Following Maryland football’s thrashing of Wisconsin, the program’s expectations soared to unexpected heights. While the Terps had been feasting on weaker opposition, an impactful freshman class combined with their strong defense left fans optimistic for the future.
Those supporters showed up in good numbers on Saturday. SECU Stadium was sold out for the first time since 2023, and the atmosphere was electric for three quarters. But once the 46,185 fans knew the inevitable was coming, deafening silence struck and it quickly unraveled.
The product through the first 45 minutes of Maryland’s litmus test against Washington suggested the hype was real. With their foot on the gas pedal, the Terps opened a 20-point lead early in the third quarter, exposing the Huskies’ defense with draining possessions.
Maryland utilized a pair of eight-minute drives to suck the life out of Washington. Those two possessions alone totalled 128 yards and spanned 32 plays — the latter exceeding the Terps’ second-half total.
But Maryland eased off the pressure after its second touchdown, and Washington capitalized. The Huskies scored 24 unanswered points in the final 19 minutes of the game to complete the comeback.
“What we learned today as a team is you got to learn how to put people away,” coach Michael Locksley said.
While the Terps’ second-half collapse was the notable storyline, Maryland’s bye week struggles are a bigger area of concern.
College football programs typically spend their bye weeks recovering their players from the grueling schedule and utilizing the extra time to prepare for their next opponent.
That’s not been Locksley’s strategy in years past, instead electing to challenge his players during the time in between games. This season, he reverted back to the conventional bye-week approach, focusing on a physical and mental reset for his players.
“I have a tendency during bye weeks to be really, really physical, because that’s what I grew up in under the Nick Saban approach,” Locksley said. “I grew up in an era where the bye week is used kind of like a prize fighter. … But we did things a little bit differently [this year].”
Neither way has found success.
The seventh-year head coach has failed to produce a win in his 10 games after byes. The collection of losses features Penn State, Nebraska, Indiana, Rutgers, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Northwestern, Oregon and Washington.
Some of those losses can be attributed to the quality of the opposition: No. 12 Penn State and No. 1 Oregon. Five of those 10 have been played on the road, including the pair of ranked matchups. But the rest are inexcusable, and ones Maryland would like to have back.
Last year’s blowout home defeat against Northwestern rises towards the top of that list. The Terps quickly fell behind by 17 points, and while they clawed back to make it a one-possession game, Northwestern scored the final 20 points to seal the win.
That result was a disappointment in many eyes given Northwestern’s 2-3 record at the time and Maryland’s previous seasons of success. The Terps had made three straight bowl games with quarterback Taulia Tagovailoa under center before he graduated.
While the loss itself wasn’t the sole crushing blow, the margin of victory suggested that Maryland never stood a chance.
But those blowout defeats aren’t anything new for the Terps. Maryland’s 10 losses after the bye week have been by a combined 21.4 points, including a pair of 40-point losses.
Saturday’s contest against Washington may have only been a four-point game, but given the context of how it unfolded, it’ll go down as one of the worst losses on the list. The Terps blew a three-possession lead in a short timeframe and had chances to put the game away.
The Terps led for just 39 minutes and 17 seconds in their first nine games following a bye week under Locksley. Maryland was ahead for 53 minutes Saturday afternoon and only trailed after Washington scored to go up 24-20 late in the fourth quarter.
Maryland controlled the time of possession battle in the first half, with five drives chewing nearly 18 minutes off the clock. Washington only had the ball for 12 minutes. But that script flipped in the second half. The Terps only used 11 minutes off the clock and had the ball for six of the 15 minutes in the fourth quarter.
Instead of utilizing their run game — Maryland handed the ball off twice after taking a 20-point lead — the Terps opted for screens or short passes downfield. It didn’t work. Washington was all over it, forcing consecutive three-and-outs and allowing Maryland to accumulate just three first downs.
Maryland has another bye week this season in mid October and follows it up by hosting No. 7 Indiana. The Terps will be aiming to snap their 10-game losing streak after byes against a Hoosiers’ squad poised to make the College Football Playoffs.
