Heavy favorites to open up their season against the Hampton Pirates last night at SECU Stadium, the Maryland Terrapins football team left no doubt in people's minds as they stormed the Pirates off the field in a 62-0 shutout victory.
Maryland's offense was humming last night, gaining a total of 646 yards on the night, passing for 281 yards through the air and running for 365 yards. The Terps finished the contest rushing for six total touchdowns, which was their most in a game since 2019, and their 365 yards gained on the ground was the most since 2018.
On top of the offensive dominance, the Terps extended one of the FBS's longest active streaks, with their 19th-straight victory against a non-conference opponent.
Let's dive into what I gathered from this performance.
In my predictions for yesterday's contest and matchups to watch, I emphasized three running backs on the Terps roster who would be key factors: DeJuan Williams, Harry Dalton III, and Iverson Howard.
The trio dominated last night, all shining at different points in the matchup, whether that meant extending drives, breaking free for chunk plays, or finding the end zone.
It was important for Clint Trickett's offense to set the tone for what kind of offense they want to have in 2026 after having one of the worst statistical rushing attacks a season ago.
Williams kicked things off early on, breaking free for a 94-yard sprint down the right sideline for a touchdown on Maryland's second drive of the game, which began from their own six-yard line.
Howard and Dalton III brought their own rushing styles to the table, with Howard bringing a short-yardage physical style for a pair of touchdowns and Dalton III using his physicality and shifty ability to bring an explosive edge, averaging 5.6 yards on seven carries.
I'm not taking away from what the Terps' defense accomplished last night; any dominant win of that magnitude in Division 1 football should be celebrated and acknowledged. But it was clear who was the better team last night, and the Terps simply overpowered, outskilled, and were just a much more physical team than Hampton.
The Terps' defensive line caused Pirates QB Jalen Woods much trouble last night, in his face for most of the night, whether it was throws from the pocket or from the outside, which led to reckless decision-making and sped up the clock inside the QB's head.
Maryland's defense forced two fumbles, had three picks, and five total sacks on the night. DD Holmes and Eyan Thomas both finished with two sacks. Safety Messiah Delhomme led the team with two picks.
Let's see this group continue to stack performances and build momentum in the final two non-conference games against UConn and Virginia Tech before the Big Ten part of their schedule.
As my colleague Mike Cavallo noted in his game recap , Washington had a slow start, which even head coach Mike Locksley acknowledged after the game. By no means did Washington play a poor or bad game, but it's a contest where you hope to see the second-year quarterback be dominant and crisp against an opponent that you're expected to dominate.
If there's one thing you have to love about the young quarterback, it's his response to the slow start. Reading the Hampton defense better in the second quarter, taking his easier reads instead of forcing passes into tight spaces or speeding himself up.
You saw Washington shine when he didn't overcomplicate the plays and took what was given to him. Washington connected with newly added receivers Na'eem Abdul-Rahim Gladding and Chris Durr Jr. six times each, and a couple of times when he was outside the pocket, using his legs to extend plays, displaying his two -way ability.
Let's not overreact to Washington's performance and let's see how he cleans up some of those errors, including a couple of inaccurate passes as well.
This article was originally published on www.si.com/college/maryland as Takeaways From Maryland's Dominant Blowout Against Hampton .
