#19 Cavs Visit College Park
Written by DCist contributor Brett Gellman
The Maryland Terrapins (4-2, 1-1) take on the 19th ranked Virginia Cavaliers (6-1, 3-0) in a nationally televised homecoming contest tomorrow night at College Park in what is shaping up to be the best ACC matchup of the entire day, and yes, that includes Miami-FSU.
The Terps, who are coming off a much-needed bye week, squeaked out a 28-26 victory against Georgia Tech two weeks ago after Travis Bell’s potential game-winning field goal sailed wide right by just a foot.
The Cavs are in the midst of their first six-game winning streak since 2002 and have already secured themselves a bowl bid. Then again, four of UVA’s six wins were decided by five points or less, including last week’s 17-16 victory against Big East powerhouse Connecticut. But a win’s a win, and the Cavaliers currently stand atop the Coastal Division alongside Virginia Tech with a 3-0 conference record.
The last time Virginia won seven consecutive games was back in 1990 until they were upset by a Georgia Tech team whose offensive coordinator at the time was, yep, Ralph Friedgen.
Maryland will be entering Byrd Stadium tomorrow night after a bye week which couldn’t have come for a better time for the injury-laden squad. Linebacker (and just-announced Butkus semifinalist) Erin Henderson was held out of the Georgia Tech game after suffering a knee injury against Rutgers but is most likely to start tomorrow night. QB Jordan Steffy, who suffered a concussion against Rutgers, has still not been medically cleared which will give redshirt sophomore Chris Turner his second career start. Turner has been impressive thus far after his starting debut last week when he threw 255 yards and 1 TD against the Yellow Jackets.
The most glaring concern for the Terrapins is their incredibly thin offensive line depth. Preseason All-ACC senior offensive guard Andrew Crummey broke his fibula during the Georgia Tech game and is expected to be out of action for a considerable amount of time. While the prognosis has been downgraded from a season-ending injury to one which will keep him out until at least late November, the loss of the experienced Crummey is a significant blow to an already deprived O-line.
Virginia is experiencing its fair share of injuries as well. Cedric Peerman, who is the second leading rusher in the conference, will be out of action for a second straight week due to a foot injury. Backups Keith Payne and Andrew Pearman will have to get it done on the ground but after Maryland’s Dave Philistin recorded an absurd 21 tackles last week, plus the impending return of Henderson, UVA’s best bet will be in the passing game with QB Jameel Sewell. The Terps secondary is suspect but with speedy cornerback Richard Taylor expected to play for the first time this season after suffering an ACL tear in spring ball, things could change for the better in regards to the Maryland pass defense.
Prediction: How is UVA ranked 19th in the country after winning thrillers against the likes of UConn, Duke, and Middle Tennessee State while losing to Wyoming? The Terps are arguably the Cavs toughest opponent thus far this season and will simply overpower the 'Hoos. Oh, and Virginia has failed to win a game at College Park since 1999. Maryland 24-10.
Saturday night’s game takes place at Chevy Chase Bank Field at Byrd Stadium in College Park. Kickoff is scheduled for 8 p.m. and will be nationally televised on ESPN2. Tickets are sold out.