The Rutgers Scarlet Knights and Maryland Terrapins squared off Saturday afternoon in College Park on a chilly afternoon, with each team’s head coach firmly in the hot seat.
In what has been a nightmare season for Head Coach Greg Schiano and his squad, the Scarlet Knights went on the road to beat the Terrapins, 37-30. Rutgers (2-4, 1-2) has now won three straight against I-95 rival Maryland (2-5, 0-4), including the last two in College Park.
Maryland Head Coach Mike Locksley has felt the heat for most of the season, and early on, it looked like his Terrapins would seize control and ease the pressure off him.
First Half
After Maryland scored the opening touchdown to go up 7-0, Rutgers quarterback Dylan Lonergan tossed a short pass to mid-season All-American receiver and the nation's contested-catch leader, KJ Duff, in the corner of the end zone, and No. 8 rewarded him with another highlight-reel catch to make it 7-7 after one quarter.
After Maryland scored with 10:46 left in the half to extend their lead to 14-7, Rutgers answered when Duff created separation in the end zone and caught his second touchdown pass of the game from Lonergan with 4:18 remaining before halftime. On the ensuing extra-point attempt to tie the game, the Terrapins’ Trey Reddick used leverage, somehow avoided a penalty flag, and blocked Dane Pizzaro’s kick. Jamare Tasker picked up the loose ball near the right sideline and returned it for two points, giving Maryland a 16-13 lead.
The Terrapins scored again with 3:18 remaining to take a 23-13 lead. Rutgers drove at the end of the half, but head coach Schiano called a timeout with seven seconds remaining and settled for a 47-yard field goal attempt instead of running an additional play. Pizzaro pushed the kick wide left, and Rutgers trailed by ten points at the half.
Second Half
It was a tale of two halves, as Rutgers took control on offense. A Pizzaro 25-yard field goal with 10:43 remaining in the third quarter pulled the Knights within a touchdown. With four minutes remaining, Longergan found Knights running back Clay Thevenin on a wheel route. The running back made a nifty 19-yard scoring reception, doing his best KJ Duff impersonation, to tie the game at 23-all.
Rutgers continued their dominance at the start of the fourth quarter. Thevenin busted open for a seven-yard rushing score, giving the Scarlet Knights their first lead of the game, 30-23. With 4:03 remaining, Antwan Raymond punched the ball across the goal line, culminating a surgical 12-play, 64-yard drive that drained nearly eight minutes off the game clock.
Leading 37-23 and riding the momentum, the Knights had the Terrapins backed up against their own goal line. Facing 4th and four at their own eleven-yard line, Malik Washington found his best receiver, Chris Durr, on a short out. Durr weaved past tacklers near the line of scrimmage and scampered 48 yards to the Rutgers 41-yard line. After an incomplete pass, Washington needed just two completions to cut the Rutgers lead to seven points with 2:17 left.
Rutgers had a chance to ice the game on their ensuing drive. On fourth and one at their own 34-yard line, the Knights lined up to run a play, but a false start pushed them back five yards, forcing a punt. With new life, the Terrapins quickly drove downfield before stalling at the Rutgers eleven-yard line.
Facing fourth-and-three, Terrapins quarterback Washington took the shotgun snap and lofted a well-placed ball into the right corner of the end zone, where tight end Dorian Fleming caught it in the air but couldn’t come down in bounds; his toe landed inches out on the white chalk.
The play went to review, and the call on the field was upheld. Rutgers took a final knee and celebrated an unlikely victory in an ugly yet entertaining back-and-forth affair between two teams looking for a beacon of hope. For Maryland, the freefall continues. Rutgers improved just enough after their bye week to grab a road win and give the fanbase a glimmer of hope, however fleeting.
Team Leaders
QB Dylan Lonergan passed for a season-high 291 yards and three touchdowns.
WR Duff hauled in nine passes to tie a career high, totaling 113 yards. It was his third game of the season with multiple touchdown catches, and his nine receiving touchdowns this season tie him for the fifth most in a season in program history.
RB Clay Thevenin had a breakout game, rushing for 109 yards and a touchdown, averaging 6.4 yards per carry, and adding a 19-yard receiving touchdown.
Next Up
Rutgers continues its road trip, heading to Chicago to face No. 25 Northwestern on Oct. 24 at the brand-new Ryan Field.
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