PISCATAWAY, N.J. — Maryland football’s defense has been its strongest unit throughout the season. But in recent games, the defense has turned into a weakness.

The Terps followed their typical script. They made early stops, then fell apart later. Maryland’s defense wasted its offense’s best rushing performance, falling to Rutgers, 35-20 at SHI Stadium.

“Our defense has carried us to seven games and have played their butts off, and they’re all banged up on that side of the ball,” head coach Michael Locksley said.

Rutgers’ quarterback Athan Kaliakmanis found vacancies in Maryland’s defense and faced limited resistance. He threw for 229 yards and four passing touchdowns. 

Junior receiver Ian Strong torched Maryland’s defense for three touchdowns on 88 yards and was Rutgers’ first receiver to catch three touchdowns since 2015. 

Antwan Raymond took advantage of the Terps on the ground, he was very patient and bounced off several tackles for 240 yards. He put the Terps away in the fourth quarter, taking over on the ground. He found the end zone to give the Scarlet Knights a multiple-score lead and drained the clock.

Maryland bent on the opening drive, but a Lavian Scruggs tipped interception at the 1-yard line kept a clean sheet. After another early start, the Scarlet Knights took over and never looked back. 

Maryland’s defense had trouble making stops, especially on Rutgers’ fourth-quarter scoring drive. The Terps would force Rutgers to third down, but would fall completely apart when it needed that last stop. The Scarlet Knights were 8-of-12 on third down.

Rutgers’ defense came into Sunday ranked among the worst in the nation, yet it was the better defense on Saturday.

Freshman quarterback Malik Washington struggled again on Saturday. He completed 15-of-28 passes for 98 yards and one touchdown. He consistently missed receivers and made ill-advised throws and looked flustered in the pocket.

Early in the season, Washington was unfazed by anything defenses threw his way. Amid a four-game losing streak, Washington failed to elevate Maryland through the pass game and was more of a burden than a strength. 

On several occasions, Maryland’s receivers dropped passes and Washington continued to look rattled. Washington couldn’t elevate his receivers and they couldn’t make plays on poor throws. 

Maryland’s ground game struggled coming in and was a notable strength in Piscataway. The Terps couldn’t find enough on the ground to compensate for its struggles on defense and through the air. 

After struggling on the ground throughout the entire season, the Terps had their biggest rush of the season on the first drive. Washington exploded early for a 73-yard touchdown run — more than doubling its total against Indiana on one play. 

Maryland averaged 93.2 rushing yards per game before Saturday. Rutgers came into the game, allowing 184.4 rushing yards per game and Maryland took advantage. The Terps reached their season-high in rushing yards in the first half with 238 yards. 

Washington was a weapon with his legs, with 164 yards on the ground. He accumulated his second-most rushing yards by a quarterback in Maryland history and totaled his most ever in a game. 

“I thought Malik’s ability in the run game, as you saw, opened up the natural run game where our backs started being able to get some positive yardage,” Locksley said.

Coming into Saturday, the Terps’ longest rush was 28 yards. Maryland proceeded to have three 50-yard or more rushes in the first half. Washington, Nolan Ray and DeJuan Williams all had their season-high in rushing yards. 

The Terps finished with 305 yards on the ground, their most since head coach Michael Locksley’s second game as head coach. 

Maryland’s offense consistently stalled out after big plays and couldn’t convert on third down. The offense ran the ball well, but failed to make the necessary plays to win a game, despite a strong rushing attack. 

Maryland needed a win in the biggest way heading into Saturday in Piscataway. The Terps had lost four consecutive games and showed no fight in their last game against No. 2 Indiana. The Terps showed fight on Saturday, but like many times this season, it was nowhere near enough. 

Against an opponent in a similar spot, this was Maryland’s opportunity to keep its bowl eligibility chances alive. Maryland’s defense couldn’t make the needed stops and the offense failed to come back in the second half. 

“No fall off, just having the next man up mentality and being a better leader, to have those guys have that,” Daniel Wingate said.