By Connor Bell
In front of the media for the first time since the shocking loss to Ohio State back on October 4, head coach Randy Edsall immediately put the loss behind him and opened the press conference by stating the past game was a tough to loss but the team must move on.
Coach Edsall touched on many aspects of the team throughout the 25-minute press conference, the biggest of which, was that of the 2nd string inside linebacker Abner Logan’s indefinite suspension that was lifted by the University of Maryland after an appeal process.
Logan is cleared to play Saturday, which gives the Terps much needed depth at a particularly beat-up linebacker position.
Regarding injuries this season, Edsall also said that the bye week tremendously helped guys get much needed rest and to heal up; the players had off the entire past week except for two practice days on Wednesday and Thursday.
However, the media’s main focus of questions for coach Edsall was directed at first string quarterback C.J. Brown and his less than stellar performance versus Ohio State. Edsall backed his quarterback 100 percent.
“C.J. has done a lot of good things, and guys won’t play great all the time,” Edsall said. “C.J. just needs to play to his strengths and the loss is not all on the quarterback.”
But regardless of the questions about C.J. Brown, there is a game to play this Saturday and coach Edsall described the Iowa Hawkeyes as “fundamentally strong”, an “excellent defense,” and “well coached.”
The Hawkeyes have the stats to back these characteristics, as they are currently the best in the Big Ten in fewest penalty yards, and tied for fourth in interceptions in the Big Ten with eight.
But the real issue everyone is wondering is, can the Maryland’s defense stop the Iowa running game. The Hawkeyes, who average 151.3 yards rushing per game, will look to exploit a battered and bruised Maryland defense, whom has given up more than 200 yards on the ground per game.
However, Iowa runs a pro-style offense so it will give the Terp’s defense a better chance of stopping them. Look for the Maryland offense to try and get their running game established first to lay off some of the pressure on the passing game, and open things up for C.J. Brown to get to top receivers Deon Long and Stefon Diggs.
Expect a highly contested game this Saturday, and anticipate a packed house in Byrd Stadium for Homecoming Weekend as Maryland looks to go 5-2 overall on the season and 2-1 in the Big Ten Conference.
