Maryland football had a chance to clinch one of the biggest wins in program history and send the seniors out of SECU Stadium with a bang. All the Terps needed to do was march 99 yards for the go-ahead touchdown against No. 3 Michigan.
Instead, quarterback Taulia Tagovailoa was called for intentional grounding in the end zone, resulting in the Wolverines’ second safety of the game.
Michigan (11-0) took a 31-24 lead, got the ball back and ran out the clock, as Maryland (6-5) fell to the Wolverines by the same score. The Terps’ 24 points are the most allowed by Michigan all season.
“That’s where we have to learn to execute critical situations, which go back to the things we practice,” Maryland head coach Michael Locksley said. “… Wherever the ball is to start a drive on offense, we’ve got to figure out how to execute and how to execute in critical situations.”
A blowout seemed imminent with Michigan scoring 23 consecutive points — including a safety and a strip-sack returned for a touchdown — to take a 23-3 lead, but the Terps got some momentum going into halftime.
First, Maryland executed a 14-play, 75-yard drive that culminated in backup quarterback Billy Edwards Jr. running a successful “Tush Push” play to trim the lead to 23-10. Edwards scored a hat trick of touchdowns by running the same play twice more in the second half.
“Billy, he’s a force,” Tagovailoa said. “He’s got a good base and … I think it was [Corey] Dyches and Colby [McDonald] and the O-line did a good job of getting a good push.”
Late in the first half, Michigan drove down the field looking to push its lead to three scores. The Wolverines converted on a fourth-and-4, but linebacker Jaishawn Barham’s interception in the end zone saved a touchdown and kept the game in order.
Maryland got the ball to start the second half and marched down the field with Edwards scoring for the second time to cut Michigan’s lead to 23-17.
After an interception by Tagovailoa, Michigan marched down the field to turn the turnover into points. Wide receiver Semaj Morgan raced around the right side and into the end zone. The Wolverines’ two-point conversion attempt was broken up, and Michigan settled for a 29-17 lead.
Tagovailoa made some big throws after that, including 24- and 33-yard completions to wide receivers Jeshaun Jones and Kaden Prather, respectively. Those explosive plays set up Edwards’ third rushing touchdown of the game, cutting Michigan’s lead to 29-24 right before the end of the third quarter.
Maryland’s defense was stellar, holding the Wolverines to just six second-half offensive points and 95 second-half yards and making Michigan look mortal. The Wolverines were 0-for-6 on third down in the second half. The Terps held Michigan quarterback J.J. McCarthy to 141 yards on 12 of 23 passing and running back Blake Corum to 94 rushing yards and two touchdowns.
“We all realized that the game is in our grasp and we’ve just got to lock in and do our job,” safety Beau Brade said. “This is probably the best game we played together as a defense.”
In total, Maryland held Michigan to 291 yards of offense, but the Terps’ offense couldn’t do the job late. Michigan’s defensive front wreaked havoc on Maryland’s offensive line, sacking Tagovailoa four times. The Terps’ final three drives of the game ended in a punt, interception and safety. The Wolverines scored 13 points off three turnovers, and the two safeties were difference-makers.
As such, Maryland is still left with searching for its first marquee win in years.
“There are no moral victories, but this is definitely one of those games that I feel as a program that we’ll be able to build off of,” Locksley said.
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