Maryland Coach Ralph Friedgen has sat through some maddening defeats during the past two months, but Saturday's 16-0 loss at rival Virginia was perhaps the most painful in a season that has all but slipped away from the Terrapins. Maryland (4-5, 2-4) doesn't look anything like the team model that won 31 games during Friedgen's first three seasons. Just a week after stunning then-No. 5 Florida State, 20-17, the Terrapins gained only seven first downs, failed to gain a half-yard on consecutive plays to squander their best scoring opportunity and were shut out for the first time in 35 games, since losing to Notre Dame, 22-0, in the 2002 opener.
The game started slowly with a scoreless first quarter that featured a fumble and interception by Virginia, and interception by Maryland and a stop by the Cavaliers when Maryland went for a fourth-and-1 at the 14. Maryland twice tried to get the yard on sneaks by Joel Statham, but each time he wound up on a pile that never penetrated the line of scrimmage. ``If you can't make inches, you're going to have trouble winning football games,'' Friedgen said. Statham was 10-for-17 for just 115 yards with two interceptions before being replaced by Jordan Steffy in the fourth quarter. Terp running back Josh Allen gained just 39 yards after riddling the Cavaliers for a career-best 257 last season.
The blame for Maryland's loss to Virginia rested with players, many of whom, Friedgen said, were "flat" and had "blank stares." The Terps have lost games this season because of offensive futility, turnovers or a late-game controversial pass interference call, but never in a passionless fashion, as Friedgen categorized Saturday's game. "It was like the walk of the zombies," Friedgen said. "Nobody was home. We were talking to them, trying to motivate them. Nothing was registering
Maryland must win its last two games(at No. 18 Virginia Tech on Nov. 18 and against Wake Forest on Nov. 27) to qualify for a bowl game.
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