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Ohio State Football: Maryland presents some challenges for OSU

By Frank Teriaca

Oct 15, 2022; Bloomington, Indiana, USA; Maryland Terrapins head coach Mike Locksley looks out onto the field before the game against the Maryland Terrapins at Memorial Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Marc Lebryk-USA TODAY Sports
Oct 15, 2022; Bloomington, Indiana, USA; Maryland Terrapins head coach Mike Locksley looks out onto the field before the game against the Maryland Terrapins at Memorial Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Marc Lebryk-USA TODAY Sports /
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The Ohio State football team is preparing to play Maryland next Saturday in Ohio Stadium. The Terrapins are a better program than they used to be.

It’s on to Maryland week for the Ohio State football team and head coach Ryan Day. The Terrapins come into the game undefeated after crushing Indiana yesterday 44-17. And while the Buckeyes should be seen as a heavy favorite, this isn’t your same-old Maryland football team.

Gone are the days of being a bottom-dweller Big Ten East school. The Athletic Department did a great job of identifying Mike Locksley as the right man for the Terrapin job back in 2019. All he has done since is steadily and progressively build this program into a winner. With a 26-28 overall record, Locksley has really ramped up the winning over the past two and a half seasons going 20-11 including two bowl game victories.

A lot of that has to do with solid play from quarterback Taulia Tagovailoa, who is off to a hot start in 2023 with 1,464 passing yards, 13 touchdown passes, and only three interceptions. He’s thrown for over 3,000 yards in each of the past two seasons and is well on his way to doing that again in 2023.

The offense is averaging over 38 points per game this season and that also includes an average of 157 yards per game on the ground, which has been complementing Tagovaila and the passing game well. They have a three-headed monster tailback rotation of Roman Hemby, Colby McDonald, and Antwain Littleton who are all averaging over 4.5 yards per rush.

With Locksley being a former offensive coordinator, it isn’t surprising that the offense has flourished. But more surprisingly has been the play of the Terrapin defense this season, having only surrendered 66 overall points through five games.

The unit is led by senior defensive back Tarheeb Still who leads the team with three interceptions and is second on the team in total tackles. He’s a big-time playmaker for them as Kyle McCord needs to know where he is at all times.

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The Buckeyes have had two weeks to heal up after that hard-fought Notre Dame game. Hopefully, they spent the time wisely in fully preparing for this Maryland team that is ready to pull off a big win. They almost got the Buckeyes last season in College Park, hopefully, this year the Buckeyes come out with a sense of urgency early to help put all dreams of an upset in Ohio Stadium to bed.

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