Fast Start in the ACC is CRUCIAL

So here we are, the start of the ACC season for the Terps and what should we expect? Well for one, a lot of balance. The preseason favorite, Clemson was ranked #9 in the preseason polls and was just as quickly knocked out of the rankings by 'Bama. Other perennial teams like Virignia Tech, Florida State and Miami aren't going to scare anyone this season. Wake Forest looks like the strongest of the bunch at this point.

So what does this all mean? Well a FAST start in the ACC is CRUCIAL. Convienantly enough the Terps ACC season starts with the orange and purple of Clemson in Death Valley, the preseason favorite. So what better way to prevent the 1-4 ACC start of last season rearing its ugly head once again this season than to defeat Clemson in Death Valley.

The key to the game will be to slow down the combo of Spiller and Davis, while getting Green and Scott rolling for the Terps.

In my opinion, The Terps ACC schedule is pretty friendly outside of the Thursday night clash in Blacksburg against the Hokies of VT. The ACC is definitely up for the grabs and if the offense that appears against CAL and Eastern Michigan appears more than the offense that was present for Delaware and Middle Tennessee State, then the Terps should do just fine. However, if it doesn't it could be a long season.

Once again, a fast start is crucial especially against preseason favorite Clemson.

-Steak

Curry on the Cal Game

If you have been listening in on the Steak Crab and Curry Show then you know all three of us talk about the fact that the Terps always play to the level of their competition. Saturday's game against California was no exception as the Terrapins beat the Golden Bears 35-27. Maybe it was the noon game time (which is 9 am in California) or maybe it was just a good team finally finding their identity; either way the Terps looked good taking care of the 23rd ranked team in the nation. Maryland's two running backs Da'Rel Scott and Davin Meggit chewed up the Cal defense for 169 yards and 3 td's. Chris Turner who threw 3 picks against Middle Tennessee State last weekend did not commit a turnover on Saturday while going 15/19 passing with 156 yds and a td. But it was the Maryland defense that really surprised people including myself. They held RB Jahvid Best to just 25 yards rushing after he ran for 311 yds in Cal's first two games. They also sacked QB Kevin Riley 5 times and forced him to throw an interception.

I cant be happier for the players and coaches of this team especially after the dissapointing loss to Middle Tennesse last weekend. This just goes to show that we have a very tough team that is willing to go toe to toe with anyone in the country. With a balanced offense that doesnt turn the ball over and a defense forcing turnovers and sacks I really feel that the Terps have a good chance of being ACC Champs. One thing that has been worrying me is our kicking game. Egekeze has not made a field goal all year and when the Terps get to conference play, every point counts and could be the difference between win and a loss. I don't know who Coach Friedgen can turn to for field goals; maybe a soccer player on the bench or someone else but this needs to be taken care of asap.

Im looking forward to the game on Saturday against Eastern Carolina because it gives Maryland a chance to build off of this past weekends win. For once in my collegiate career I want to see our football team absolutely decimate an opponent; blow them out of the water by 50 points. Saturday will give us an opportunity to do just that and hopefully our team is up for the challenge.

As always...GO TERPS

Kevin Barnes Unleashed!

Kevin Barnes made a name for himself last weekend against Cal...just ask Jahvid Best about it.




And the conclusion to this play...




Well that was pretty gross.

Terps Football Faces Three Tough Opponents to Start the Season

The Maryland Terrapin football schedule has been recently updated with game times for the first three games of the year. Usually in college football, big programs like to schedule “tune up” games in order to set the tone for the rest of the year. Sometimes this can backfire as we have seen from last year’s amazing upset by Appalachian State over perennial Big Ten powerhouse Michigan.

The first three games of the year as always for the Terps are against non-conference opponents who include the Delaware Blue Hens, the Middle Tennessee State Blue Raiders, and the Golden Bears of California. Now I don’t know about the rest of you but I am pretty happy about this opening three game slate that we have. Fortunately for Maryland we will not be playing against the 6’6’’ behemoth Joe Flacco from Delaware because he entered into the 2008 NFL draft and was taken by the Baltimore Ravens (I still question the pick because I think Troy Smith is their guy). We will also avoid having to contain their monster running back Omar Cuff (398 carries for 1945 yds last season) who has graduated and is currently trying to make an NFL roster.

This game will be pretty exciting because of the close proximity of the two schools and the fact that we have not faced off since 1948. In the all time series, Delaware owns a 5-3-1 record against the Terps, but Maryland has won the last three times. Hopefully the game and the atmosphere will allow both schools to continue to compete against each other. Delaware is a good team that went 11-4 last season and lost in the FCS Championship Game to Appalachian State.

In the second game of the year the Terrapins will face off against the Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders whose last game against Maryland was in 2006. The Terps defeated the Blue Raiders 24-10 in that game by scoring 17 first half point and adding an insurance TD in the second half. Two key drops by Blue Raider receivers that would have been touchdowns helped propel Maryland to a victory even though Middle Tennessee outgained the Terps in total yards. This is a team that always plays Maryland hard and would love to come away with an upset in College Park.

The last of the opening three games will be at home played against the Golden Bears of California in the first meeting ever between both teams. Cal had a 7-6 record last year despite starting the season ranked in the top #25 and even being ranked as high as 2 behind the eventual National Champions LSU. The Bears have lost key players to their team who include All-American and Heisman hopeful wide receiver DeSean Jackson who has been drafted by the Philadelphia Eagles. They have also lost wide receiver LaVelle Hawkins who was a great number 2 receiver to Jackson and running back Justin Forsett who led the Pac-10 in rushing td’s last year. They do however still retain their gun-slinging QB Nate Longshore who threw for over 2500 yds and 16 Td’s last season. It remains to be seen how well he can produce after losing three offensive studs in Jackson, Hawkins, and Forsett.

This will be an exciting game for both Cal and Maryland who coming off of last year’s seasons, are two teams with a lot to prove. Both teams had talent and showed flashes of greatness but did not capitalize on it for a number of reasons i.e. injuries and inexperience. From last year, Maryland looks to be the stronger team with more of its core players still here. Cal has lost its offensive spark and will need to find a player to step their game up in the way DeSean Jackson did last year.

These first three games look to be exciting tests for the Maryland Terrapins and should be a good indicator of where this team may be in November. My hope is that the Delaware and Middle Tennessee State games will provide us with enough of a lead to put in backups and hopefully give them some valuable game time experience. The better prepared everyone on this team is, the better our outlook for the 2008 season will be.