Penn State football will start training camp in a few short weeks and after that the season will quickly arrive. So as July slowly turns into August it is time to look ahead to the opponents the Nittany Lions will face this season. And so here are a few things to know about Maryland.
Offense:
Maryland will enter the season in a transition period with Caleb Rowe at quarterback instead of the now graduated CJ Brown under center. Rowe is a proven passer but his injury history does raise the “what if” flag for the Terrapin offense. Maryland is also without stud receiver Stefan Diggs and his partner in crime Deon Long. That opens the door for senior Marcus Leak who is the top returning pass catcher but h has some work to do to improve his consistency as a threat down the field. Maryland averaged 3.7 yards a rush on the ground and that will have to improve. The good news is all three top rusher are back and the offensive line ought to be better.
Defense:
Returning only four starters on defense and rebuilding the entire defensive front is an eyebrow raiser for Maryland as the Terps look to lean on a strong secondary. The bad news is that if you defensive backs are making most of the tackles, there is usually a lot of yards between them and where the play began. The faster Maryland can get the interior of the defense figured out the better.
Biggest Game:
As far as early season contests go, a meeting at West Virginia ought to be a key contest in Week 5. Maryland hosts an explosive Bowling Green team in Week 2 as well. Win both of those games and the Terps are looking at a 4-0 start before hosting Michigan. The back end of Maryland’s schedule is favorable which makes winning that West Virginia road test all the more important.
Biggest Storyline:
Replacing a quarterback is never easy, let along replacing him with a player who has had major knee surgeries. Maryland had a respectable start to their Big Ten tenure but there are question marks on both sides of the ball and little room on the schedule for easy wins. If Randy Esdall can get things figured out early it will go a long way towards legitimizing Maryland as a contender in the Big Ten East. If not, the uphill battle isn’t going to get any easier.
Prediction:
Playing this game at a neutral site helps Penn State to get away from College Park. If Penn State is truly sitting at 6-1 on the year heading into this game then the Nittany Lions have figured enough things out to be favorites in this game. Maryland will have a lot to prove, but the Nittany Lions won’t have forgotten last season’s last minute loss. Penn State has more answers to questions than Maryland does and 7-1 looks likely. Even so this ought to be another classic Big Ten battle.
