CFB Preview: South Florida Bulls At Maryland Terrapins
When: 12:00 PM ET, Saturday, September 19, 2015
Where: Byrd Stadium, College Park, Maryland
TV: 12 p.m. ET, ESPNU. LINE: Maryland -7
Both teams will be looking to shake off the sting of recent losses when USF visits Maryland on Saturday. The Bulls hung in with No. 6 Florida State last week before yielding in the second half, while the Terrapins were trounced at home by Bowling Green and are making a change at the quarterback position.
Terrapins quarterback Perry Hills' performance last week - 15-of-30 for 168 yards, two touchdowns and an interception - wasn't horrible, but it was mediocre enough for coach Randy Edsall to pull Hills for Caleb Rowe, who will make his first start since Oct. 26, 2013 against USF. Hills has been relegated to third-string duties, with Daxx Garman - a transfer from Oklahoma - slated to back up Rowe; Edsall told the Baltimore Sun, "We're leaving too many plays on the field."
The Bulls' performance against the Seminoles in Tallahassee last week left coach Willie Taggart encouraged. "We can play with the best of them," he told the team's web site. "We just gotta do it for four quarters." A win against Maryland would give USF its eighth in school history over power conference opponents.
ABOUT USF (1-1): The Bulls get a boost on the defensive side of the ball with the return of linebackers Nigel Harris and Tashon Whitehurst from two-game suspensions for violating unspecified team rules. Harris led the nation last season with six forced fumbles, while USF is looking for big things from Whitehurst after the senior impressed in the spring game - recording 19 tackles to go with a sack and an interception. With fellow linebacker Auggie Sanchez suspended for the first half after an ejection for targeting against Florida State last week, Taggart said of Harris and Whitehurst: "It's like perfect timing to get those guys back."
ABOUT MARYLAND (1-1): Rowe has three previous starts under his belt for the Terrapins and has battled through a torn ACL and a three-man competition in his college career. With the starting gig in front of him, the junior will need to improve on his 12:12 career touchdown-to-interception ratio. Garman could get a look as well, should Rowe struggle; Edsall told reporters, "We've got to be able to stretch vertically."
EXTRA POINTS
1. Maryland was 4-0 following regular season losses in 2014 and has not lost back-to-back regular-season games since Nov. 9, 2013.
2. USF has averaged 11 tackles for loss per game (2nd in the nation) and 3.5 sacks (13th).
3. The Terrapins have yet to allow a sack on the season, joining Michigan State as the only Big Ten teams to accomplish the feat.
PREDICTION: Maryland 23, USF 17
By SportsDirect Inc.
