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Maryland football 54-3 loss exposed deep gaps in its formerly strong offense
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- Maryland football 54-3 loss exposed deep gaps in its formerly strong offense
Maryland football ran just nine of its 69 plays in UCLA 's territory on Saturday. It came away with three points — the program's fewest in a game since 2022.
After scoring 126 points through the first three games, the second-most in program history , the Terps' offense cooled off significantly during their 54-3 defeat. They managed 181 total yards, with only 88 coming in the first half, as issues appeared all over the field.
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While Maryland 's backfield was severely depleted without DeJuan Williams for the third consecutive game and Harry Dalton III , the rush attack was nonexistent. The Terps averaged a season-low 1.3 yards per carry.
"We are a little bit light in the running back room, but the offensive line should be able to carry that weight and create holes for them," center Michael Hershey said. "That's what we're striving to do [against] Nebraska ."
Iverson Howard , who had 143 rushing yards and five touchdowns across the first three games, was the lead running back on Saturday. He received 40% of the carries, but only produced 34 rushing yards. Howard's longest run spanned 12 yards — nearly one-third of the team's 39 rushing yards.
Maryland baseball outfielder Liam Willson was the second-most utilized back, logging six carries for five yards. Even backup quarterback Cardell Williams saw snaps in the backfield, but he was blown up on an outside toss in the second quarter.
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However, the Terps' ground game was not the only area that went awry on Saturday.
Maryland's pass attack, which posted over 300 yards in its previous two games, was largely expected to shoulder the offensive production. Against a UCLA defense that allowed 425 passing yards to Purdue , the blueprint was there for success.
The Terps didn't take advantage.
Malik Washington turned in his worst collegiate performance to date. The sophomore quarterback was consistently under pressure, leading to erratic throws and questionable decisions. He finished with the nation's fewest expected points added per play on Saturday.
Washington never got in rhythm. The Terps looked to establish the run early, leaving Washington with only two pass attempts on the opening two drives. He connected with Chris Durr Jr. for a short gain, backing Maryland up on its first third down.
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Despite a 56% third-down conversion rate through the first three games, the Terps moved the chains just once on their 16 attempts Saturday. Their average third-down distance was over nine yards.
"When you find yourself behind the sticks and you end up in a lot of third-and-longs, when you don't have the balance that you need to have with the ability to run the ball a little more efficiently, it puts a lot of pressure on the passing game," head coach Michael Locksley said. "I think that's what showed up Saturday."
Washington, who completed just 47% of his passes, wasn't on the same page with his weapons.
Dorian Fleming ran an out route late in the first quarter, but Washington threw inside instead, the ball thudding against an open patch of turf. Midway through the third quarter, with a heavy blitz coming, Washington tried to get the ball out of his hands quickly to Kaleb Webb. The 6-foot-5 wide receiver kept running downfield, though, and Scooter Jackson returned the pick for a 65-yard touchdown.
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"The second pick-six to me goes back to communication. If you watch the tape, the cornerback ran the route for the receiver, which goes back to signaling," Locksley said. "When you look at the amount of option concepts, where they have the ability to break in or break out, the timing just wasn't where it needed to be."
Locksley said he believed that Washington felt a need to carry the offense last year. Those traits were evident Saturday.
After the pocket collapsed late in the first quarter, Washington scrambled around before heaving the ball downfield to a triple-covered Na'eem Abdul-Rahim Gladding. That was one of Washington's four interceptions — it led to 24 UCLA points.
The Terps, one of five FBS schools without a turnover entering Saturday, were sloppy against UCLA. They totaled five turnovers, with Hershey preventing another after recovering Washington's fumble.
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"We've taken care of the ball all year long on offense, and so what we've had to do is go back and look at what things we can do to remedy the turnovers that showed up," Locksley said.
Washington, along with the rest of Maryland's offense, will need to rebound Saturday to keep the season from spiraling out of control.
"I still have the utmost belief and confidence in [Malik], and I know he'll bounce back," Webb said.
