Week 10 Primer – No. 2 Indiana Hoosiers at Maryland Terrapins

Indiana and Maryland played two times in the 1930s (IU won both matchups) but the series began in earnest in 2014 with both schools battling to stay out of the bottom of the Big Ten East.

Indiana football players celebrating a play, with one player raising a finger in excitement. — Sep 27, 2025; Iowa City, Iowa, USA; Indiana Hoosiers defensive back Louis Moore (7) reacts with defensive back Jamari Sharpe (22) and defensive back Ryland Gandy (10) after making an interception during the fourth quarter against the Iowa Hawkeyes at Kinnick Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jeffrey Becker-Imagn Images

What: #2 Indiana Hoosiers (8-0) at Maryland Terrapins (4-3)

When: Saturday, November 1 at 3:30

Where: SECU Stadium in College Park, MD

How to Watch: The game will be broadcast on CBS and can be heard on the IU Radio Network.

Spread and Total: IU (-21.5) | Total of 50.5

Series History: Indiana and Maryland played two times in the 1930s (IU won both matchups) but the series began in earnest in 2014 with both schools battling to stay out of the bottom of the Big Ten East. Since that matchup, IU and Maryland have played annually with IU winning six meetings and the Terrapins taking five. The Hoosiers won last season in Bloomington by a score of 42-28, breaking a three-game winning streak in the series for Maryland.

What’s at Stake: As we wrote a couple of weeks ago, every game for the Indiana Hoosiers has escalating stakes and pressure. That’s the nature of being ranked second in the country and being in the driver’s seat for a spot in the Big Ten Championship Game and potentially receiving a bye in the College Football Playoff. The Maryland Terrapins are a few plays away from being 7-0 but Mike Locksley’s team has lost three straight games by a total of ten points. Locksley’s job security is up in the air and how the remainder of this season plays out is going to determine whether or not the Terrapins move on and look for a new direction.

A FEW THINGS TO LOOK FOR

Close but No Cigar

The Maryland Terrapins started the season with four-straight victories including a road victory at Wisconsin that had hopes high in College Park. As has often been the case under Mike Locksley though, Maryland has faded as Big Ten play ramps up. Maryland has battled very hard and they were ahead in the fourth quarter against Washington, Nebraska and UCLA before collapsing late and losing each contest. Locksley is, once again, firmly on the hot seat and his Terrapins need to find ways to close games. The three losses for Maryland this season have come by a grand total of ten points so there is plenty of reason to believe this Terrapins team is still very capable of reaching bowl eligibility (games remaining against Rutgers, Illinois, Michigan and Michigan State). Beyond the final scores though, Maryland’s schedule has not exactly been difficult thus far and they were outgained by 116 yards by Washington, 88 yards by Nebraska and 77 yards by UCLA.

2. Malik Washington Makes the Offense Tick

The biggest question entering the season for Maryland was how they would handle the quarterback situation after Billy Edwards left for Wisconsin. Mike Locksley chose to give the keys to local freshman Malik Washington and the well-regarded recruit was terrific to begin the campaign. He threw for 258 yards with three touchdowns against FAU, 254 yards with two touchdowns against Northern Illinois and 261 yards with a touchdown (and his first interception) against Towson. His completion percentage dipped against Wisconsin but he played clean football on the road in the Big Ten and had 265 yards plus two touchdowns in the win over the Badgers. In the past three games, Washington has only three touchdowns and two interceptions and the yards per attempt has dropped to 4.5 against Washington, 6.7 against Nebraska and 4.4 against UCLA. For context, Fernando Mendoza’s yards per attempt this season is 9.5. IU will need to be very ready for short and quick passes. Maryland gets the ball out of Washington’s hand very quickly by throwing to DeJuan Williams (20 receptions as a running back) or Nolan Ray (9 receptions) or short passes to his wide receivers. That strategy has helped the Maryland offensive line only surrender .3 sacks per game (tied for first in the nation). The Terrapins don’t run the ball well at all but the screen game serves as an extension of the running game and Indiana must defend those better than they did against Michigan State.

3. Taking the Ball

The most surprising part about the Terrapins this season has been how well their defense has played. Despite some key personnel losses, the Terrapins have put up some impressive numbers: 26^th in the country in sack percentage (7.82%), 12^th in the country in points allowed per game (17.3), 33^rd in rushing yards per attempt (3.7), 26^th in third down conversion (34.41%). Jalen Huskey leads the team with three interceptions and the Terrapins have intercepted opposing quarterbacks 14 times and returned four picks for touchdowns. Add in a couple of fumbles recovered and Maryland is first in the country in turnover margin at +1.7 per game. That’s certainly aided by +6 in that department in the season opener against Florida Atlantic but Maryland’s defense has been a real bright spot and they have the ability to give the Hoosiers some problems in College Park, particularly via the secondary challenging Fernando Mendoza to not turn the ball over. Indiana has taken really good care of the ball but if Maryland forces a couple of turnovers, they can make this game very stressful for the Hoosiers.