Welcome to the Snake Pit

Last night signaled the beginning of the Randy Edsall era in College Park, Maryland, and the Terps prevailed in a rainy contest against the suspension riddled Miami Hurricanes, 32-24. Before we get to the game, I have to spend some time on the most talked about issue of the night; the Maryland uniforms. Personally, I have to redact a statement made in my last post and put out that the "State pride" uniforms, as coined by Edsall, are without a doubt, the sexiest uniforms in college football. Everything about them, down to the shoes screamed Maryland, keeping in line with the university's stated goal of improving the team brand. As Edsall said, "We are the state university of Maryland, and we're proud of it." There was mixed reaction to the get ups, mostly negative by anyone who isn't a Terps fan but love 'em, or hate 'em, the uniforms did exactly what the school and Under Armour had in mind; they got people to notice, including contemporaries. As tweeted by Oklahoma's star WR, Ryan Broyles, "Diggin' Maryland's color scheme tonight! By far the most unique I've seen!" In his article on grantland.com, columnist Michael Kruse points out that seemingly ridiculous uniforms are the selling point for today's advertising affected generation. Kruse details how the University of Oregon, propelled by Nike, became the first team to widely publicize its flashy uniforms, and translate it to on the field success, correctly pointing out that Oregon "didn't get people to watch because they were good, they got good because they got people to watch." Only time will tell whether Maryland, propelled by Under Armour, can translate its uniforms to similar success.

Edsall was all smiles after the Terps' big win.

The game featured two brand new head coaches in Edsall and Miami counterpart, Al Golden, who was dealt a serious blow before the season started with the Nevin Shapiro allegations and subsequent suspension of more than half his starters. It was a back and forth affair for most of the night, with the Terps and Canes trading TD's and FG's in less than ideal conditions. For anybody wondering, Danny O'Brien is definitely the real deal. The sophomore QB racked up 348 passing yards on 31 completions to go along with one TD and one INT. The up tempo offense, which racked up 499 yards, was a far cry from the plodding approach taken by Edsall's predecessor, Ralph Friedgen. The Canes doomed themselves with four turnovers, which absolutely prevented them from winning the close contest. Maryland entered the Miami redzone six times, yet managed only one offensive touchdown. The game was sealed on one of the few 'No! Don't score!' moments in college football when, with the Terps leading by two and the Hurricanes driving, CB Cameron Chism intercepted Stephen Morris' sideline throw and returned it for a TD, putting the Terps up 32-24 with 39 seconds to go. As Edsall pointed out post-game and a few fans (yours truly included) were yelling during, had Chism simply fallen on the ball, the Terps could have run out the clock. Instead, after a botched extra point, the Canes had 40 seconds to come within a TD and a two-point conversion of tying the game. Luckily, this situation was avoided when Morris' last ditch heave was intercepted by linebacker, Kenny Tate. Although it's rightfully easy to poke fun at the situation surrounding the Miami program, I have to take my hat off to Golden. Despite the suspensions, Miami fielded a focused and determined team who walked into a hostile environment, and acquitted themselves well.

Looking ahead, the Canes face another stiff test in the form of the 18th ranked Ohio State Buckeyes in Coral Gables, while the Terps have the week off before facing Big East rival West Virginia in the Snake Pit. That should prove to be much more of a statement game for the Terps; the 'Neers boast one of the best QB-WR combos in the country, and by far the best in the Big East, with Geno Smith and Tavon Austin and have dominated the Terps in recent years. A 2-0 start would be huge for Edsall, and that game should be a good measure of exactly how well the Terps will fare this year.

 

Represent, fellas.