The Humanitarian Bowl

I could be that guy. I could be that guy who sits here and writes about how Maryland - an ACC school with a long, rich athletic history - was forced to play in the Humanitarian Bowl. In Boise. Against Nevada. And they gave us all we could handle, as we won by only seven.

That would be extremely disrespectful towards my school, though, and not how I honestly feel about the situation at all. 

To be frank, I was thrilled about the victory. I thought Maryland was going to go into Boise and absolutely get their brains beaten out. First of all, I never expected Maryland to come out and play the game with the passion and intensity they did. When your whole campus seemingly forgets about you, I imagine it would be easy to lose some of your focus. I feared that my thoughts were affirmed when I learned of the seven players suspended for the first part of the game. 

Then, Chris Turner stepped up, flashing his potential as a terrific quarterback once again (before becoming his inconsistent self in the second half again). Ronnie Tyler (FR), Torrey Smith (FR, pictured), and Adrian Cannon (SO) all stepped up, showing that the passing game can have life without Heyward-Bey and Oquendo next year. Morgan Green and Davin Meggett showed that the offense doesn't need to have Da'Rel Scott to have a big game to win.

Then Scott showed how much easier it is to win when he does have a big game. 

Defensively, they gave up 35 points, but what did you expect? They had a new defensive coordinator, and they were facing one of the top quarterbacks in the country (that's serious; I am of course talking about WAC player of the year Chris Kaepernick, who, even hobbled, managed 370 yards). The defense truly did a remarkable job in shutting down Nevada's rushing attack, holding the number two rushing team in the country to a mere 114 yards. 

I'm not saying the performances were sterling all around, but as a Maryland fan, you have to be happy to send the senior class out with a win. You also have to be happy with how many underclassmen really played well.

As we know quite well, though, it's the talent that Maryland lacked this year. Hopefully, next year, something clicks and the team can play up to its potential every game. If they can, they can certainly be in contention to win the ACC championship game. 

It all starts with a little momentum. That's hopefully what the Terps got with this win out in Idaho. God only knows, 8-5 sounds a lot better than 7-6. 

(Photo Credit: umterps.com)