s game.
Edwards got the start, but multiple quarterbacks played
Head coach Mike Locksley has kept his decision on the starting quarterback under wraps for the entire offseason, only admitting the finalists were Edwards, MJ Morris and Cameron Edge. But it was Edwards who saw the field first Saturday.
“The one thing that really jumped out to me about Billy throughout camp, and I think Ray Charles could see today, that … his ability to run with the ones, the twos [and] the threes, and when we watch the tape, not know which group he’s playing with,” Locksley said. “You just look at the comfort level that he showed operating the system with all the stuff going on around him, and the way he was able to distribute the ball.”
Edwards finished the game with 311 passing yards and two passing touchdowns on 74.1% completion. He also rushed the ball five times for 39 yards, on a mixture of designed and improvised runs.
He started the game directing the hurry-up offense, and despite nearly fumbling on the first drive of the game, ran it relatively smoothly. He completed multiple short passes — as the game plan was clearly to shrink the field and keep Edwards ahead of the sticks — before he unleashed an 18-yard bullet to Tai Felton in the end zone.
Morris spared Edwards throughout the second and third quarters by design, Locksley said. He started the fourth quarter, but took a hard hit to the head as he attempted to slide on his first drive of the frame. The collision sidelined him for the rest of the game. Morris finished the contest with 13 passing and 13 rushing yards.
Edge replaced Morris under center and played well, completing four of six passes for 57 yards and a touchdown.
Hemby led a productive rushing attack
The Terps were dominant on the ground Saturday. They totaled 248 rushing yards, 131 of which came in the first quarter, the most rushing yards Maryland has recorded in a first quarter since 2018.
Roman Hemby led the Terps in carries and rushing yards, with 14 and 66 respectively. He also scored a touchdown.
Hemby’s 4.7 yards per carry were dwarfed by many, however, as Nolan Ray and Edwards were both extremely efficient on the ground. Ray took his first carry of the season for a 48-yard touchdown, and rushed six times for 60 yards in total. He looked extremely dynamic with the ball in his hands and was Maryland’s clear No. 2 running back Saturday, surpassing senior Colby McDonald, who recorded 44 yards on eight carries.
Freshmen DeJuan Williams and Josiah McLaurin also got some playing time in the fourth quarter. Williams rushed four times for 13 yards and a touchdown, while McLaurin caught a 24-yard touchdown pass.
“I was so happy for Josiah,” Locksley said. “He’s had a rough week. He lost his dad in a car accident a week ago … That’s why our team was really excited that he was able to get a touchdown.”
Maryland’s defense kept UConn out of the end zone, mostly
Whether the result is more indicative of UConn’s offense or Maryland’s defense has yet to be seen, but one thing is for sure: the Terps did what they were supposed to.
While Maryland only tallied one tackle for loss and didn’t record a sack, it didn’t need to. The Terps kept most running plays in front of them, and forced plenty of incomplete passes. The Huskies rushed for 88 yards on 2.9 yards per carry. Meanwhile, starting quarterback Nick Evers completed six of 17 passes for 73 yards and an interception.
After suffering an injury, Evers was replaced by Joe Fagnano in the third quarter. Fagnano played a bit better, completing eight of 16 passes for 149 yards and a touchdown. He did throw an interception, although it bounced off his receiver and into the hands of Ruben Hyppolite II.
Maryland’s defense was headed by safety Glendon Miller, who led the team with six tackles (five solo) and picked off Evers, which led to a field goal before the second-quarter clock expired. He played all over the field as a safety, linebacker and cornerback.
Miller’s fellow safeties, Dante Trader Jr. and Lavain Scruggs, were also key contributors, combining for nine tackles (six solo) and a pass breakup.
“I thought our defense had a really good plan going in, how we wanted to defend UConn and really not knowing what they were going to be,” Locksley said. “[A] new quarterback, new system [and] new coordinator made it tough, but once we kind of figured out how they wanted to attack, [defensive coordinator Brian Williams] and the defensive staff did a good job, for the most part.”
