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Maryland already has more losses through seven games of the Randy Edsall era than they did all of last season. To say this week’s contest against Boston College is a must-win would be an understatement – it’s the most winnable game left on the schedule and if the Terps have any outside hopes of a bowl berth, it starts here. As we always do, let’s run down the game unit by unit.

Boston College Passing Offense vs. Maryland Passing Defense:

Boston College has been awful in the passing game this season, ranking 96th in Passing S&P+, 91st in passing yards per game (197) and 107th in passing efficiency. The Eagles thought they found a target for Chase Rettig when senior Ifeanyi Momah caught eight passes for 171 yards in the season opener against Northwestern, but he suffered a knee injury and hasn’t played since. For Rettig, after an up and down season as a true freshman last season, he’s continued that year with some good games (351 yards against Northwestern, three touchdowns against UMass) and some really bad ones (70 yards and two touchdowns against UCF, 188 yards in 47 attempts against Wake). Thus far, he is 114/219 for 1,362 yards with seven touchdowns against six interceptions. Rettig’s top targets are sophomore Bobby Swigert (30 receptions, 286 yards and one touchdown) and junior Colin Larmond (26 catches for 443 yards and two scores).

Maryland’s passing defense has had their moments, but with a struggling and shallow secondary, that might be ending soon. They rank 24th in Passing Defense S&P+, 64th in pass defense (226.9 yards allowed per game), and 77th in pass efficiency defense. The Terps’ two starting cornerbacks have combined for five interceptions, and Eric Franklin and Titus Till have been piling up tackles at the safety positions over the past few weeks, but all four of them have been burnt throughout the year and have missed tackles.

Regardless, with the playmaking abilities of McDougle, Chism, and defensive ends David Mackall and Keith Bowers, Rettig shouldn’t be able to do too much.

Advantage: Maryland.

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After two close games against top (and undefeated) ACC schools, Maryland heads back on the road to take on another top program – the Florida State Seminoles. While FSU stands at a less-than-impressive 3-3, they’re statistically (and talent-wise) one of the better teams in the country. Let’s run down the game, unit-by-unit.

Maryland Passing Offense vs. Florida State Passing Defense:

The Terps rank 71st in the nation in Passing S&P+ (a combination of success rate, points per play, and opponent adjustments) while Florida State ranks17th in Passing Def S&P+. For those in favor of more simple statistics, Maryland has passed for 205.5 yards per game (83rd in the nation) with a 110.66 pass efficiency rating (103rd in the nation) while the Seminoles have given up 197.83 yards per game in the air (30th in the nation) with an opponent pass efficiency rating of 129.88 (67th in the nation).

Maryland has recently made the switch at quarterback from former ACC Rookie of the Year Danny O’Brien (97/156, 930 yards, four touchdowns against six interceptions) to speedster C.J. Brown (27/59, 269 yards, four touchdowns against two interceptions, 33 rushes for 315 yards and two touchdowns), with mixed success. Brown has been excellent on the ground, but haven’t found a consistent passing touch – or a consistent target. With Kevin Dorsey (29 receptions for 361 yards and two touchdowns) out for the game, Brown’s only reliable passing option will be tight end Matt Furstenburg (21 receptions for 256 yards and two touchdowns), who broke out with a big five reception, 104 yard, two touchdown performance against Clemson. Starting at wide receiver will be senior Quintin McCree (ten receptions for 57 yards) and true freshman Marcus Leak (four receptions for 24 yards), making his first career start.

Off the edges, Florida State starts Bjoern Werner (17 tackles, seven for a loss, five sacks, five pass breakups, one fumble forced, one fumble recovery, one touchdown) and Brandon Jenkins (22 tackles, five for a loss, two sacks). Werner is one of the most dynamic pass rushers in the ACC, and broke up four passes last week against Duke. At corner they start Xavier Rhodes (21 tackles, one for a loss, one pass breakup), Mike Harris (34 tackles, six for a loss, three pass breakups) and Greg Reid (12 tackles, one for a loss, three pass breakups). At safety are LaMarcus Joyner (27 tackles, one for a loss, two interceptions, two pass breakups) and Terrance Parks (20 tackles, one pass breakup).

Advantage: Florida State. Maryland can’t pass against anyone.

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In perhaps their biggest game of the year, Maryland faces off against eighth-ranked Clemson for their homecoming game. The Terps are coming off a road loss to Georgia Tech, and are looking to climb back above .500 in conference play, while the Tigers have defeated three quality opponents (Auburn, Florida State, and Virginia Tech) on their way to a 6-0 mark and a place on top of the conference standings.

Let’s run it down, unit by unit.

Maryland Passing Offense vs. Clemson Passing Defense:

The Terps’ passing offense finally came back to reality in the national rankings last week, dropping from 51st to 84th after another awful performance. Danny O’Brien was benched in favor of C.J. Brown, and it’s unclear as of now who will start at 7 tonight. Which ever of the two ends up behind center, they’re going to have trouble finding a consistent target – Kevin Dorsey is the only guy who they’ve been able to rely on all year. With Gary Crowton’s refusal to throw to Matt Furstenburg consistently and with the case of the drops that has come over the rest of Maryland’s receiving corps, no one’s getting help.

Regardless of Clemson’s passing defense, Maryland’s never going to get the advantage here. They haven’t proven that they can pass on any defense, but let’s look at the Tigers anyway. Off the edge, they start a monster in Andre Branch (39 tackles, ten for a loss, six sacks, one forced fumble) and Malliciah Goodman (21 tackles, four for a loss, one sack, one forced fumble). At corner, they have Coty Sensabaugh (25 tackles, four passes defended, and one interception) and Xavier Brewer (22 tackles, one for a loss, four passes defended, one interception). At safety, they have Jonathan Meeks (36 tackles, three passes defended, one interception, one forced fumble) and Rashard Hall (25 tackles, one for a loss).

Advantage: Clemson.

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Maryland has played approximately three halves of good football all year. Georgia Tech has blown anyone and everyone who dared stand in their way completely out of the water. Pretty straight forward, right? Let’s take a look at the units and see how the matchup will play out.

Maryland Passing Offense vs. Georgia Tech Passing Defense:

That boost that Maryland was supposed to get with the returns of Ronnie Tyler and Quintin McCree from suspension? Not so much. The two combined for four receptions for 39 yards as Danny O’Brien and the Maryland passing game struggled once again against Towson last week. The Terps currently rank 51st in the nation with 242.25 yards per game in the air, but are 86th with an efficiency rating of 120.98. Last week, you saw C.J. Brown come in for a drive at quarterback, and we feel confident predicting that he’ll have an even larger role in Saturday’s contest.

For how much they’ve been leading this season (and therefore how often teams have been forced to pass on them), Georgia Tech has pretty solid numbers in the pass defense. They rank 37th in the nation in passing yards allowed (200.4 per game), 49th in pass efficiency defense (123.81), and 19th in sacks (2.8 per game).

Off the edge, the Yellow Jackets start senior Jason Peters (16 tackles, two sacks) and junior Izaan Cross (12 tackles, one for a loss, three passes defended, one forced fumble). At corner, they start junior Rod Sweeting (24 tackles, two for a loss, one interception, five passes defended) and sophomore Louis Young (20 tackles, one for a loss, one pass defended), a former Good Counsel standout. At safety, they start sophomore Isaiah Johnson (25 tackles, one interception, one touchdown, two passes defended) and senior Rashaad Reid (17 tackles, one pass defended, one forced fumble).

Advantage: Georgia Tech. The Yellow Jackets have been very good against the pass this year, and while they don’t have an overwhelming amount of playmakers, they have a solid secondary and two good rushers off the edge. Plus, Maryland’s pass offense has flat stunk over the past few weeks.

More after the jump.

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Coming into the season, 1-2 was not an unreasonable expectation for Maryland’s record heading into the Towson game. Miami and West Virginia were both solid teams, and the Terrapins would probably have an adjustment period to their new coaching staff. After defeating the Hurricanes at home in a great game in the season opener, however, expectations rose. A comeback attempt against West Virginia fell short, but hope still remained. All of it is now gone, however, as the Temple Owls came in to College Park and destroyed all positive momentum with a 38-7 drubbing.

Now Maryland welcomes in-state rivals Towson to College Park, and the game isn’t looking as much like a walk in the park as it once did. The Terps stand at 1-2 and demoralized. Towson is one of the big surprises of the FCS this season, starting out 3-0 with wins over Morgan State, Villanova, and Colgate – and their closest game was a 21-point victory. They rank in the top ten in scoring offense and scoring defense in the FCS, and in the top fifteen in total offense and total defense. Let’s run down the game, unit by unit.

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Hey, remember that well-coached Miami squad earlier this year? Maryland gets to play their coach’s old squad this Saturday. Temple is a team that’s hard to get a gauge on as of yet, and Maryland may be the game where we discover how good the Owls truly are. They destroyed a solid FCS team in Villanova and a terrible FBS team in Akron by a combined score of 83-10, and then lost to a very down Penn State squad 14-10 at home. Like usual, let’s run down this Saturday’s game, unit by unit.

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Maryland follows up the marquee win over Miami from two weeks ago with another chance for a big win in the national spotlight, facing off against Big East rivals West Virginia Saturday afternoon. Let’s run down the game, unit by unit.

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It’s finally here. Gameday. Maryland-Miami. College Football Live Crew. Project 54K. The Beginning of the Edsall Era. However you want to phrase it, the wait is over.

At eight o’clock tonight, Maryland’s season will have finally started. Let’s run down the game, unit-by-unit, after the jump.

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After an impressive 4-0 dismantling of the Stanford Cardinals Friday night on national television, the #4 Terps now look to take on the Radford Highlanders Sunday night.

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The #4 Terps will be looking to show some East Coast hospitality Friday night when the team hosts the Stanford Cardinals from the PAC-12.

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