Byrd Stadium

bobp@herald-mail.com MORGANTOWN, W.Va. - Grant Wiley isn't looking to have any tearful, fuzzy moments on Thursday. In fact, West Virginia University's All-American linebacker isn't planning any warm handshakes for Maryland quarterback Scott McBrien. "I'm still friends with him but that's old news," Wiley said of McBrien, a former teammate who transferred to Maryland. "The only thing I plan to do when I see him is to hit him. " So much for friendship. So much for holiday cheer.

keller@herald-mail.com COLLEGE PARK, Md. - It seems quarterback controversies get most of the ink in football. The Maryland Terrapins have had just such a battle simmering this season between Scott McBrien and Chris Kelley, although McBrien may have taken the upper hand with his 300-yard, three-touchdown performance in Saturday night's 45-3 win over Eastern Michigan at Byrd Stadium. The more pressing question for the Terps now is who is going to be the feature running back?

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.

COLLEGE PARK, Md. - Poof. That puff of smoke you see is what's left of the University of Maryland football season. That's what happens when a team combines a paper-thin offense with a red-hot defense. It's flammable, for a while. That flicker of flame produced three wins in 11 tries for the Terps, who lost six of their last seven. After the first five games, Maryland smoldered when it had a chance to spread like wildfire. The Atlantic Coast Conference doused the Terps' dreams with a cold bucket of reality.

bobp@herald-mail.com COLLEGE PARK, Md. - University of Maryland football coach Ralph Friedgen went on the offense Tuesday. He can only hope his Terrapins will do the same on Saturday. After a weekend where the Terps turned in their worst performance in Friedgen's three-plus years at the helm, the coach was stern, strapped in and ready for action. There is one question that he has been asked constantly since the lethargic 20-7 loss to Georgia Tech and it was the obvious first question of his weekly media conference on Tuesday.

bobp@herald-mail.com COLLEGE PARK, Md. - The University of Maryland endured something worse than an embarrassing loss last Saturday. While Georgia Tech taught the Terrapins' struggling offense a painful lesson, Maryland also received a vocabulary lesson. Unfortunately, the word of the day was "Booooooo. " For the first time in the Ralph Friedgen era, the Maryland natives became restless with the play of the Terrapins. Fans sitting in Byrd Stadium unleashed an opera in boo flat as quarterback Joel Statham failed to move the offense and Maryland lost some of its magic touch that suddenly came with a winning record.

bobp@herald-mail.com COLLEGE PARK, Md. - University of Maryland football coach Ralph Friedgen likes to keep his teams feeling young at heart. During his first three seasons with the Terrapins, Friedgen did his level best to keep a lot of pressure off his team so the players would perform well and have fun. In 2004, though, it won't be difficult for Friedgen to grasp that feeling. The Terps are not only young at heart, they are young at quarterback, young at lineman, young at defensive back ... Face it, the Terps are young all over.

bobp@herald-mail.com COLLEGE PARK, Md. - It's been said many times ... "Speed kills. " Over the years, the overall quickness of the Florida State football team has left the University of Maryland on death row. On Saturday, the Terrapins enabled then-No. 5 Florida State to use that speed to commit suicide. Maryland turned the Seminoles' fleet-footed ability against them, forcing FSU to go from race leader to pace chaser in the Terps' stunning 20-17 victory at Byrd Stadium - their first win in 15 tries against the powerhouse program.

bobp@herald-mail.com COLLEGE PARK, Md. - Sam Hollenbach decided to give Maryland one more chance. On Saturday, he was rewarded for his patience and perseverance when the Terrapins decided to give the sophomore quarterback his first chance. Both sides made out for it in the long run. Hollenbach got his first start of the season in the final game of the year and gave Maryland a methodical lift to finish the season on a high note with a 13-7 win over Wake Forest at Byrd Stadium in a game which had more pride than prosperity at stake.

bobp@herald-mail.com COLLEGE PARK, Md. - Joel Statham plays for the Fridge but thinks like the Bear. Saturday's game was the next step in the University of Maryland quarterback's maturation process as the leader of the Terrapins offense. Saturday was a time to get comfortable, improve on his skills and do what it would take to get the Terps headed in the right direction. The sophomore quarterback did all that while listening to coach Ralph Friedgen's advice and remembering an old Paul "Bear" Bryant quote about success.