2022 First Glance Preview: Maryland Terrapins
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Written by: Zach Greene (@zachegreene)
Week 7: Maryland Terrapins
Date & Time: October 15h, Time: TBD
Venue: Memorial Stadium, Bloomington, IN
TV: TBD
Maryland at a Glance
Head Coach: Mike Locksley
Record at Maryland:
Overall Record: 7-3 All Time. Lost last season at Maryland.
Last Season: 7-6 (3-6) Pinstripe Bowl win over Virginia Tech
Key Returners for the Terps
Passing: Taulia Tagovailoa. Redshirt Junior and Alabama transfer Taulia won Honorable Mention All-Big Ten last season. He set a record for single season passing yards (3,860) and threw for 26 touchdowns. He displays a tremendous dual-threat ability and arm to sling the ball down the field. Expect Taulia to be the key piece for this terps team and compete for Big Ten Player of the Year.
Rushing: Colby McDonald. The sophomore out of the DMV areas McDonald had a productive first year in the program and is expected to take a feature role on offense. Last season, he appeared in eight games rushing for over 300 yards and 5 yards a carry.
Receiving: Rakim Jarret. Junior also out of St. John’s College in the DMV area, Jarret has been one of the most productive players in the Maryland program. He started in all 13 games last season, tallying 62 receptions for over 800 yards and adding five touchdowns. Earned Honorable All Big-Ten two years in a row.
Tackles: Ruben Hyppolite II. Junior linebacker Hyppolite is a leader on the Terps Defense and played in all 13 games last season. Finished third on the team with 62 tackles and had his best game in the New Era Pinstripe Bowl making 12 tackles.
Preseason Predictions
Athlon: 5th in the Big Ten East, 6-6 (3-6) Birmingham Bowl Projection
Phil Steele: 5th in the Big Ten East
Lindy’s: 5th in the Big Ten East
SP+: 47th Nationally
Impact Newcomers for the Terrapins
● Jacob Copeland. WR
○ Flordia Transfer. Started in 11 games for Flordia last season. Tallied 102 yards and eight receptions against Missouri last season.
● VanDarius Cowan. LB
○ West Virgnia Transfer. 3 sacks and one forced fumble while at West Virginia. A top recruit out of high school, he played with Locksely at Alabama in the 2017 National Championship season. No.67 overall recruit by Rivals.
● Jaishawn Barham. LB
○ Consensus 4-Star Linebacker out of the DMV area Barham has a big frame at 6’4 230. He was the second-ranked player in the state and 65th-ranked player overall. Decided to attend the Locksley program over Penn State and Oklahoma.
Biggest Questions Facing the Terrapins
1. Can they get off to a hot start?
2. How will the team mesh together?
3. What can they expect on defense?
Program Preview
Locksley enters his 4th season as head coach of the Maryland Program. He signed a massive extension this off-season and will need to exceed expectations. The schedule for the Terps is easy early in the season and then gets challenging with Ohio State coming to town and a trip to Ann Harbor. The team is led by their QB who will look to impress NFL scouts this season. He displays a tremendous dual-threat ability, but will he be able to handle all the pressure and lead his team. I expect him to do so. Locksley will need to coach his players as his players are notorious for bad personal foul calls and stupid penalties. The program welcomes one of their best-recruiting classes and some key transfers. We’ll see how everyone meshes but there is a lot of talent and experience on this Terps team.
Offensive Preview
Taulia Tagovailoa is the leader of this offense unit and has good weapons around him. Last season was his best season in the program, and he really felt comfortable leading the offense. This year he is surrounded with experience at the wide receiver position in Jeshaun Jones and Rakim Jarret. Dontay Demus returns from a leg injury as well. The question on the offensive side is the Offensive Line which hasn’t been the best while Taulia has been in the program. A lot of Taulia's struggles have been turning over the ball which can partially be blamed on having to rush his progressions. All this said I expect a surge in the Maryland offense this season.
Defensive Preview
The defense runs a 3-4 scheme that allows them to run a lot of linebackers. They are loaded at the linebacker position led by top overall recruit Jaishawn Barham. The defense will need to clean up gaps as the team averaged over 150 yards rushing. The defense will need to play with fire and turn over the ball more than they did last season. Maryland promoted Brain Williams to DC. He will be calling the plays and won two games last season having the duties. Overall, there is a solid mix of newcomers and vets on the defense, and we’ll see how they all mesh.
Special Teams Preview
Eastern Michigan transfer Chad Ryland will be taking over the field goal duties this season. He is EMU’s career leader in PATs made and PAT attempted. He made 17 consecutive field goals made and made a second-team all-MAC selection. Also, the second team was all of Phil Steele’s. He is a solid upgrade for the Maryland program and will be used a lot.