The Terps’ secondary has struggled in Big Ten losses. They want to change the narrative.
By Edward Lee, Baltimore Sun,
10 hours ago
Michigan State Spartans wide receiver Nick Marsh looks a deep pass into his hands for a touchdown to tie the game as Maryland Terrapins defensive back Perry Fisher pursues during the first Big Ten game of the season in College Park. Michigan State upset the Terrapins, 27-24. Karl Merton Ferron/Baltimore Sun/TNS
Members of Maryland football’s defense might have forgiven, but they haven’t forgotten.
On Oct. 28 last year, Northwestern stunned the Terps, 33-27. Wildcats quarterback Brendan Sullivan enjoyed a career day in passing yards (265) and threw two touchdown passes to hand Maryland its third of four straight losses and added stress to a potential bid for a bowl game appearance.
That game continues to resonate with players such as junior linebacker Kellan Wyatt. The Terps (3-2, 0-2 Big Ten) don’t want a repeat of 2023 when they welcome the Wildcats (2-3, 0-2) to SECU Stadium in College Park on Friday at 8 p.m.
“We’re just going to prepare a little better — a lot better actually,” the Glen Burnie native and Archbishop Spalding graduate said. “This one, it’s kind of stuck with us a little bit, and the team’s looking forward to playing them. We’ve done some things throughout the week so far and last week during the bye. We’re looking forward to playing them.”
Friday night’s game is a prime-time opportunity for the defense to cast away some ghosts from nearly two weeks ago. In a 42-28 loss at No. 18 Indiana on Sept. 28, Maryland was gashed by the Hoosiers for 14 points each of the last three quarters and 510 yards. Redshirt senior quarterback Kurtis Rourke threw for 359 yards and three touchdowns.
A defense that ranks in the bottom five of the Big Ten in both points and yards per game wasn’t supposed to be exposed like this. The Terps returned seven starters from a group that had surrendered their second-fewest points per game (18.2) since 2010.
But the unit has struggled this fall, especially in losses to Michigan State and Indiana. Maryland has allowed an average of 34.5 points and 497 yards and a 55.6% conversion rate on third downs in those two games.
Still, Wyatt dismissed the notion that the defense might need significant alterations.
“Everything’s been on us. It’s nothing schematic-wise we need to change,” he said. “All we can do is continue to play hard and play our style of football.”
In the setbacks to the Spartans and Hoosiers, the defense gave up what coach Mike Locksley called 14 explosive plays (versus seven for the Terps) and scores in the final minute of the second quarter to put them in a deficit at halftime. Locksley said those concessions sapped away some much-needed momentum.
“So those areas are areas of improvement, but we still have things we can control,” he said. “The big plays on defense come from missed tackles or missed assignments, and that to me is about communicating. We have to continue to teach the technique and development.”
Eye-opening showings by Rourke and Michigan State sophomore Aidan Chiles (363 yards and three touchdowns) have shone the spotlight on a secondary that returned only one starter, senior safety Dante Trader Jr. Junior cornerback Jalen Huskey is tied with redshirt senior safety Glendon Miller for the team lead in interceptions (three), but owns two of the unit’s five pass interference penalties, and four freshman cornerbacks have had to play because of injuries and ineffectiveness.
Locksley said the young cornerbacks will continue to get playing time.
“If you’ve noticed in our program, kids pop out of nowhere because of how we practice,” he said. “When you put four guys in the NFL like we’ve done from our secondary the last few years, this is a natural growth. I think you’ve seen, the way we’ve recruited that room, [it’s] really talented, and what we’ve got to do is continue to gain the experience of playing, playing the ball, playing with confidence as a young player when you get thrown out to the deep end of the pool like we’ve had to do.
“So the philosophy is, we’re going to keep developing guys, and as they get better in practice as we see it, they’ll get opportunities in games to go try to compete to see if they can create value for us on defense.”
While the offense ranks in the top six in the Big Ten in points and yards per game, the onus is on the defense to raise its level of play. Wyatt said the unit hasn’t shied from expectations.
“I feel like we’re still a defensive-led team,” he said. “It’s hard not to be when you have so many returning players from the defensive side of the ball. Our defense, we know we’d like to continue to push our offense in practice. And it’s the same for them. They push us in practice. We push each other, and it ultimately shows up on Fridays and Saturday nights.”
Praised by Locksley as a diplomat who can cross both sides of the aisle, redshirt junior quarterback Billy Edwards Jr. said the offense and defense are in marching step over the team’s path thus far.
“We all have a very similar mindset, very similar reaction and feelings to how the season has gone so far,” he said. “On the flipside of that, I think we all have the right mentality and right mindset knowing that we have so much more we can give and can show. We all have that kind of blue-collar mentality where we’ve got to pick up the lunch pail and go back to work and keep chipping away.
The defense can begin to rewrite its reputation Friday night against a Northwestern offense that is flailing. The Wildcats are tied for 16th in the 18-team Big Ten in points per game (18.6) and rank 16th in yards per game (302.8) and red-zone touchdowns (50%) and 18th in third-down conversions (29.7%). They have also gone from graduate student Mike Wright to redshirt sophomore Jack Lausch at quarterback.
Wyatt said Maryland is eager to change the narrative.
“We’re just going to keep playing our style of play,” he said. “We’re going to stop the run. That’s what we’re good for, and we’re going to do everything in our power to get this win. Typically, what you put out there in a week of practice is what you put out in a game. So we’re having a great week of practice.”
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