Down by eight points early in the fourth quarter, Maryland football needed to travel 80 yards to knot things against Rutgers. But the Terps gained just three.
The drive started with a positive gain on the ground for Malik Washington — he was stellar rushing the ball all day. But the quarterback’s following two plays were pass attempts that were virtually uncatchable.
When the team needed to throw the ball the most, it faltered greatly. Maryland’s inability to balance its attack Saturday caused it to fall
to Rutgers, 35-20, setting a new low in its already-demoralizing campaign.
Maryland started the game as well as it could have hoped. The team’s second play on offense was one of the best of Washington’s young career — a 73-yard dash to the end zone on a perfectly-designed read option. The scamper was the longest by any Big Ten quarterback this season.
Washington’s 164 yards on the ground Saturday was more than Maryland’s entire team has had in a game this season. It’s the first time the freshman eclipsed 100 rushing yards in a game in either college or high school.
Rutgers tried to match the Terps’ ground attack on its first drive — despite its offense leading the Big Ten in passing attempts, as well as having a tandem of impressive receivers in KJ Duff and DT Sheffield.
This approach worked well. The Scarlet Knights ran on its first five plays, setting up downfield shots that put them deep in the red zone.
But Rutgers couldn’t get the job finished — an Athan Kaliakmanis tip-drill interception at the 1-yard line ended up in the hands of Jamare Glasker.
Maryland didn’t do much with its surging momentum. Three consecutive Williams rushes put the Terps around midfield before Washington unleashed two laser beams for Dorian Fleming. The second was called back for a facemask penalty on Fleming that derailed the drive.
The Scarlet Knights couldn’t be held back for long. As soon as they got the ball back, they embarked on a steady seven-play, 53-yard drive that ended in a Sheffield touchdown. The wide receiver was in motion pre-snap, and no Maryland defender mirrored him as he flew out to the left flat for an easy pitch-and-catch score.
From there, it was a tale of two contrasting offenses to close the half. Rutgers started playing to its true strength, and Kaliakmanis began dialing up deep shots — he threw a 45-yard bomb on a roll-out to an uncovered Ian Strong for a touchdown, then found Strong again for a 6-yard score.
But Maryland, for perhaps the first time this season, honed in on its rushing attack, and it proved successful. Another rush by Washington for 54 yards, as well as a 53-yard Nolan Ray run, set the Terps up for eventual scores.
The Scarlet Knights entered the half with a slight 21-17 advantage.
Rutgers added to that margin after the break without hesitation. Kaliakmanis continued dropping balls in the bucket, hitting Duff in stride for 49 yards before Strong nabbed his third touchdown of the day on a contested end zone ball.
And for as good as Maryland’s rushing attack was, Rutgers met them stride for stride in that respect. Antwan Raymond rushed for a whopping 242 yards, the most by a Scarlet Knight ever in a Big Ten game.
Maryland’s offense reached a turning point late in the third quarter — but not a good one. Its final five drives culminated in just three points, and included an interception and two turnovers on downs.
In the fourth quarter, Rutgers reverted back to its gameplan of heavy running and decisive passing. The Scarlet Knights were tasked with converting third-and-long passing situations; Kaliakmanis calmly delivered twice, putting the ball exactly where it needed to go. Raymond capped off the drive with a score, deservedly after his sensational afternoon.
With the loss, Maryland drops below .500 for the first time this season. Things aren’t exactly looking great on the horizon, either.
Three things to know
1. All-out rush. Both starting running backs, along with Washington, gashed the Scarlet Knights’ defense for 305 yards on the day. Williams finished with 14 carries for 64 yards, while Ray had five for 77. Each finished with personal season-highs on the ground.
Maryland tallied 238 rushing yards in just the first half, already a season-high — its previous game-high was 152 yards.
2. No-show passing game. Washington had his lowest yardage total through the air as a Terp, going 15-of-28 for 98 yards, one touchdown and a pick. He looked decisive early but missed receivers in key spots as the game drew on — including the aforementioned Williams miss and a ball that was behind Octavian Smith Jr. on a third-and-10 deep in Rutgers territory that forced Maryland to settle for three.
3. Bowl eligibility running out. Maryland badly needed this one — there’s no sugarcoating that. The loss means that it will have to win two of its last three games, and none are layups by any stretch. The Terps still have to travel to Illinois and Michigan State, and they play No. 21 Michigan at home.
