Byrd Stadium

bobp@herald-mail.com COLLEGE PARK, Md. - Maryland football coach Ralph Friedgen is about ready to adopt a Donald Trump attitude. It's getting to the point where the Terrapins must perform, or be ready to hear "You're fired. " It became obvious that the apprenticeships are over on the Maryland football team as Georgia Tech did everything but force Maryland's offense to claim Chapter 11. The No. 23 Terps looked bankrupt in a 20-7 pounding by Georgia Tech on Saturday before the fifth-largest crowd ever at Byrd Stadium.

bobp@herald-mail.com COLLEGE PARK, Md. - It was a new old version of Bruce Perry walking around the University of Maryland football facility on Saturday night. He looked like the same guy people used to see 18 months ago when things were going well for the tailback. But lately, Perry hadn't been looking like himself. ... Until Saturday. "I ain't seen you smile in six months," someone yelled to Perry as he walked through the halls at Gossett Team House near Byrd Stadium.

BALTIMORE - The University of Maryland is looking for a football nirvana. A haven where good football teams bring good crowds to support the home team. That hallowed ground that turns into Halloween for opponents. For now, that place isn't Byrd Stadium. In the last few home games, the Terrapins' old yard has been more like a Byrd sanctuary ... a place were very few fans have flocked to roost. Coach Ron Vanderlinden knows the Terps' success hasn't been for the Byrds. So maybe that's why today's game with Georgia Tech puts his emotions in flight.

The air around College Park is thick with speculation that Debbie Yow, the University of Maryland's athletic director, will fire Mark Duffner if the football team does not finish with more wins than losses. Considering that the Terrapins are 5-5 and play Florida State in their finale, it might be time for Duffner to find a good Realtor. My observation of Duffner is that he's a great guy who cares passionately about his players, plays by the rules and burns to win. The type who deserves a lot more rope than many, if not most, of his peers.

Tour de force - Williams, Friedgen on Terps' trail By DAN SPEARS dans@herald-mail.com On the recruiting trail, Maryland basketball coach Gary Williams and football coach Ralph Friedgen criss-cross the country looking for athletes to wear the Terrapins' red and black. Tuesday afternoon, the twosome found plenty of people in their own backyard willing to wear those colors as they were in Hagertown for the Cumberland Valley Terrapin Club's spring outing at Fountain Head Country Club.

COLLEGE PARK, Md. - The University of Maryland acted like it was warming up for a round of Jeopardy! instead of the opening game of the 1998 football season on Monday. Answers: "We're treating them like we would Florida State. " "They're making us remember Ohio University. " "They're our first game. Someone had to be. " Question: What is James Madison? Not the president. The university located in Harrisonville, Va., an NCAA Division I-AA program. "Hey, who do some of the other big schools around play?"

Hull grateful for all Terps memories By DAN SPEARS / Staff Writer COLLEGE PARK, Md. - Four seasons ago, Mike Hull found himself in the starting lineup at tight end for the Maryland Terrapins. All the dreams of touchdowns and victories were right there before him. Four years later, Hull is proof that dreams don't always come true. "We've got some great athletes," the South Hagerstown graduate said recently. "I'm just willing to do my part and get some time on the field.

bobp@herald-mail.com COLLEGE PARK, Md. - All that's left of the University of Maryland football season resembles the leftovers from Thursday's turkey. There is very little left on the bones, but with a little creativity you can make something fulfilling out of the scraps. The most appetizing thing left for the Terps is Saturday's finale against Wake Forest at Byrd Stadium. Maryland has been starving for positive feedback for most of the season, which makes this formality of a game into a seven-course meal of possibilities.

COLLEGE PARK, Md. -- Under normal circumstances, Maryland's football game on Saturday would be tough enough. The No. 22 Terrapins are playing Florida State -- the team, the tradition and the reputation all wrapped in one garnet-colored package. But the circumstances aren't normal. Maryland and Florida State will be meeting at Byrd Stadium in a critical game in the Atlantic Coast Conference's championship sweepstakes. First prize is the chance to represent the Atlantic Division in the league's championship game.

COLLEGE PARK, Md. - The University of Maryland football team's post-game news conference Saturday was almost fitting of a time slot on the Sci-Fi Channel. It was time to explain the unexplainable. Suddenly, all the dreams and goals from the preseason weren't an illusion anymore. They were pretty close to reality. There was a lot of talk about what the No. 21 Terrapins (8-2, 5-1 ACC) were trying to accomplish this season. The rhetoric was heavy about where they wanted to head.

COLLEGE PARK, Md. -- The University of Maryland tried for a blackout on Saturday. Meanwhile, Florida State got the knockout. The Seminoles used speed and ball control to thoroughly dominate the No. 23 Terrapins in a 37-3 rout that turned Maryland from favorite to forlorn in the Atlantic Division half of the chase for a berth in the Atlantic Coast Conference championship game. "We didn't play very well obviously," said Maryland coach Ralph Friedgen. "I'm very disappointed in the game we played, especially when we had a lot at stake.

COLLEGE PARK, Md. -- Under normal circumstances, Maryland's football game on Saturday would be tough enough. The No. 22 Terrapins are playing Florida State -- the team, the tradition and the reputation all wrapped in one garnet-colored package. But the circumstances aren't normal. Maryland and Florida State will be meeting at Byrd Stadium in a critical game in the Atlantic Coast Conference's championship sweepstakes. First prize is the chance to represent the Atlantic Division in the league's championship game.

COLLEGE PARK, Md. -- In a lot of ways, the University of Maryland football season could be summed up by the opening verse of "Amazing Grace. " Amazing grace, how sweet the sound That sav'd a wretch like me! I once was lost, but now am found, Was blind, but now I see. Here the Terrapins are. After 13 weeks of meandering through the season with as much doubt as promise, No. 22 Maryland sits on the doorstep of winning the Atlantic Coast Conference's Atlantic Division on Saturday night when it faces Florida State in a nationally televised game.

COLLEGE PARK, Md. -- University of Maryland football coach Ralph Friedgen admits there are times he reaches in his pocket for a little extra help during a game. "The way things were going wasn't the way I hoped," Friedgen said. "I reached for my rosary and things turned out all right. " There were no divine signs for the Terrapins on Saturday - outside of maybe a picturesque rainbow early in the second half - but there definitely was some inspiration as Maryland pulled out a 17-15 victory over No. 17 North Carolina at Byrd Stadium.

COLLEGE PARK, Md. -- Oddsmakers use computers and tendencies to figure out winners. University of Maryland tight end Dan Gronkowski just whips out his checklist. And by his estimates, the Terrapins will beat No. 17 North Carolina on Saturday. "They are a ranked team. We are playing at home. And we are playing at 3:30, so it isn't a night game," Gronkowski said. "It all works for us. " Well, considering Maryland's track record this season, it sort of makes sense. The Terps have defeated three nationally ranked teams this season (Clemson, Wake Forest and California)

COLLEGE PARK, Md. -- The easy part of Ralph Friedgen's job -- if there is such a thing -- is putting the thought into the Xs and Os of a game. But the most difficult part for the University of Maryland football coach is figuring out the thoughts of the players who use those Xs and Os. The ongoing mind game over what matters continues for Friedgen and the Terrapins when they face Eastern Michigan on Saturday at Byrd Stadium. It sets up for another in the ongoing battle between coach and team when it comes to realizing every game is important, no matter the opponent.

COLLEGE PARK, Md. - The University of Maryland football team was sunk. Right from the outset, coach Ralph Friedgen knew it was a possiblity the Terrapins could struggle against Middle Tennessee State, but he really didn't want to believe it. "I knew if we weren't at our best, we would have a good opportunity to get beat," Friedgen said. "And we weren't at our best. " It showed. Maryland's lackluster performance resulted in a 24-14 loss to the Blue Raiders, one that raises questions as to how good the Terps really are and if the loss against a team some consider a lesser opponent signals the end of the season after just two games.

COLLEGE PARK, Md. - In Division I college football, most teams are like kids at the dinner table. They like to have a cupcake before they get to the meat and potatoes. It's not uncommon for top-flight teams to open with an easy victory against an overmatched opponent. The game becomes nothing more than a dress rehearsal - a way to wear uniforms, impress the alumni and work out the kinks that go with a season opener. The University of Maryland must have lost that buffet menu.

Click here to view and/or purchase more photos . COLLEGE PARK, Md. - West Virginia had done this before. Maryland hadn't. It seemed as simple as all that, but really it wasn't. After a pretty nondescript first half - at least by West Virginia standards - the No. 4 Mountaineers relied once again on second-half adjustments to pull away from the Terrapins on Thursday night for a 31-14 victory before the fifth-largest crowd in Byrd Stadium history. The consistent pressure of WVU's offense, and the youth of Maryland's, proved out over the course of the game.

COLLEGE PARK, Md. - Ralph Friedgen is part of the I Killa Hype coaching fraternity. The University of Maryland head football coach pledges year after year, "It's not where you start, it's where you finish" whenever the preseason polls come out. But suddenly, that is only hazing the truth. Now, it is: "It's not where you start, it's where you finish, but where you finish has everything to do with how you start. " Huh? That slogan is pretty tough to get on the frat T-shirt, but it is becoming words to live by. It is one of the things Friedgen worries about as the Terrapins move to the second game of the season Saturday against Florida International at the Orange Bowl in Miami.