Monday Maryland Musings: Five Takeaways From Syracuse

Sep 20, 2014; Syracuse, NY, USA; Syracuse Orange linebacker Cameron Lynch (38) makes a tackle on Maryland Terrapins quarterback C.J. Brown (16) during the second half of a game at the Carrier Dome. Maryland won the game 34-20. Mandatory Credit: Mark Konezny-USA TODAY Sports

1.) C.J. Brown is still overthrowing receivers, but he’s the guy for this offense

All last week the rumbling from the fan base surrounded the performance of QB C.J. Brown and whether or not he would be capable of taking advantage of the offensive weapons on the team. Well Saturday afternoon Brown answered critics very early on, leading the offense to points on three of the first four drives of the game. In particular, Brown’s first touchdown pass of 25 yards to Marcus Leak on an over-the-shoulder pass was a perfectly thrown ball that suggested he’s nowhere near ready to cede the starting job to anyone without a fight.

Brown’s not perfect (90 of his 280 yards came on one “pass” to Brandon Ross), but neither is any offense. What Brown is capable of doing is providing just enough to lead this offense to victory and quell critics at the same time. The Terps are going to make mistakes on offense, but they still score at random and in bunches (hence their “explosive” tag).

The team is 3-1 despite giving up over 1,000 yards defensively the past two games. If the offense is at least giving the Terps a fighting chance with that type of performance on D, then Brown’s doing something right.