The Maryland Terrapins sure love to make it interesting. In a game with multiple momentum shifts, missed field goals, and high-pressure moments, the Terrapins came away with their first Atlantic Coast Conference win against the Clemson Tigers, 24-21. Both teams made mistakes at critical junctions in the game and the game swung in the balance for the last five minutes."I was working my rosary pretty good," head coach Ralph Friedgen said after the game.
For a team that had lost two consecutive games and was being left for dead, a win against Clemson seemed like a tall task.
Clemson got on the board first with a field goal by Richard Jackson following a muffed punt return by Anthony Wiseman. Five minutes later, the Tigers scored on a touchdown run by wide receiver Jacoby Ford to take a 10-0 lead. It looked as though the Terrapins would find themselves on the wrong side of a blowout for the second week in a row.
The Terrapins would fight back, however, with a 43-yard field goal by Nick Ferrara early in the second quarter. Jackson would kick a 51-yard field goal to make the score 13-3 to put the Tigers up 10.
The Maryland offense would come to life, however, and capped off a 76-yard drive with a 29-yard touchdown pass to sophomore Torrey Smith. Following a defensive stop, the Terrapins would get the ball back with 2:15 remaining in the half and drive 81 yards to take the lead 17-13 into the half.
In the third quarter, Tony Logan returned a short punt to the Clemson 1-yard line to give the Terrapins a chance to add to their lead. Three plays later, Davin Meggett took an option pitch from Turner and dodged a tackler to give the Terrapins a 24-13 lead with 4:27 left in the third quarter.
On the ensuing kickoff, Spiller broke multiple tackles and went 93 yards to swing the momentum back in Clemson's favor. A two-point conversion brought the Tigers back within three points. The two teams would continue to trade possessions until late in the fourth quarter. With less than five minutes remaining, Friedgen decided to go for it on a forth and short from his own 30 yard line. He called for a QB sneak.
"James [Franklin] wanted to go for it. The kids wanted to go for it. I knew our defense was tired, and I went for it," Friedgen said. "I wanted to think about it. I probably changed my mind three times."
Chris Turner was stopped and lost yardage. Friedgen left his defense to face a good Clemson offense already in field goal range. It looked like the game would either be tied or the Terrapins would find themselves trailing with little time remaining.
His defense stepped up, however, and forced a three-and-out by the Tigers. Richard Jackson went out and kicked a long field goal to tie the game. There was one problem: Friedgen had called a timeout right before Clemson hiked the ball. Jackson was forced to try again, and missed.
The Terrapins had dodged a bullet and had a chance to ice the game with a couple first downs. On their first play, however, Meggett fumbled the ball and gave the ball right back to the Tigers. The defense, yet again, stopped the Tigers in their tracks and forced a field goal attempt. Surely Jackson, one of the best kickers in the ACC, would not miss twice from the same spot.
He did. He missed the kick again, and gave the Terrapins another chance to end the game. The Maryland offense, however, was forced to punt after another three and out.
With the ball back and 1:30 left on the clock, the Clemson offense had a chance to march down the field and tie or win the game. After three plays, they were already in field goal range in Maryland territory. On third down, however, Terrapin linebacker Demetrius Hartsfield capped off a 10-tackle day by breaking free and sacking Clemson quarterback Kyle Parker. Hartsfield forced Parker to drop the ball, and, after a review, Maryland had the ball and their first ACC victory.
Still, the Terrapins have problems on both sides of the ball. They had costly fumbles, untimely penalties, and missed assignments.
"I know what's wrong and I'm trying to fix it," Friedgen said. "But it was better today."
The running game also continued to struggle. The Terrapinsonly had 28 total yards on the ground last week vs. Rutgers. Turner was the Terrapins' leading rusher at the half with 7 carries for 31 yards. Da'Rel Scott, who lead the Terrapins in rushing last season and came into the game with 297 yards on the ground, had no carries in the first half and sustained an injury on his first carry of the second half. Meggett ended up with 10 attempts for 29 yards and Gary Douglas had 7 carries for 24 yards.
Defensively, the Terrapins had their best game of the season. Clemson running back C.J. Spiller was held in check (18 attempts for 72 yards) despite his kickoff return and first-year defensive coordinator Don Brown was finally able to use the blitz effectively to stop the powerful Clemson offense, especially in crucial moments in the fourth quarter with the game on the line. Brown saw his defense become closer as a unit and better at running his defense.
"We're really getting comfortable now in terms of guys disguising. We're running the pressures. Even though we only sacked [Clemson quarterback Kyle Parker] twice today, we chased him around all day long," Brown said. He also felt his defense finally put together a solid, full game, which is something he preached all week long.
"The proof is in the pudding. We played 60 minutes today."
(Photo: Washington Post)
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