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Gregory's status uncertain

"A violation of team rules" kept Dino Gregory out of Maryland's exhibition victory over IUP Tuesday. And after reading this Sun blog entry, I fear Gregory could be out for a while.

"According to the Washington Post, Gregory had said this summer that his eligibility was in question because of a charge of 'academic dishonesty.' The Post said it could not be determined whether that was the reason the player was held out of last night's game."

Could we have another Josh Portis situation? I suppose the only silver lining that could come out of a season-long suspension would be the increased playing time for the freshmen bigs.

Will James Franklin be our next head coach

This Sun article explains Debbie Yow's options.

Season becomes freshman proving ground

The Fridge has never been in a situation like this. At 2-5, the Terps are one loss away from being eliminated from bowl contention. According to this Post story, players have told the Fridge that the growing sentiment in the clubhouse is that there is nothing left to play for. The head ball coach also said he wants to give Jamarr Robinson a look. I just hope they don't burn Danny O'Brien's redshirt.

Could we see more of Jamarr Robinson? Or even Danny O'Brien?

"We need to make plans for the future."

That is what the Fridge told the Sun Monday. While this may be a good idea for the future, I can't help but feel bad for Turner. The kid has played hard and taken a lot of hits. Sure, his deep throws flutter a bit and he's hardly the sharpest possession passer either. But there are several people/positions that are more to blame for this team's 2-4 start.

Then again, we all know the quarterback position will be the primary concern of next year's team. Any experience we can give Robinson and/or O'Brien this year could go a long way.

And it gives me a reason to watch Saturday at Duke. This team sure needs some more intrigue.

Milbourne may still play '4'

Landon Milbourne played up a position all last season, guarding power forwards who were often 30, 40 pounds heavier than him.

Bringing in Jordan Williams and James Padgett will likely allow Milbourne to move back to the '3'. ... eventually.

Coach Williams intimated to the Sun that Milbourne will play the lion's share at 4 until Williams and Padgett emerge. That would further suggest a 3-guard starting lineup with Adrian Bowie, Greivis Vasquez and Eric Hayes in the backcourt.

Hartfield may have surgery, Campbell may play, Friedgen may be delusional

In a Sun story, Friedgen said he was optimistic going forward. My thinking is, just b/c we're technically in the thick of the Atlantic race, doesn't change the fact that this may be the worst Terp team this century.

Fridge said he was "proud" of this team for their hard work ethic, etc. etc. And I'm sure they've been working hard, blah blah blah. But the fact is, this team has made an alarming number of mental mistakes so far. It seems that the Fridge may be trying inspire confidence in his team, and in his fading fanbase, by singing the team's praises.

The return of LT Bruce Campbell would provide a huge boost. His status for Saturday is TBD.

Didn't realize this...

The Post's Eric Prisbell pointed out that, at one point Saturday, the Terps' d-line consisted of four freshmen: true freshman Isaiah Ross, redshirt freshman A.J. Francis, true freshman Zach Kerr and redshirt freshman Carl Russell.

I'm not sure how long they were out there together. But whoever was out there in the trenches did a great job stifling C.J. Spiller.

The Post's MD-Wake Preview

Through the grapevine

LT Bruce Campbell will not make the trip to Wake this weekend. Freshmen Pete DeSouza and Nick Klemm will fill in at this supremely important position. Fortunately, the Terps are facing a Wake pass rush that has produced only six sacks through five games. Six!

Also through the grapevine: expect one or both of the true freshmen running backs -- D.J. Adams and Caleb Porzel -- to play Saturday.

Terps basketball dodges a bullet

Jordan Williams' misdermeanor assault case was dismissed. Here's the Sun story.

The Post's rundown of the woeful Atlantic Division

In case you haven't checked the standings lately, Maryland sits atop the mediocre Atlantic division with a 1-0 record. The favorites, Clemson and FSU, each have two losses.

Here's the Post story about the various flaws that each Atlantic team possesses.

Campbell may play after all

Encouraging news today: The Fridge said today that LT Bruce Campbell may play Saturday at Wake. This comes a day after the Fridge told the media that Campbell's MCL injury would keep him out of Saturday's game.

If Campbell can't go, true freshmen Pete DeSouza and Nick Klemm may platoon in his stead.

Here's the Post's blog entry.

Good/bad news on the injury front

Here's the good: Da'Rel Scott's broken forearm may not keep him out the entire season. According to this Post story, Scott may be back by Nov. 21 for the FSU game. Meanwhile, Davin Meggett will carry the load with freshmen Gary Douglas and D.J. Adams spelling him for a few drives. Scott will undergo surgery this week and will have a plate inserted into his arm.

Here's the bad: Bruce Campbell will not play Saturday against Wake after suffering an MCL injury against Clemson. Most would agree that Campbell is a more important player to this team than Scott, in large part b/c the offensive line is already so thin.

Both will be examined today/tomorrow. A long-term prognosis will likely be determined soon.

ACC Atlantic: A New Hope

"Well I guess there's only one thing left to do. Win the whole fuckin' thing."

Maryland's predicament, posting only one win in the non-conference, reminds me of that famous Major League line. For those who haven't seen the 80's classic, the hapless Cleveland Indians are faced with an improbable mission: win the pennant to keep their team from relocating.

With a 1-3 record entering the conference, the Terps are in a situation where they need to win 5 games just to be bowl eligible. And let's say they finish 6-6. With one of those wins coming against JMU in OT, would they even get a bowl bid?

So the only goal at this point: "Win the whole fuckin' thing."

That thing is the perennially irrelevent Atlantic Division. Hardly suited for a Hollywood script. But a string of wins could go a long way to reigniting the Terps fan base.

And in case you didn't notice, the Atlantic is -- yet again -- wide open.

The Terps looked pretty good today. Some say they "shocked" Clemson. I think they played soundly on defense and did barely enough on offense to beat a middle-of-the-road ACC team. Nevertheless, still a good win.

Jordan Williams faces assault charges

The 6-10 freshman center, who will probably start from day one if eligible, was involved in some incident at his hometown mall. Details are murky at this stage. We do know he's facing third-degree assault charges -- a misdermeanor. I doubt he'll get jail time; but he could get reprimanded by UM.

With Midnight Madness about two weeks away, Williams' eligibilty is in question. Here's the story in the Sun.

Da'Rel's fumblitis

It's one of those puzzling things. Da'Rel Scott has fumbled three times in two games, prompting the Fridge to keep the 1st-team All-ACC back on the sidelines for about half of the Rutgers game. Here's a Post blog entry about it.

The Fridge's uncertain future

OC James Franklin was expected to replace the Fridge in 2011. But the way things are going, Franklin may take over next season, maybe sooner.





The Post wrote a story about the Fridge's increasingly tenuous grip on a coaching position he's held since 2000.

This is probably the low-point of his coaching career. But one thing on his side is his contract. He's owed about $4.5 million for the next two years. And considering the well-documented financial decline the athletic department is currently enduring, it's hard to imagine Yow buying the Fridge out.

Yow said she won't "evaluate the status of the program" until after the season.

Here's the good news...

...we're only 37 days away from college basketball season.

I'd rather not revisit Saturday's game. You can get a concise rundown of just how bad we were from the Sun blog; but I'm guessing nobody cares at this point. Being a DC area sports fan, I'm used to enduring futility. But I'm very close to giving up on this team. And what is there to look forward to next season? Jamarr Robinson under center?

It upsets me how turnover/mistake prone this team is. Friedgen's MO in the past has been to minimize mistakes and maximize his talent. But I think it's safe to say this team is neither talented nor well-coached. Although the one silver lining continues to be Torrey Smith. He is far more productive than Heyward-Bey was last year. Ok, I'm ending my hating spree now.

Washington Post's Terps-Rutgers preview

Gary Williams on "Washington Post Live"

Rutgers QB may not start

Freshman Tom Savage has played well since taking over the starting job in week 2. He's led the Scarlet Knights to two victories and has yet to throw an INT.

But the 6-5 quarterback suffered a concussion last week against Florida International and is considered questionable for Saturday. Here's the story.

Cannon has "disappeared"

...according to James Franklin. Cannon, who was the breakout player in preseason camps, has only 85 yards of receiving through three games. Read more about it here.

Fridge ranks third on "coaches on the hot list"

Al Groh of UVA is No. 1. Here's the website.

Fridge gives Scott bill of confidence

At times Saturday, Da'Rel Scott looked like an All-ACC back. But he was carrying the ball like hot pie fresh out the oven. His two fumbles probably cost us the game. Nevertheless, it seems that he has retained his starting spot, based on this recent Post story.

No surprise here...

Ticket sales are down. The upper decks were almost empty Saturday.

Jewish Jordan retires

Tamir Goodman, aka "The Jewish Jordan", has retired from basketball at the age of 27. For those who don't remember, Tamir received nationwide publicity after receiving an oral commitment from Maryland. An orthodox Jew, Goodman insisted he wouldn't play on Saturdays. Ultimately though, Gary Williams renegged on the commitment after Goodman didn't live up to the hype in his senior year.

Here's the AP story.

Adding injury to insult

No Maryland team in the Friedgen era can ill-afford injuries more than this young 2009 squad. And yet, entering week three, the Terps will be without three starters (DB Nolan Carroll, safety Jamari McCullough and LT Bruce Campbell). Carroll, a team captain, is out for the season with a broken leg.

Here's the story in the Post about the Terps' injury woes.

and more from Prisbell in his blog.

New players emerge

Look out for three new faces that figure to see a lot of playing time this week:

1) Soph. offensive tackle Tyler Bowen is finally healthy and should see time at tackle. 

2) Freshman tight end Devonte Campbell has apparently come on lately, impressing with his good hands and speed in the open field. 

3) True Freshman Eric Franklin was one of the least heralded in the class of 2009. But he could start today at FS in place of injured Jamari McCullough. 

Prisbell's video preview of the JMU game

An inauspicious sign...

...about the state of the Terp nation. Fan response to the massive Byrd Stadium expansion project, which produced "64 luxury suites and 440 mezzanine seats", has been luke-warm at best, according to a Post story. Only two-thirds of the new seating have been filled long-term.  

Post story breaks down Terp blunders

Eric Prisbell's story talks about the failures of the offensive line and, surprisingly, the mental miscues of some veteran members of the defense, who forgot to blitz on certain plays, leaving D-backs in man-t0-man coverage for too long.

Out of town, out of hope?

Sorry for the recent inactivity; but I was out of town for a wedding. And frankly, I had little motivation to post injury reports or whatever after Saturday's Bear-mauling.

I am an eternal optimist, something my friends always point out when I give them reasons why this year's Maryland team could surprise people. And somehow, I have maintained my optimistic outlook after Week 1.

I still think this team has as good a chance as anyone in the Atlantic division to earn a trip to Jacksonville. After a 4-5 Week 1 for the ACC. with three wins coming against non-Div. 1 opponents, I feel just as confident about Maryland's ACC Title hopes as I did last Friday. The only teams from the Atlantic Division that did not look as dreadful as Maryland were Florida State (lost to Miami) and Clemson (beat Middle Tennessee State). And neither made much of a statement. In fact, the team that separated itself in Week 1 from the sesspool of mediocrity was Virginia Tech -- and it lost 34-24 to Alabama.

The question I struggle with is this: even if the Terps win an ACC title this year, should I get excited about it? Do I have enough self-respect to realize that it was a mediocre playing field and a flawed system that guided them to that elite tier? Or do I get caught up in all the hype and wear my Fear the Turtle t-shirt for the entire week leading up to the game? A game, btw, which will probably pit them against UC or Pitt from the Big East. What a joke.

Kicker by committee?

Barbour and Ferrera are in a "dead heat", according to Post

Probably the breakout performer of the summer

...is Adrian Cannon. The Post giving him some pub today.

Walk-ons could make or break Terp season

Story in the Sun

Miami (OH) transfer provides QB security

Through the grapevine: Miami (OH) sophomore quarterback Clay Belton will transfer to Maryland and will be eligible to play next season. 

Being a Miami grad, I've followed Belton's college career from day one. He was a three-star recruit and even had an offer from Kansas State, but came to Miami with a lot of hype surrounding him. He's 6-5, 230 with a big arm and pretty good escapability. But he never emerged at Miami: 

2008 stats from ESPN.com

Stats Overview	Passing
YEAR	CMP	ATT	YDS	CMP%	YPA	LNG	TD	INT	SACK	RAT
2008	63	115	639	54.8	5.56	53	2	3	11	101.98

He couldn't win the starting job there. But he could win it in College Park. Next season, Jamarr Robinson will have the inside track to the position, with Belton, C.J. Brown and Danny O'Brien in the mix. The situation is hardly ideal. Hopefully somebody will stick. 

Tight ends in turmoil?

The tight end position wasn't supposed to be a weak point, with Lansford Watson showing great promise last season. But the Fridge told the Post that the tight ends have been "a disappointment throughout camp." 

Strong words. One had to speculate when Tommy Galt leapfrogged Watson and Matt Furstenburg. 

Terp quick-hits

A lot of nuggets in the Sun and Post today...

1) The O-line remains the biggest issue in camp. Bruce Campbell (left tackle) and Phil Costa (center) are locks at their positions. Paul Pinegar has the "inside track" at guard, and  Andrew Gonnella has ownership of one guard position. But the other guard position still has at least three viable candidates. 

2) Danny O'Brien holds a slight edge over fellow true freshman C.J. Brown in the battle for the No. 3 QB role. This battle may ultimately be a precursor for next year's inevitable QB controversy. 

3) Here's an interesting development: Meggett has pulled even with Da'Rel at running back. Sophomore Gary Douglass has established himself as the No. 3. 

Terps basketball schedule unveiled

The Terps 2009 schedule promises to be one of the toughest in the nation, with Villanova, Indiana, and the Maui Invitational added to an ACC regular season slate. Villanova should be a top-10 team in the preseason polls, and the Maui field includes Gonzaga, Wisconsin, Arizona, and the Lance-Stephenson led Cincinnati Bearcats.

We also have Duke as our Senior Night opponent. Do you think Greivis will be fired up for that one?

The Bennett Fulper buzz

The recent buzz surrounding freshman guard Bennett Fulper is encouraging, but also says something about the messy O-line situation with only nine days until the Cal game. Fulper, one of the most unheralded recruits in the Terps' 2009 class, has made his rapid ascension to the top of the depth chart during his first few weeks of camp. Unfortunately, there is word that he suffered a concussion today. Hopefully it doesn't sideline him for too long.

Terp Ticker 2.0

The original Terp Ticker hardly swept the nation as originally planned. But hopefully with the World Sports Blog platform, I can reach out to more Terp fans looking for a place to get the latest news, links and insight. 

I'll be sprucing up this site over the next few weeks. Enjoy!