Ohio State Football Schedule Prep: Maryland Terrapins

The Ohio State football team meets up with the Maryland Terrapins on October 7th in Columbus. Here is what you need to know about the Terps.

The Ohio State football team got quite a scare last season against Maryland on the road. The game was 33-30 deep into the fourth quarter with the outcome in the balance. A Noah Ruggles field goal followed by a Zach Harrison strip sack, recovered for a touchdown by Steele Chambers sealed the game, but the Maryland program earned a ton of respect.

In reality, the Maryland program has been garnering more respect under head coach Mike Locksley, who is the perfect man for the Terrapins job. The D.C. area native has been serving as head coach since 2019 and has compiled a 21-28 record while there. Very respectable for a job that was deemed to be one of the worst in Power Five college football back in 2018. The eight wins last season were the most they’ve had since 2010.

Maryland brings back its starting quarterback, Taulia Tagovailoa, who was a Second-Team All-Big Ten player in 2022 throwing for over 3,000 yards and 18 touchdowns. He is definitely one of the better quarterbacks in the Big Ten. But he is also a known commodity as a third-year starter for the Terps. While a solid player, he isn’t anyone who is going to put a game on his back and beat the Buckeyes.

Maryland lost its two best receivers to the NFL in Rakim Jarrett and Jacob Copeland. But they do return Jeshaun Jones who had 44 catches for 557 yards and four touchdowns. Not bad for the third option in most games.

They also bring back running back Roman Hemby who was a monster last year as a freshman gaining nearly 1,000 yards on the ground and 10 touchdowns. He averaged 5.3 yards per rush, so the Buckeye defensive line and linebackers need to be ready for him.

Defensively, Maryland was not great last season, but a bright spot was freshman Jaishawn Barham, who registered four sacks and had 59 tackles. The Terrapins will look to him to build upon his nice 2022 campaign. They also bring back hard-hitting safety Beau Brade, who had eight tackles in the game between the Buckeyes and Maryland last year.

Overall, this Maryland program is now respectable under Locksley. And as long as he’s at the helm, he will have the Terps ready to play. The Buckeyes should easily win this game, but if they let their guard down like last season, Maryland is capable of pulling off the upset.