SB Nation - Travis Baltz

Maryland Football Season Review: Special Teams

Ben Broman — Sat, 12 Dec 2009 16:21:21 -0000

Saving the best for last. It's a bit ironic that the area Maryland was best at - special teams - is also one of the least important spots on the field for a team that's already bad, but I suppose they had to be good as something.

Actually, Maryland has a record of producing great special teams. Brooks Barnard, Adam Podlesh, Nick Novak, Steve Suter...all have been key parts to good teams, and among the best in the country at what they do. This year wasn't much different.

Nick Ferrara, K/P

I'm not joking when I say that Ferrara is a legitimate contender for team MVP. He was an admirable 18-25 for 72% on FGs, and even nailed a 50-yarder. He had two blocked, but they can work on his kick height. For a freshman, the kicking job was plenty good enough for me. Oh, and that's not even mentioning the fact that he was also the punter for the majority of the year. His average there wasn't quite as good as the full-time punter at 39.8, but he had a knack for avoiding touchbacks (just one on the year) and had 6 land inside 20 yards, along with six 50+ yard punts.

When you consider he was handling both kicking and punting duties, Ferrara's performance was pretty great. Kudos to him there. I'm expecting a solid sophomore campaign as he grows calmer, learns to get his kicks higher, and isn't doing absolutely everything.

Travis Baltz, P

The season for Travis just never got off the ground. He was expected to be one of the best punters in the ACC, not to mention the country, but injuries quickly derailed that, and he ended up sitting on the sideline for most of the year. While his stats were okay when he was kicking (40.7 yards per punt), they too were hampered by his injuries.

Even before he was hurt, though, he wasn't looking quite as good as I had expected him to look. Regardless, he has the track record, and if he can stay healthy next year there's no reason to expect he won't be one of the best in the ACC.

Torrey Smith, KR

Maryland's kingpin, Torrey Smith was not only the best player on the team, but one of the most dangerous players in the NCAA. He ended up 6th in the country in all-purpose yardage despite being all but ignored for several games on offense, and registered the second highest yards per play average out of the top 19 in the APY category. He was a threat to house it every time he touched the ball, no matter where on the field, and teams recognized that and started to kick away from him.

I will say that he's not quite as good as you'd think with those stats, because he returned more kicks than basically anyone else in the entire country, but that simply means he was top 30 in KRs, not top 10. He was still dangerous and did what I like to see KR do - take the ball, find a seam, and run.

In the future, I'd like to see him paired with Caleb Porzel to force opponents' hands when kicking to them - either kick it to Torrey, the equally dangerous Porzel, or out of bounds.

Tony Logan, PR

Logan made his living as a punt returner off one play - the return against Clemson. Other than that single return, he was pretty average and rather Oquendo-esque; that is, fair catch or gain about five yards. I'd love to see someone more dangerous out there, like Porzel. Part of me thinks his move to fair catch or "safer" returns was something that came at the coaches' request, considering one of his first returns went 40+ yards.

It'll be interesting to see if holds the spot next year. Kenny Tate and Porzel will fight for that spot hard.

The Future

All of the key pieces of the special teams return, so next year is looking good. Ferrara will improve over the off-season, and Baltz will get healthy and return to his old form. Logan will either improve or someone more dangerous will take over, and Smith will be back and dangerous as ever.

Now, if there was just a team to surround them.

Maryland-Duke Report Card and Helmet Stickers

Ben Broman — Sun, 25 Oct 2009 13:25:14 -0000

Was this a worse played game than UVA? Very possibly.

QB: B-

Can't say too much bad about Chris Turner today, mostly because he wasn't given the opportunity to actually throw the ball. Franklin seemed to abandon the pass pretty quickly as the conditions worsened, and Turner was rendered obsolete. He was great at the beginning of the game - completed eight of his first nine - but wasn't the same after we stopped passing it in the mid second quarter. He still had his usual problems with passes getting tipped at the line and a terrible interception, but all in all, not a bad day for Turner.

RB: C+

Definitely not a breakout game for Porzel in his first start, and I doubt he'll be making another one with Ralph's tendencies, but it wasn't terrible. When he found a hole, you could see his explosiveness. He's easily the quickest and shiftiest player on the team; at this point, it's all about getting him reps. He did seem to wear down quickly, but it was a good start.

Davin Meggett looked good again, slowly reclaiming last year's performance. He averaged more than four yards per carry and had the 67 yard touchdown reception off the screen. He did have a key drop, but the ball was wet and throw was a bit high. If the grade here looks low, it's because Maryland still only averaged 2 yards per carry; a lot of that's blocking, but that's also partially on the backs.

WR: B

I think we can finally welcome Adrian Cannon to the club as a legit wide receiver. Now, when will let Torrey Smith back in?

Cannon looked awesome, but how do we again ignore the (former, now) NCAA leader in all-purpose yardage. For the first five weeks he was the only consistent weapon on offense, and now he's not even getting the ball.

I guess that's better left to coaching, though. Cannon was great, and the rest of the group was pretty average for the day.

OL: D+

On the plus side, Duke only got one sack on Chris Turner. On the negative, they got constant penetration into the backfield, probably should've had two more sacks, and had six tackles for loss. The play that stands out to me is the Caleb Porzel draw in the third (?) quarter, when he is tackled literally as soon as he touches the ball. They didn't have to blitz much, but they still controlled the line. The rushing game had some respites with the quicker Porzel, but it was still evident this group is very much a work-in-progress.

DL: D+

With a passing attack as measured as Duke's is, you have to leave a lot of guys back in coverage - otherwise, Thaddeus Lewis will eat the defense up. At times, Maryland did that, but the defensive line was so dominated by Duke's offensive line that it didn't really matter: Lewis had all day to throw the ball anyway, and coverage can only hold so long. In response, Maryland would blitz more, and it'd be even easier for Lewis. I can only remember one time that the defensive line - by itself - ever got into the backfield. After controlling the game against UVA, it's clear that it's possible, but it didn't happen today.

LB: C+

First off, hat tip to Ben Pooler. The guy's a legit LB and looked pretty good in his second start: he's a great fourth linebacker, and I'm trying to figure out why we burnt Darin Drakeford's and Avery Murray's redshirts. Seriously, leading tackle, with one sack and two tackles for loss...that's a great performance.

Alex Wujciak was his normal self - solid against the run, ugly against the pass, and slow, which adds up to not very good against a team that passed it 43 times. He's a great asset, but only in certain situations. Adrian Moten was surprisingly quiet this week; he seems to alternate between good and bad each week, but he was solid in coverage.

That said, all three of them got abused in pass coverage - either zone or man - at least once, usually more.

DB: C-

Ouch. Outside of one good play from Anthony Wiseman and a few gigantic hits and picks by Cameron Chism - by the way, I'm no longer referring to the hit stick...it's now the Chism stick - it was a pretty rough day. Richard Taylor getting toasted in man coverage sticks out in my memory for some reason, but most of the guys, including the safeties, had a rough go of it. If not for Chism - who, in case there was any doubt, proved wholly that he should be the #1 corner with that performance - this grade is in the Ds or Fs. Yes, the defensive line had trouble getting to the QB, but Lewis often didn't even need the time they were giving him.

Special Teams: C

Nick Ferrara continued his MVP performance (really) with two field goals and his first touchback as a kickoff man, and Travis Baltz looked solid in his first game back after injury. Sadly, Torrey Smith looked only average as a kickoff return man, and Tony Logan muffed Maryland's last chance. Can't do that.

Coaching: D

See this. And, in a while, another post about the coaching. It simply didn't make sense: QB draws on 3rd and 18 (I don't care that it nearly worked, the playcall was horrendous), completely ignoring Torrey Smith for the second straight week, abandoning the Wild Turtle after just one play for the second straight week, burning Eric Franklin's redshirt, putting in Caleb Porzel on 4th down, accepting the holding call...want me to go on?

Helmet Stickers:

Adrian Cannon, WR - He had his real breakout game this week, and showed he can be just as elite as Torrey Smtih. The only difference is that he actually gets the ball.
Ben Pooler, LB - Props go out to Pooler, who also saw his coming out party yesterday: 13 tackles, the most on either team, 2.5 tackles for loss, tied for the most on either team, and a forced fumble.
Nick Ferrara, K - Nick the Kick had another solid day, 2-2 with a couple of good kickoffs.
Davin Meggett, RB - Really, nobody else deserved one. Meggett himself was a stretch, but at least he saw the endzone.

Maryland-Rutgers Grades and Helmet Stickers

Ben Broman — Sun, 27 Sep 2009 01:07:32 -0000

More photos » by Rob Carr - AP

2 months ago: Maryland's Brandon Jackson-Mills, left, and Jamari McCollough (4) sit on the bench during the closing moments of Maryland's 34-13 loss to Rutgers during an NCAA college football game, Saturday, Sept. 26, 2009, in College Park, Md. (AP Photo/Rob Carr)

Browse more photos »

It was ugly. Really ugly. It should also remind you of a Family Guy episode with three of the first four grades.

But hey, there's always the defense.

QB: F

This was the first really bad performance for Chris Turner this year. And god, was it bad. Three interceptions, only one of which was really forced, and a huge fumble in the end zone would usually be enough for this grade all by themselves. But combine that with a poor day throwing the ball even outside of those four plays, and I kind of want to give him a J. Maybe a J+, because he did throw a TD. Seriously, I was pining for Joel Statham today.

Turner can turn it around, I have no doubt about that. He's not that physically talented, sure, but there's a reason he's played well before. Turner of the sophomore and junior years had some awesome games. But he's equally capable of going out and having games like this, being all-around terrible. If he doesn't bounce back, neither does Maryland.

RBs: D

Neither Da'Rel Scott nor Davin Meggett had any impact today - well, that's not entirely true. See, Scott fumbled again, and Meggett missed an assignment which led to Turner's endzone fumble. Other than that, no impact.

Honestly, I'd be surprised if Scott starts next week or even sees the field much. I'm not saying that's what I'd do - right now this is mental for Da'Rel, not an ability issue, so benching only makes the problem worse - but Ralph doesn't like stuff like this. The problem with that is that Meggett isn't talented enough to replace Scott, at least not without a major dropoff. Quite a predicament, to be sure, but not one I thought they'd find themselves in at the start of the season. Perhaps Gary Douglas gets some looks next week. There's always Caleb Porzel or D.J. Adams, too.

WRs: B

Ronnie Tyler had his habitually two open drops, but he made up for them with two great catches. Adrian Cannon had a nice snag. And of course, Torrey Smith had a big day, though he still didn't get the ball nearly enough (4 catches?). LaQuan Williams even had a TD. With Turner throwing the ball behind or too far ahead of the WRs almost every time, you can't complain about their performance outside of the two Tyler drops.

OL: D

They weren't good, that's for sure. Bruce Campbell's presence didn't help much, and neither did the inclusion of Maurice Hampton into the starting lineup at RG. Running the ball was particularly bad - Scott and Meggett rarely had any holes. Turner, while not excusing his mistakes, tended to be under a decent amount of pressure. To top it off, there were a couple of big penalties from the linemen (though they didn't really make that big of an impact). They're getting a little better, but still a very long way to go.

DL: C+

I considered not even including the final ten minutes in these grades, because by that point 1) there was no emotion left, 2) the game was all but out of hand, and 3) the defense was exhausted by being constantly on the field. But I did factor them in a bit, which will bring all these grades down a bit. Anyway, Maryland's defensive line has been absymal so far. But for some reason, they didn't look bad today. Maybe it's because I was looking for a positive, but they were able to shut down Rutgers' running game most of the game, and were part of a complete shutdown of the Scarlet Knights for the first three quarters.

LBs: A

Alex Wujciak looked good against the State University of his former home, making a few big tackles and occasionally showing off some improved speed. Demetrius Hartsfield is continuing to show why so many people hyped him up so early in his career. He really nailed Natale once, and forced him to leave the game for a few plays. Lastly, Adrian Moten looked awesome. Easily the best player on the defense. Can't really say much bad about them for these types of performances. Selective memory, perhaps, but it was definitely a good performance.

DBs: B+

This would be better if it weren't for the final Rutgers TD. After all, the group held Rutgers to a measly four completions, and were buoyed by some great coverage for most of the game. They actually caused a coverage sack - I may not be able to say that for the rest of the year. Of course, it was against Domenic Natale, whom not too many people would describe as a good QB, but I'll take what I can get.

On the negative, though, both Kenny Tate and Cameron Chism got caught on pass interference calls, and Tate and Terrell Skinner were victims of piss-poor tackling on Joe Martinek's long TD run. Those bring down what should've been an A performance.

ST: C

Torrey Smith wasn't great on kickoff returns, though he was solid (and set the Maryland career KO return yardage record...in his 4th game as a sophomore). Nick Ferrara had two field goals, one of which barely snuck in after being partially blocked. Travis Baltz got hurt, and his replacement, Ted Townsley, botched a punt snap. Overall, a very average performance.

Coaching: D

Could it have been higher than a D? Yeah, it could've probably be in the C area. But I'm still pissed that Ralph called for the punt on 4th down with 3 minutes left. Really going for the win there. Of course, Rutgers would go on to score a TD on that drive, making the score look worse than it already was, which was pretty bad. Gotta show some kind of confidence in the kids, even when they don't deserve it.

Helmet Stickers:

Torrey Smith, WR - Smith's helmet will be full of stickers by the end of the year. He gets it as much for breaking the record as he does the offensive performance, which was pretty darn good in its own right.
Adrian Moten, LB - Best player on Maryland's defense, no doubt. He was all over the field and made a few huge plays, including a sack and a few TFLs.
Nick Ferrara, K - Okay, so he wasn't great, but neither was Townsley and I already gave Smith a helmet sticker. He made two FGs, and got back on track after a rough game last week. He has the potential to have a Novak-esque career.
Alex Wujciak, LB - God knows I'm not giving it to anyone else on offense, though I kind of considered Ronnie Tyler for that ridiculous catch. But Wujciak's tackle on 4th and goal in the third quarter was money, and should've been a gamechanging play.

Maryland-Cal: Grades

Ben Broman — Mon, 07 Sep 2009 14:23:53 -0000

I wanted to hold off on posting any sort of grades or report card for at least 24 hours, because if I did it yesterday, all the grades would've been Ds. But now that I've had some time to think it over and recover, these grades seem pretty sensible to me.

(Note: I don't like report cards. Ever since Chemistry, I've disliked attaching quantitative values to qualitative things. But I haven't found a better way to do it yet, so this is what I'm stuck with.)

Okay, moving on:

QB: B

The more I think about it, the better Chris Turner's play seems. No, he wasn't lights out, but he was 17-30 with no interceptions, and should've had a touchdown. He had a few really nicely thrown balls - the TD and the fade to Torrey Smith come to mind - and made some plays with his feet, surprisingly. He wasn't perfect - he threw two or three passes that very easily could've been intercepted, and consistently threw the ball behind Adrian Cannon early on, killing any chance at a RAC. That said, considering he was under pressure most of the game, it wasn't a bad performance.

RB: B+

Really, neither Da'Rel Scott nor Davin Meggett had much to work with. There was a definite lack of holes to run through, and they were forced to bounce it outside most of the time. Fortunately, they made the most of what they had and turned in really good performances. Scott had 91 yards on just 13 carries and Maryland's only touchdown of the day on a 39 yard scamper. Meggett had 37 yards on four carries for a 4 ypc average - not bad at all. While I'm expecting better in the future from this duo, considering the circumstances, I find it tough to complain.

WR: B

Wide receiver is always a tough position to grade. If no one dominated the game (ala Hey-Bey) and no one has a bunch of drops, not a lot stands out in memory. The only drop I remember is Matt Furstenburg on a post that would've gone for about 25 yards. It was a big drop, but that was the only one, so it's tough to harp on it too much. Torrey Smith was ultra-productive when he got involved in the offense - two reverses for 16 yards total, plus a really nice 29 yard fade route - but didn't get enough touches. Adrian Cannon didn't show the big play potential that a lot of people had been expecting, but he did have 5 catches for 30 yards. I'm including the TEs in this grade, and both Tommy Galt and Lansford Watson had great games. Watson might've earned a starting position with a few huge plays, and Galt was a solid blocker and receiver over the middle.

OL: F

You knew it was coming. If you looked at the rest of the grades on offense and wondered how it was that Maryland only got one touchdown out of the day, here's the answer. The line not only contributed to a number of drive-killing penalties, they allowed pressure on Turner all day long and didn't open up holes for the RBs. There's not much positive to say about the performance. Every time Maryland got a little momentum, the OLine would kill it. And it wasn't just the young guys (though they were the main perpetrators). Rick Costa and Bruce Campbell had a few penalties, and were beaten occasionally. Cal has a very good defense, but the line needs to make marked improvements if Maryland is to compete this year.

DL: D

Almost as bad as the OL, the defensive line was completely manhandled. There was no pressure on Riley except when blitzing, there was no penetration into the backfield, and most of the time they didn't even hold their ground. The one time they did get into the backfield to make a sack without help from four other biltzers, Jared Harrell let a notably unathletic QB shake him and throw a TD. Awful. I know they're young, like the OL, but if this is how the rest of the season is going to be, Don Brown has some real tinkering to do to try to make this defense stand up.

LB: C-

It's tough to expect much from a group that had virtually no protection in front of them, but if DRS and Meggs can make something out of it, I'd expect All-ACC Alex Wujciak and team captain Adrian Moten to make an impact. Unfortunately, none was made. Wujciak had seven tackles, but consistently showed his lack of speed and athleticism. Adrian Moten was surprisingly quiet outside of a sack, and Demetrius Hartsfield - who's been getting a ton of props as Maryland's next great LB - missed a few tackles and didn't have much of an impact. Overall, I expected much better out of a very talented group.

DB: C

Anthony Wiseman looked out of place, was picked on a lot, and committed a few penalties that hurt. He did have a few really nice pass breakups, but he'll have to toughen up to work well in the press. Nolan Carroll was better, and shut down his receiver for much of the day, but was beaten badly a few times and didn't look good in run support. Cam Chism saw the field a decent amount, but looked as bad as Wiseman.

Luckily, the safeties pull this grade back up, as their play was miles better. Jamari McCollough was solid before his injury (I won't forget him standing back up to make the tackle after getting hurt) and Antwine Perez was all over the place and led the team in tackles. Terrell Skinner is definitely not a cover guy and got bailed out with a dropped pass after being beaten, but no harm done, I suppose. Kenny Tate didn't have the best of days and gotten beaten deep a couple times, but he was the outlier of the group.

Special Teams: B

If Maryland fails everywhere else, the one place you can rely on is special teams. Travis Baltz had a bad day, granted, but a bad day for him is a pretty good day for anyone else. Nick Ferrara went 2-2 and was solid on kickoffs, locking up the kicking job for the foreseeable future. Torrey Smith had the killer fumble, which keeps this from being a B+, but was his solid, consistent self after that. Kenny Tate returned punts, and looked very good doing it. He adds a big play potential Maryland hasn't had there since Steve Suter. Sadly, special teams was one of the biggest bright spots of the day.

Cal-Maryland Preview: It's Game Day

Ben Broman — Sat, 05 Sep 2009 17:03:45 -0000

It's game day! We've waited so long...

While you can go anywhere to see a fuller, more stat-filled preview than this, here's a short look at what you can expect from the game today:

Maryland's Offense vs. Cal's Defense - The Golden Bears' defense looks to be one of the better ones this year, with 8 returning starters. The problem, though, is that all three new starters are linebackers; the Golden Bears are replacing a trio of starting ‘backers, which is probably their weakest point on defense. The defensive line and secondary should be good enough to compensate, but it's a point of interest, especially in the 3-4 defense, when much more pressure is placed on the LBs. There are quite a few great players on Cal's defense, though: Cameron Jordan and Tyson Alualu are Cal's stars along the defensive line at DE, while Syd'Quan Thompson is one of the top cover corners in the nation.

On Maryland's side, the worst thing Maryland's young offensive line could face is that 3-4 alignment. It's traditionally more confusing and tougher to handle than the traditional 4-3, so missed assignments may be plentiful. If the line can handle the different look, Maryland should look to run...a lot. Hey-Bey had his way with Thompson last year, but Torrey Smith - as much as I like him - doesn't have that ability. The passing game will probably be limited to second and third options while the running game attempts to attack the weak LB corps with 6 or 7 yard runs.

Maryland's Defense vs. Cal's Offense - Jahvid Best, Jahvid Best, Jahvid Best. That's pretty much all you need to know about Cal's offense. Kevin Riley is an adequate QB , but not much more. The WRs for Cal are probably the biggest weakness on the team. Cal's offensive line is very good, and Best benefits from having a decent amount of holes opened up for him. I don't expect there to be any problems against Maryland's inexperienced DL. After getting knocked out of the game last year, Best is probably looking to get some revenge, and he has the ability to make Maryland hurt.

I wouldn't be surprised if Don Brown took Chris Cosh's stategy of stopping Best at all costs - Kenny Tate or Antwine Perez may be a fourth linebacker when they're on the field. The secondary is experienced enough to handle an average Cal passing game; the biggest problem will be stopping Best. Of course, Brown does have a card up his sleeve - there's almost no tape on his defense, making it near impossible to adequately prepare for it.

Special Teams - Maryland and Cal are spookily similar in this category. Both had placekicking battles during the spring, and both were decided only recently. True freshman Vince D'Amato will handle the duties for Cal, and the Terps' kicker has been decided but not announced. It's very possible that both teams will sport true freshman kickers, so field goals may be few and far between. Both have great punters - the Bears' Bryan Anger was a Freshman All-America first teamer, while Travis Baltz is a Ray Guy award semifinalist. To top it off, both have electric kick returners - Best will field kicks for the Golden Bears, while Torrey Smith - the record holder for kick return yards in a single season in the ACC - returns for Maryland.

Cliff Notes Version: Too lazy to actually read that? Here's the Cliff Notes:

Cal's defense returns 8 starters, so there's a lot of experience.
All three new starters are LBs, though, so that could be an area of weakness.
Cal's 3-4 defense might confuse Maryland's young offensive line.
Expect Maryland to try to run the ball and take advantage of a weaker LB corps with 5 to 7 yard runs.
Jahvid Best is the core of Cal's offense.
Expect quite a lot of running from Cal, as Kevin Riley and Cal's WRs aren't all that great.
Fortunately, there's no DI tape of Don Brown's defense, so it's possible that Cal isn't prepared for it.
Both teams have young kickers, great punters, and explosive returners.

Maryland Minute 8.24.09 - More Freshmen News, New BB Target, Tobias Harris

Ben Broman — Tue, 25 Aug 2009 02:00:30 -0000

Both of Maryland's top freshman 'backers - Darin Drakeford is #52, Murray #46. Image via Inside MD Sports

View full size photo »

Q&A With Seamo
A long Q&A with LB coach Al Seamonson, all of which is read-worthy, but there's one thing that stood out especially.

I think there's no question guys like Drakeford and Murray will help this year. Now how much on defense, depends on health and game situations, etc. Both I think will play vital roles in our kicking game early, from game one on to game 12.

Sounds like quite a few freshmen will burn their shirts this year....

Eric Franklin Could See PT This Year
...and Eric Franklin might be one of them. These rumblings have been going around for awhile, so it's not all that surprising, but I didn't expect Franklin to adapt this quickly.

New Target, Plus Tobias Harris' Schedule
First up, looks like Maryland's going somewhat hard after NY forward Devon Collier. I'm sure Devon is good - he is in the Rivals150 and ESPNU100- but is he a significantly better talent than, say, Hippo Tsafack or Jon Graham? Unless the answer is an overwhelming yes, I don't see a real reason to push hard for him when guys like Tsafack and Graham could help local relations and/or require less work. Just saying.

Also, Tobias Harris has his in-home visit schedule finalized, and there's good news for Maryland - they get the last shot to talk to Harris. This is positive for a couple reasons - one, Maryland is the last one in his mind when cuts his list, and two, Gary can fight back if anyone has done any negative recruiting. [Thanks word2bigbird]

More on the kicking situation
It's still down to Nick Ferrara vs. Mike Barbour, and Ferrara has all the momentum right now.

BREAKING: Maryland's RBs are Stacked
In case you hadn't heard.

ALSO BREAKING: Richard Taylor is old
Have you heard that Richard Taylor is a 6th year senior? Crazy, I know.

The ACC's Best
The Sporting News compiled a list of the best players/teams in the ACC at certain things. There a few Terps there, though some were a surprise:

Blocking back: Cory Jackson, Maryland
Foot: Travis Baltz, Maryland
Motivator: Ralph Friedgen, Maryland
Bet to be a head coach soon: James Franklin, offensive coordinator, Maryland
Between-the-tackles runner: Da'Rel Scott, Maryland

Ok, first of all, I don't think Fridge is the best motivator. He's a good one, but this is the same coach that let his team lost to Middle Tennessee State, after all. Oh, and of course Frank will be a HC soon - it legally can't be any later than 2012 or the university pays him $1 mil.

A Recap Of The Best Basketball Weekend Of The Summer - Dime
Just a quick notebook:

- C.J. "Talk of the Town" Leslie (15 points, 11 rebounds) clearly has SportsCenter Top 10 constantly on the mind
- Roscoe Smith (22 points, 7 rebounds) is a BEAST!

- While Tobias Harris (20 points, 5 rebounds) had a lot of hype surrounding him before the game, the kid can play. Lots of runners though.

- Portland cats Terrence Ross and Terrence Jones would have been one of the best tandems in the country is Ross didn’t transfer to Montrose Christian. Maybe Jones can go to Maryland.

I hope so, Dime. I hope so.

Nike TOC Recap
Really, only one Maryland target was on the floor at the Nike Tournament of Champions: Mike Taylor.

Mike "Mike Teezy" Taylor drove to the basket very well throughout the night, but was unable to rack up many points. He did have a nice pull-up jumper in the first half though. Taylor continues to be one of the most heavily recruited, yet over-looked nationally, targets in the class of 2011 on the east coast. Taylor listed Pittsburgh, Villanova, Maryland, Virginia, Virginia Tech, Seton Hall, Rutgers, St. John’s, Illinois, South Carolina, Oklahoma, Marquette and West Virginia as schools that have offered him on Sunday with Georgetown also showing interest. Taylor will attend a Five Star Basketball camp this week and then visit Pittsburgh shortly after it ends. He is also planning to visit Villanova, possibly for their elite camp.

I'd love to land Taylor, if only for the Born Ready revenge angle - Taylor played for Lincoln archrival Boys & Girls.

Moten and Hartsfield Trash Talk On And About Twitter
Ha:

@Carolinaboy59 I'm on Twitter and u cant

Demetrius' response?

@motenlive shut up ***...I'm sry I pay attention in meetings...sometimes

This was apparently during a meeting, and both tweeted from mobile apps. I know they should be paying attention, but...I <3 our linebacking corps.

Gary Parrish asks the $64,000 question
So, Memphis played Derrick Rose, an ineligible player, and lost their Final Four appearance. Duke played Corey Maggette, an ineligible player, and...well, nothing happened to them. So, NCAA, care to explain?

Recruiting Report: Weekend wrap — New Terps target
You know what it is by now: Bracken's weekend recruiting wrap. I'm not even going to give this an intro in a couple more weeks.

Self-Promo: TT Interview with BearsWithFangs
We virtually sat down with BearsWithFangs, a Cal blog, and answered questions about the upcoming Maryland-Cal game. Read up if you want to, or just rest happily knowing there's a blog with the name BearsWithFangs.

Second Scrimmage Storylines: Kicking Battle, Offensive Return, Caleb Porzel

Ben Broman — Sun, 23 Aug 2009 23:49:35 -0000

In case you hadn't heard, Maryland held their second scrimmage of the year today, and there was quite the outpouring of news. Need a rundown? Here's the big stories (note: all of these links are from Twitter. Beware if you don't like it):

We Were This Close To Having a Kicker - Yeah, that close. Mike Barbour, the leader after last week's scrimmage, looked to have wrapped the job up after a couple kicks. After all, after hits from 30, 46 (or 50), 36, and 39, how could he not have it? Well, he finished up poorly and missed a couple kicks, and Ralph said he "solidified the job and then opened it back up again." Darn, we were that close. If I had to bet, Nick Ferrara is his main competition right now, though that may not be correct.
The Return of the Offense - Maryland's offense has basically been miserably bad. But today, that wasn't really the case. Jeff Barker teased us with the notice that, while the D is still better, the offense is catching up. After all, they scored on their first drive (Turner to Smith for a 34 yarder). Plus, the running backs started to catch fire, with good days from all.
Caleb Porzel Makes an Impression - After Chris Turner called him "faster than the speed of light", my expectations raised for the speedy true freshman running back. I wasn't disappointed. He had a 35 yard TD run with a couple of nice moves, and Friedgen said he thinks "we're going to play the kid somewhere because he's so electric. I'd say there's probably an 80% shot his redshirt is burned.
Individual Performances - Among the guys that were seen fit to mention for good games: Torrey Smith, Morgan Green, Eric Franklin, Travis Baltz, and Gary Douglas.

That's it for now. Pat Stevens had the first full report out, and subsequent ones will be in the MM.

Maryland Minute 8.16.09 - Wujciak Named to Bednarik Watch List, Portis Update

Ben Broman — Mon, 17 Aug 2009 03:24:09 -0000

Not a lot of stuff this weekend. Might not be normal MM quality.

Wujciak on Bednarik Watch List
Alex Wujciak joins Travis Baltz and Da'Rel Scott as the watch-listed Terps. Had to expect it.

Ex-Terp Update: Josh Portis - TWT
Nice update on Josh Portis, who now plays for California, Pa., a DII powerhouse. He'll have two years of eligibility, and he'll probably be the most talented guy in whatever conference he'll be in. He also doesn't seem at all bitter, so there's no bad feelings on my part.

No one picking Da'Rel Scott
He may've been picked for the Doak Watchlist, but it doesn't look like anyone is actually watching him.

Scrimmage Injuries - Pat Stevens
Pretty calm so far, with no big injuries. Pat Stevens runs down the minor ones - Caleb Porzel's mild MCL sprain, Phil Costa's knee, and Anthony Wiseman's knee.

2011 Prospect Achraf Yacoubou Profile
Maryland looks to be involved with NYC guard Achraf Yocoubou, who attended the same HS as Tobias Harris last year.

His current list includes Connecticut, Villanova, Wake Forest, Kentucky, Maryland, Florida, Pittsburgh, Wisconsin, Georgia Tech, Oklahoma and Rutgers. "All of them [have offered] except for Florida," the 6-4, 200-lb. Yacoubou said.

DX Early HS Scouting Reports: Anderson, Jones
From Draft Express, a site I really like.

While obviously it’s way too early to be talking about a player who just finished his freshman year of high school, it was tough not taking notice of the talent that Justin Anderson displays. Not only does the lefty bring great physical tools to the table, highlighted by a great frame, wingspan and athleticism, but he also looks to be a very smart, tough, active player with a pretty nice stroke. He competed non-stop, defended extremely well and also did a great job crashing the glass. Already ranked by ESPN as one of the top five players in the 2012 high school class, Anderson has quite a future ahead of him if he continues to work hard and doesn’t let the hype go to his head.

One of the fastest-rising players in the 2010 class based on his play this summer, Terrence Jones (#34 Scout, #15 Rivals, #16 ESPN) didn’t disappoint in the least bit when we went out to see him in the GBOA tournament in Las Vegas. A 6-8 tweener forward with solid athleticism and a nice frame, Jones does a little bit of everything for his team. He likes to play primarily facing the basket, where he shows a nice first step and the ability to attack his man off the dribble going either left or right. Not blessed with great advanced ball-handling skills at this point—he’s mainly a two-dribble guy without much of a mid-range game—Jones does an excellent job using shot-fakes to create space and takes the ball very strong to the rack.

There's a lot more on Jones, but 1) I didn't want to steal clicks, and 2) I didn't want to clutter the post. Check the link for an extra three paragraphs.

Tobias Harris Part of "New York's Banner Year"
But he's beaten by a four star DE and a lacrosse player. Some list.

Apparently The Loss of a 1000+ Yard Rusher Doesn't Hurt Hokie's ACC Shot
Oh, to have that depth (well, we have it at RB, but everywhere else, too). All five of Rivals' analysts say so, and I actually kind of agree.

Maryland Minute 8.12.09 - Permanent Captains, Dion Armstrong, Terps Still Lead for Parker

Ben Broman — Thu, 13 Aug 2009 02:21:10 -0000

Permanent captains possible - D1SCOURSE
Does it have an impact? Perhaps. Is it interesting? Very.

Friedgen is considering instituting permanent captains for the first time in his tenure after his Terrapin Council asked if it was possible to do so. "I told them I was going to wait until the end of two-a-days to do that and have a team vote," Friedgen said. "I'll probably have two on offense and two on defense and then get a special teams captain for every game."

So, offense will be Chris Turner and Phil Costa? And defense will be two of Travis Ivey, Nolan Carroll, and Alex Wujciak? That sounds right to me, anybody I'm forgetting?

Good news on the Dion Armstrong front (no he didn't qualify)
But AJ Francis thinks that that stuff about Armstrong not being a hard worker is baloney:

"I don't know what the whole situation is as of today, but he's doing the work he needs to do," Francis said. "He gets a bum rap. People say he's lazy and he's not doing the work he needs to do, but he is. It's just sometimes he doesn't prioritize the way he should, but he's fixed that completely. The fact of the matter is he's a different person."

Terps Still Lead for Parker - NBE
He's still probably the most likely to commit next, unless the Terps slowplay him.

"Parker’s top five at the moment includes Maryland, Wake Forest, Miami, Auburn and Arkansas," Landseadel told NBE in an e-mail. "Parker appears to be leaning towards Maryland at the moment, and is planning on making his visits in the fall to help finalize his choice."

SI Says: No Bowl for Maryland
Just some more bulletin board material for Ralph & Co. God knows they have enough of it.

Oh Joy!
Kenny Tate could be a hybrid nickle linebacker. Yes, a linebacker. Is there any doubt he won't be a beast on the field this year?

What's hot (and not) in college football for 2009 - ESPN
Hey! Have you heard Ralph Friedgen lost weight and Maryland's offensive line is young?

HOT: Fridge's thinner waistline: Maryland coach Ralph Friedgen has dropped nearly 100 pounds since October with an improved diet and exercise.

NOT: Fridge's thinner offensive line: If the Terrapins are going to match last season's 8-5 record, they'll have to replace three starters on the offensive line.

CFN's Best Linebackers: Wujciak Clocks in at #22
That's fair, I suppose. He is a tackle machine, even if his game isn't quite as well-rounded as I'd like.

CFN's Best Kick Returners: No Torrey Smith?
Really, guys? He might not've been the most explosive kick returner, but he set an ACC record as a freshman. That's got to count for something. And it's not like they were just from a bunch of 25 yard returns - he busted a 99 yarder on Nevada.

Terps Insider: Travis Baltz Profile
Nice piece on one of the best punters in the game, Travis Baltz. I found this a little funny:

To calm his nerves, he takes a deep breath and he thinks about Gaba, or Florence Baltz as she was more commonly known. Gaba was Baltz's grandmother, and while she occasionally watched Baltz play, Baltz said he wasn't sure how much she really understood about the sport. However, that didn't mean Gaba was bereft of competitive juices.

"When we played cards with her, if you beat her in a hand, she might punch you," Baltz said of Gaba, who stood 5 feet 4. "It's kind of weird being scared of your grandma."

Proud to be Punter U.

FLS - Terps' Smith knows he can adjust on fly to split end
An article from Torrey Smith's (and mine) hometown paper, the Free Lance Star, on Mr. Smith himself. The tastiest nuggets:

"He's a great weapon," special teams coach Charles Bankins said. "We've talked about Torrey leading the country in all-purpose yardage. I told him if he does his part as a receiver, I'll take care of the rest."

"Coach Bankins wants six. He's not satisfied with big yards; he wants a touchdown every time," Smith said. "Each time I'm out on the field, I want to score."

CJ Leslie Stars at Nike Global
A note I missed from yesterday:

If there is a bouncier 4-man in the country than Leslie -- although 6-foot-9 Perry Jones (Duncanville, Texas) might have an argument -- I would be shocked. Leslie wasn't seen much during the summer circuit, but he put on an explosive, acrobatic show that was pretty much peerless. Whether it was attacking the rim in the half-court set or catapulting in transition, his effort was awe-inspiring. His skills are limited outside of five feet, but he has a pretty nifty spin move that is cat quick. He gets up twice before most get up once while trying to finish in the paint area, and he has terrific hands. He needs to improve his range on his jump shot at the elbow, but the upside is definitely there. Overall, Leslie has the potential to be a terrific player at the next level. If he can improve his skills, his ceiling is quite high because his effort at both ends is outstanding.

Of course, he just listed Maryland as a school recruiting him hardest (which often - though not always - correlates to the top school list).

More from Nike Global: Terrence Jones
Not quite done yet:

Terrence Jones (Portland, Ore./Jefferson) put together a nice performance displaying his versatile game. He needs to post up more often to utilize his imposing physique, but he can face up and get to the rim or hand out a nifty assist. However, his jump shot, more like a set shot, needs polishing due to a slow release.

2009 All-ACC Preseason Team Announced

Ben Broman — Wed, 29 Jul 2009 19:54:24 -0000

The official 2009 All-ACC preseason team was announced today, and two Terps are on it. Travis Baltz, who was second only to Jonathan Dwyer in votes received and was a shoo-in, and Alex Wujciak, who had the third least votes and was borerline, made the cut. I was a bit surprised neither Torrey Smith (as a specialist) nor Da'Rel Scott made the list, but I'm sure they'll be on the second team when that list comes out. Congrats to both, and the full list is below the jump:

OFFENSE
Position	Name	School	No.	In 2008 otherwise noted
QB	Russell Wilson	NC State	31	2008 1st-team All-ACC, ACC Rookie of the Year
RB	Jonathan Dwyer	Georgia Tech	41	2008 ACC Player of the Year,2009 Preseason Player of the Year
RB	C.J. Spiller	Clemson	38	Needs 921 all-purpose yards for ACC record
WR	Demaryius Thomas	Georgia Tech	15	Had more than half of Tech's catches
WR	Jacoby Ford	Clemson	31	2nd among active ACC players in yds, catches
TE	Greg Boone	Virginia Tech	32	22 catches for 278 yards
OT	Jason Fox	Miami	32	Graded out at 97% for the year
OT	Anthony Castonzo	Boston College	26	2008 second-team All-ACC
OG	Sergio Render	Virginia Tech	25	2008 second-team All-ACC, 39 career starts
OG	Rodney Hudson	Florida State	32	Named to 2009 Lombardi Trophy watch list
C	Matt Tennant	Boston College	23	On 2009 watch list for Rimington Trophy
PK	Matt Bosher	Miami	34	Made 18-of-20 FGAs; 2008 2nd Team All-ACC

DEFENSE
Position	Name	School	No.	In 2008 otherwise noted
DE	Jason Worilds	Virginia Tech	25	Recorded 18.5 tackles for loss, 2008 2nd-team All-ACC
DE	Willie Young	NC State	21	Credited with 65 QB pressures in his career
DT	Vince Oghobaase	Duke	34	Lott Trophy finalist has started 36 straight games
DT	Marvin Austin	North Carolina	25	Interception return for a TD and blocked PAT
LB	Dekoda Watson	Florida State	34	28 tackles in final four regular-season games
LB	Quan Sturdivant	North Carolina	28	Led the nation in unassisted tackles (87)
LB	Alex Wujciak	Maryland	18	13th nationally in total tackles (10.2 per game)
CB	Ras-I Dowling	Virginia	21	T-11 nationally in passes defended per game (1.27)
CB	Kendric Burney	North Carolina	13	Credited with 78 tackles
S	Morgan Burnett	Georgia Tech	34	Preseason All-American by 3 sources
S	Kam Chancellor	Virginia Tech	31	2 fumble recoveries, 2 INT
P	Travis Baltz	Maryland	38	Led ACC in punting average (41.1)
Specialist: C.J. Spiller, Clemson