After stunning Cal 35-27, Ralph Friedgen stressed the need for consistency from his team both this Saturday against Eastern Michigan and in the practices leading up to it. Friedgen said his team practices much like it played against the Golden Bears – very well until the end. In order to get his team pumped up for the last 20 minutes of practice, Friedgen told his players he was going to do “something special.”

“I may break out the music. They like music,” he said.

The Terps will be without a number of regular contributors against the Eagles, including safety Terrell Skinner and possibly running back Da’Rel Scott, who is listed as questionable with a shoulder injury. The injuries, along with the fatigue showed by the defense in the closing minutes of Saturday’s victory, has Friedgen considering using players he had originally planned to redshirt.

The players echoed their coach’s emphasis on consistency, and promised that their past problems with it are just that – in the past. They also weren’t shy about expressing their admiration, and in some cases disgust, with cornerback Kevin Barnes and his hit on Cal running back Jahvid Best, who subsequently lost his Gatorade for all to see on national TV.

“Right after the game I watched it, and twice a day since,” wide receiver Danny Oquendo said. “It gets a little more sickening every time.”

jnewmandbk@gmail.com

Another day, another win against a ranked team. OK, I’m just trying not to blow it out of proportion.

Too late?

Well there was plenty of room for improvement.

THE GOOD:

I hate to repeat myself, but Darrius Heyward-Bey is the good. The really really good. So why did he only get three touches Saturday? It’s simple: get this guy the ball and things will happen. Worth noting: It was definitely nice to see the tight ends enter the game plan finally. Lansford Watson looked solid.

THE BAD:

The defense simply cannot handle any sort of hurry-up. The fourth-quarter display, where the Terps gave up three touchdowns in less than seven minutes, was a sign that other teams will pick up on. The defensive line must be fresh and able to use its full rotations and the team must be able to mask its coverage for the Terps to be successful defensively, and those two things don’t happen against a hurry-up offense.

THE UGLY:

All wide receivers not named Darrius Heyward-Bey and Danny Oquendo. I’m looking at you two, Isaiah Williams. Things need to open up offensively for the Terps to improve their consistency as they prepare for ACC season, and that will only happen if teams actually feel the need to guard more than one receiver. Oquendo stepped up, but it’s time for the others to. Also, I’m looking at you Obi Egekeze. But you’ve got enough problems of your own.

ajosephdbk@gmail.com

Anyone who watched the Terps’ 35-27 victory over No. 23 California yesterday knows the real score: the Terps dominated through three quarters and rendered the final 15 minutes nothing more than a slow victory march as the jetlagged Golden Bears frantically tried to make up ground. But the final score shows a close, one-possession game in which Cal outgained the Terps by 164 total yards, and by an absurd 267 yards through the air. But the Terps were clutch, converting six of 12 3rd downs, while holding Cal to two for 11 on 3rd down. But the Terps also dominated on another down, at least until the 4th quarter.

After three quarters, the Golden Bears, one of the most prolific offenses in the country through two weeks, were averaging only 2.65 yards on 1st down against a stout Terp defense that allowed only 38 rushing yards. In 23 chances, the Terps held Cal to less than one yard on 1st down 14 times. An inflated 4th quarter in which Cal quarterback Kevin Riley threw for 245 of his 423 passing yards raised Cal’s average on 1st down to 4.05 yards, but it was too little too late.

Conversely, the Terps averaged a gain of 4.34 yards on 1st down for the game. Gaining four or five yards on 1st down takes a lot of pressure off the offense, because it can run or throw on 2nd down and still not end up in 3rd and long. Whereas the Golden Bears found themselves often having to throw against an inspired Terp pass rush on 2nd down, the Terps’ offense had options.

By forcing the Golden Bears into 2nd and long, the Terps were able to pin their ears back and come after Riley, resulting in five sacks and many more pressures. On the other hand, with the Terps working into 2nd and short, they kept a Cal defense which had to respect the run and pass guessing.

And finally, the Terps’ success on first down led directly to their aforementioned success and Cal’s woes on third down. If they defend the run and vary the playcalling like they did agaisnt Cal, the Terps can expect more of the same this Saturday against Eastern Michigan.

jnewmandbk@gmail.com

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KFYB9ZEWs94

This video of Cal running back Jahvid Best vomiting after being knocked out of the first half by Terp cornerback Kevin Barnes with 3:26 left in the second quarter has surfaced on the internet.

Some observations compiled during the Terps’ 35-27 win against Cal.

-After two weeks of getting no pressure on the quarterback, linebacker Moise Fokou recorded the Terps’ first sack of the season on Cal’s first drive, setting the tone for a tremendous performance by the Terps’ defense. The Terps got more creative with their blitzes this week and finished the game with five sacks. Considering the Golden Bears scored 66 points last week, and all but six of their points came in the fourth quarter Saturday, holding them to 27 is a pretty big accomplishment.

-The Terps scored as many points in the first 6:19 of the game as they did in each of their first two games of the season. Go figure.

-Da’Rel Scott’s 24-yard touchdown run in the first quarter is the first known instance of a college football player scoring a touchdown in an endzone painted with a state flag. He doesn’t throw a very crisp pass on trick plays, though.

-It’s amazing what can happen when the Terps can sustain drives and use up some clock on offense.

-If Jahvid Best is comparable to Reggie Bush, then Terps’ cornerback Kevin Barnes must be like Sheldon Brown. Barnes’ ferocious hit on an exposed Best late in the second quarter was reminiscent of the hit the Philadelphia Eagles’ cornerback put on Bush in a 2006 NFC Divisional Playoff Game.

-Watching Scott walk off the field after landing awkwardly early in the third quarter was not a promising sight. It was later announced in the press box that Scott injured his left shoulder, and it was being x-rayed.

-Not going to lie, I kind of like that ominous 3rd down music that plays when the Terps are on defense.

-Wide receiver Danny Oquendo made a case for MVP of the game when he recovered two onside kicks and smartly batted a third one out of bounds.

-As a certain Diamondback columnist pontificated earlier this week, this game proved to be exactly what the Terps needed to erase the memory of Middle Tennessee and begin to turn the season around.

schimmeldbk@gmail.com

Each week we’ll be providing links to news stories and blogs you might not have read about the Terps, their next opponent, and other teams in the ACC.

Terps Links:

• Chris Martin of the Middle Tennessee State Sidelines says the Blue Raiders have “arrived” following their 24-14 victory over the Terps…
• Matt Bracken of the Baltimore Sun says 2008 Terp recruit Eteyen Edet might not be welcome in College Park after a disagreement with his prep school coach…
• Nick Canepa of the San Diego Unio-Tribune says that just because former Terp and current San Diego Charger Shawne Merriman’s season is done, doesn’t mean the Chargers are…

Cal Links:

• Attention tree huggers – Cal players “cheering” after a two-year standoff between the university and tree-sitters over the contruction of the team’s new training facility ended on Tuesday…
• Avinash Kunnath of the Bleacher Report thinks Cal coach Jeff Tedford is “classless” after going for it on 4th and goal with his team up 52-7 against Washington State last Saturday…
• A few days after Ralph Friedgen said the Golden Bears use running back Jahvid Best like Reggie Bush, the Washington Post’s Eric Prisbell is making the same comparison…

ACC Links:

• And Washington D.C.’s new bowl game will be named…after a bank?
• ESPN bloggers Heather Dinich (ACC) and Brian Bennett (Big East) duke it out for worst-conference supremacy…
• Nate Greer of NoleDigest.com says good things are around the corner for Bobby Bowden and his young Florida State team…
• Clemson tight end Durrell Barry has overcome difficult family situations en route to starting for the Tigers…
• A struggling offense has Virginia Tech coach Frank Beamer taking a more hands-on approach…

Kicker Obi Egekeze may be off to a rough start – zero field goals in four attempts – but don’t blame long snapper Andrew Schmitt. The fifth-year senior has continued a tradition of steady long snapping that began back in 1999 – the last time the Terps had a punt blocked.We sat down with Schmitt for this week’s edition of Meet the Team.

Terrapin Trail: You haven’t had a punt blocked in your career, and the Terps haven’t had a punt blocked since 1999, the longest streak in the nation. How much pride do you take in that?

Andrew Schmitt: I take a lot of pride in that. It’s something we want to keep going for as long as possible. The guy who snapped before me, he’s part of the streak and he’s also a good friend of mine, Jon Condo, it’s something that every time we see each other it’s kind of a sense of pride that we have.

TT: Do you ever feel that you play a thankless position – one that receives little credit when things are going well, but all the blame when things go bad?

AS: Thankless isn’t really the word, because I got a lot of respect around the locker room, from my teammates, from my coaches, and they consider me a valuable part of the team, so I wouldn’t really call it thankless. The respect of my teammates and coaches is all I really worry about. I like that nobody knows my name.

TT: If you weren’t a long snapper, which position would you be playing?

AS: I played quarterback in high school. I wasn’t good enough to play quarterback in Division I. I probably could have played quarterback at a smaller school, but I wanted to play Division I football and long snapping was my chance to do that.

TT: So is it a big change going from the visibility of playing quarterback to playing long snapper?

AS: Yea, you’re the star of the team in high school and everybody knows who you are, and then in college football knowbody knows. But it’s fine with me, I don’t regret it one bit. I’m glad I do what I do, and I’m glad to help the team any way I can.

TT: You got to play with your brother Kyle for one season in 2004. What was that like?

AS: It was awesome. He showed me the ropes of College Park and the University of Maryland, and it’s also a lot of fun because I got to play against him because I was playing scout defense everyday. It was great because it was his senior year, and I was just glad to be here with him.

TT: You are majoring in geographical information systems…what exactly does that mean??

AS: It’s computer cartography. Really any kind of GPS system is through GIS (Geographic Information Systems). I can do mapping for any government agency or for engineering purposes. It’s a lot of computerized mapping, and it’s really something I enjoy. It’s really technical, but it’s fun.

TT: Ah, of course. I knew that…

AS: Mmm hmm.

jnewmandbk@gmail.com

Coming off a dispiriting 24-14 loss to Middle Tennessee State last Saturday, Ralph Friedgen talked today about the problems his football team had against the Blue Raiders and how they are preparing for No. 23 California, which is averaging 52 points and 297 rushing yards per game. The eighth-year head coach said that the Golden Bears are one of the better teams to ever visit Byrd Stadium during his tenure with the Terps. “We’re going to be tested,” Friedgen said. “This is one of the better team’s we’ve played since I’ve been here. This is a very good football team.”

But first, the Terps will need to correct everything that went wrong against Middle Tennessee. Friedgen said that his team missed a lot of opportunities to make plays against the Blue Raiders. Their focus and execution was sloppy, and the Terps suffered from a myriad of “fixable” problems – dropped passes, missed blocks, missed tackles, etc. “It’s like you’re seeing a train wreck and you can’t do anything about it,” Friedgen said of his team’s performance.

But Friedgen said he was happy with they way his team responded yesterday in film sessions, and is looking forward to seeing how they practice throughout the week. The emphasis was constantly placed on consistency in both focus and execution.

The Terps echoed Friedgen’s sentiments, stressing that they are very close to being a good team and that all it takes is more focus and consistency. “After losing a game like that you really look forward to a game like this to redeem yourself,” tight end Dan Gronkowski said. He, like Friedgen, believes the offensive problems are very “fixable.” Senior center Edwin Williams said this team is probably the “tightest” he’s been a part of during his Terp career, and that there was a sense of togetherness in the locker room following the Middle Tennessee loss.

Overall, both Freidgen and his players sounded low-key and determined to make up for last Saturday’s embarrassment with a big win over a ranked opponent in front of their home crowd. They have forgotten about the Blue Raiders and are focused on beating the explosive Golden Bears, which they all acknowledged will not be easy.  “We can’t do anything about what happened last week,” Friedgen said “But we sure as hell can do something about what could happen in the future.”