The Terps outscored Virginia 20-0 in the second half.
CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. — Maryland football needed a stop from its defense to open the second half. Otherwise, it would have faced a two-possession deficit with an offense that had struggled to get anything going.
Virginia picked up just 1 yard on three plays and punted. The Terps responded with their best offensive possession yet. They drove 68 yards on eight plays, topped off by a 26-yard deep ball to Kaden Prather for a touchdown.
Maryland looked like a new team from that point on. Its offense racked up 250 second-half yards after only gaining 141 in the first, and its defense reduced the Cavaliers’ offense to a shell of its first-half self. Maryland rode that dominance to a 27-13 win over Virginia in Charlottesville.
Virginia quarterback Anthony Colandrea was unstoppable in the first half, throwing for 189 yards on just 13 completions alongside a rushing touchdown. But a Dante Trader Jr. interception on an overthrow and a red-zone fumble proved he was fallible.
Maryland had his number in the second half. Colandrea mustered up just 58 second-half passing yards and threw another interception, this time to Jalen Huskey on a third-down throw into tight coverage.
One of his few second-half completions resulted in a Malachi Fields fumble that set up Maryland’s game-clinching touchdown drive, capped off by a Billy Edwards Jr. quarterback sneak.
The Terps struggled with penalties early — they committed five in the first quarter. Among them included a third-down holding by Shaleak Knotts that stalled their opening possession and a pass interference on Chantz Harley that jump-started Virginia’s first scoring drive.
But the Cavaliers weren’t immune to flags themselves. They had a 65-yard touchdown on a screen pass to receiver Chris Tyree called back for holding. They didn’t get another first down that drive, and subsequently punted.
It took until Virginia’s final first-quarter possession for either team to put points on the board. Harley’s pass interference was followed up by a 45-yard bomb from Colandrea to Trell Harris, setting up Virginia in the red zone. It settled for a 19-yard field goal after back-to-back incompletions.
The first quarter was a sluggish one. But in the second quarter, both offenses found their rhythm.
Virginia finally put a complete drive together early in the frame. It moved 77 yards in 13 plays, and eight of the first 10 plays went for at least 4 yards. But the Terps held, forcing another short field goal.
It took Maryland a little longer to find its groove. The subsequent drive looked promising — it picked up at least 6 yards on five of seven plays — but lineman Andre Roye Jr. committed a false start and an encroachment penalty. The latter came on fourth-and-1 while setting up a quarterback sneak, killing the drive.
After a quick Virginia three-and-out, Maryland marched right back down the field, topping off a seven-play drive with a 19-yard strike to Tai Felton in the end zone to take a 7-6 lead.
“We’re one of those teams that thrive off explosives,” head coach Michael Locksley said. “I’d love to see us continue to put those 10-, 11-, 12-play drives together. But I also like when we feed guys like Tai and Kaden.”
But that lead survived for exactly 42 seconds. Colandrea found tight end Tyler Neville for 39 yards, setting up Virginia well inside the red zone. Colandrea evaded defenders on a 10-yard touchdown scamper the very next play, giving the Cavaliers a one-score lead at halftime.
Virginia couldn’t do anything with its opening drive of the second half. Maryland followed it up with Prather’s long touchdown catch. From that point on, Maryland coasted to a crucial victory over its regional rival.
Edwards finished with 263 passing yards and three total touchdowns. One hundred sixty-eight of those passing yards came after halftime.
Three things to know
1. A tale of two halves. It looked like it would be a long night for Maryland after the first half. It couldn’t get anything going on offense, and outside of self-inflicted errors by Virginia, offered little resistance on defense. Then, the Terps flipped a switch in the second half, outscoring Virginia 20-0. It’s hard to lose when playing as well as Maryland did in the game’s final 30 minutes.
“It’s about physicality,” Locksley said. “At some point, you’ve got to line up and not get cute and just say ‘Hey, we’re bigger. Let’s show and impose our will.’”
2. Early penalties repeatedly killed momentum. Knotts’ holding penalty in the first quarter and Roye’s encroachment in the second both resulted in drives ending prematurely. Harley’s pass interference set Virginia up with good field position on its way to its first score of the night. While penalties were not the only factor in Maryland’s early-game struggles, they certainly didn’t help.
3. Tai Felton is a star in the making. The senior receiver posted nine catches for 117 yards, his third-consecutive game with over 100 receiving yards. He also caught his fourth receiving touchdown of the season. Felton is playing the best football of his career, and is becoming an ultra-reliable safety net for his first-year starting quarterback.
“It’s a testament how hard I work throughout the week,” Felton said. “The practice is the show and the show is practice. All the work that we put in throughout the week, that’s how it comes to fruition.”