2008 Maryland Football
July 18, 2008
Ralph Friedgen has gotten the most out of his Terrapins, going 56-31 in his seven-year tenure as head coach. Maryland has plenty of experience to work with at quarterback, which is always key to a winning program. Their receiving corps is one of the best in the conference, and their defense offers one of the best linebacker corps in the ACC. Maryland is more than capable of finishing with a winning record and a solid bowl game berth if all the pieces fall in place. Take a look at Info Plays 2008 Maryland Terrapins football predictions in the following article.
Offense:
Friedgen handed over his offensive coordinator job to James Franklin to try and spark the Terrapins’ offense in ‘08. Franklin was previously the wide receivers coach at Maryland before spending one season with the Green Bay Packers and two as the offensive coordinator at Kansas State . He believes in his West Coast-style offense that looks similar to that of the NFL’s Indianapolis Colts. Fans will see more short passes and yards after catch under this system. Jordan Steffy opened the ‘07 season at quarterback and performed well through five games. A severe concussion against Rutgers had Chris Turner taking Steffy’s place, as Turner performed far better than expected. Turner is a drop-back thrower who completed 63.5 percent of his passes for 1,958 yards and seven touchdowns. He showed great poise in the pocket and throws a better deep ball than Steffy. Steffy has an edge in experience, and emerged from spring practice with a better grasp of the new offense.
Maryland will have to find a tailback to replace last year’s combo of Lance Ball and Keon Lattimore, who combined for 4,231 yards the past three seasons. Sophomore Da’Rel Scott is the lone tailback with game experience. This speedster seems suited for the West Coast offense because of his ability to catch the ball. Junior All-American candidate Darrius Heyward-Bey leads a receiving corps that is the deepest and most talented Friedgen has coached. Heyward-Bey has 96 catches for 1,480 yards and eight touchdowns in his young career. The offensive line should be a strength with four returning starters and great experience with their backups. Center Edwin Williams will be the anchor in the middle, but tackles Scott Burley and Dan Randolph have NFL size and potential to move on to the next level.
Defense:
Defensive coordinator Chris Cosh plans to utilize the 3-3-5 “stack” alignment on defense to take advantage of the team’s quality linebackers. Senior Trey Covington is a three-year starter and fits perfectly as the hybrid end-linebacker. Senior Jeremy Navarre will shift from end to tackle as the Terps will use a three-man line most of the time.
The biggest hole on the defense is at nose tackle with the loss of Dre Moore. Walk-on Olugbemi Otulaja emerged from the spring as the starter, although redshirt freshman Dion Armstrong is expected to eventually make an impact there. Cornerback Kevin Barnes led the team in interceptions with four picks last season, and will be asked to anchor an inexperienced secondary. The starting unit could include a pair of converted receivers in cornerback Nolan Carroll and safety Terrell Skinner.
Maryland Terrapins Predictions at Info Plays: 4th in the ACC Atlantic Division
Clemson appears to have the ACC Atlantic Division locked up, but the No. 2 spot is up for grabs. Maryland has the talent to surpass Florida State and Wake Forest after finishing around .500 in three of the past four seasons. Fans are getting restless and it will be interesting to see if the new West Coast-style attack can add life to an offense that ranked at the bottom of the league. The caliber of quarterback play could determine how high the Terrapins finish above .500, if even at all.
ACC Wins Expected in ‘08: WAKE FOREST, NC STATE, NORTH CAROLINA
Potential Scares/Losses: at Clemson , at Virginia, at Virginia Tech , FLORIDA STATE, at Boston College
