The Maryland Terrapins were not expected to be beat Ohio State or Penn State — but they were expected to beat unranked Illinois in College Park as well as Northwestern on the road — and the Terps failed to capitalize. After starting the season with a 5-0 record, the Terps have lost four straight games. Today they are in Nebraska with a 5-4 record to face a Cornhuskers’ team with an identical record. After this game, one team will be 6-4, and the other at 5-5. The Terps hope they are the team at 6-4.
Today’s winner is automatically bowl eligible. Generally, teams become eligible for Bowl Games by winning six or more games and having a winning percentage of at least .500. What that means for the Terps in their 12-game schedule is that they need to win at least one more game to be bowl-eligible. After today, the Terps face Michigan and finish up with Rutgers. Here is the AP Top-25 NCAA rankings.
QB Taulia Tagovailoa has helped ascend the Terps’ passing game to new heights during his four-year career. The quarterback has set Maryland career records for passing yards (10,365), passing touchdowns (72), total touchdowns (84), completions (883), completion percentage (66.8), 300-yard passing games (14), passing efficiency (145.9) and total offense (10,590).
“A few things stand-out. There’s no magic button to push.”
— head coach Michael Locksley said
The Terps currently rank 15th in the FBS and third in the Big Ten (#9 Penn State with 38 & Nebraska with 28) with 27 sacks this season. Before last week, Maryland had at least three sacks in five straight games (at Michigan State, 9/23; Indiana, 9/30, at #4 Ohio State, 10/7, Illinois, 10/14 & Northwestern, 10/28), the Terps longest single-season streak since at least 1996. The last time the Terrapins had such a streak, it spanned over two seasons between November 12, 2011 – September 8, 2012.
P Colton Spangler has established himself as one of the best Maryland punters of all time. Spangler stands third all-time in program history with a 43.0 career punting average, narrowly trailing long-time NFL punters Brooks Barnard (43.7) and Adam Podlesh (43.1). Spangler broke the single-season record with a 45.5 punting average in 2021 and stands 10th all-time in program history with 7,486 career punting yards. Spangler is 12th among all active FBS punters in career punting average (43.0) (over 175 punt minimum).
Maryland’s record: 5-4, 2-4 Big Ten
Nebraska’s record: 5-4, 3-3 Big Ten
All-time series:
DraftKings Sportsbook: Maryland -2.5, O/U 42.5
Kickoff: Saturday, November 11, Noon ET
Stadium: Memorial Stadium • Lincoln, Nebraska
TV: Peacock — Play-By-Play: Paul Burmeister, Analyst: Kyle Rudolph, Sideline: Lewis Johnson
Streaming TV: Peacock
Radio: Audacy Radio App / SiriusXM 136; 105.7 FM (Balt.) / 980 AM (D.C.) — Johnny Holliday (play-by-play), Steve Suter (analyst)
