USC’s Michael Lantz settled into the moment. The redshirt senior kicker set up on the right hash, mentally preparing to kick a 41 yard field goal that would put the game away for the Trojans. Lantz made his run up to the ball, pulled his right leg back and swung. The ball didn’t make it more than five yards.

Maryland linebacker Donnell Brown rose above the USC blockade  and got his right hand on the kick, deflecting the ball into the air. The Terps recovered, before lateraling the ball to Kaden Prather. The senior hustled down the right sideline for a return that ended atUSC’s 47 yard line. 

That special teams turnover led to a game-winning touchdown for the Terps, who trailed by 14 points early in the final quarter on Saturday. Maryland’s 29-28 victory over USC was the Terps’ first conference victory of the season. 

“I can’t go in there with my shoulders like broad so me getting skinny … and then getting vertical as I’m getting skinny and hopefully, you know, I’m able to block it,” said Brown. “But today, hallelujah, I was able to block it.”

The Terps’ offensive drive following the turnover spanned five plays and 47 yards. It ended on a zone-read option that allowed quarterback Billy Edwards Jr. to carry the ball into the endzone from three yards out.

“I was ready for that,” said linebacker Caleb Wheatland. “Once I seen him pull that ball, oof, I [knew Billy] was getting in there.” 

Maryland’s defense ended the game with a stop on the ensuing possession — Wheatland had the decisive moment. The junior forced a fourth down incompletion, on a pass intended for Trojans running back Woody Marks. 

Wheatland’s stop gave possession back to the Terps. As Edwards Jr. kneeled the final eleven seconds off the clock, Maryland fans flooded the field in triumph, as the Terps won on homecoming for the fourth time in the past five years.

“It was a surreal experience,” said Edwards. “It was definitely, you know, one that I tried to soak up and enjoy.”

Maryland’s phenomenal victory was perpetually in doubt throughout the game. 

USC started the scoring just as the last second of the first quarter turned to zero. Trojans quarterback Miller Moss threw a deep pass to redshirt junior Kyron Hudson on the left side of the endzone for his second score of the season.

Following a Maryland touchdown, the Trojans struck again due in large part to an improbable catch from sophomore Ja’Kobi Lane. 

Lane was locked in a battle along the right sideline with Maryland defensive back Perry Fisher. The two ran into the endzone, as Moss fired to his young receiver. 

Still in a tussle with Fisher, Lane reached out with his left hand and snatched the ball from the air, simultaneously toe-tapping to ensure the touchdown.

A third score from running back Woody Marks gave USC a two score advantage entering halftime.  

The Terps started the second half down, 21-7, and their situation looked bleak. Maryland received the second half kickoff but its opening drive stalled just across midfield, resulting in a turnover on downs. 

Moss led the Trojans down the field into Maryland territory on the following possession. It appeared the Terps were on their way to a larger deficit, but defensive back Lavain Scruggs changed that assumption.

Scruggs dropped into coverage on the right side, staying stride for stride with wide receiver Zachariah Branch. Moss fired toward Branch but Scruggs jumped the pass, earning his first interception of the season. Scruggs’ return netted 51 yards and put Maryland’s offense in the red zone. 

Edwards immediately cashed in on the opportunity. He connected with pass catcher Tai Felton for an 18 yard strike that cut the USC lead to seven.

The Maryland quarterback later finished with 373 passing yards, three total touchdowns, and one interception. The redshirt junior completed 39 of his 50 passing attempts earning a passer rating of 149.9

Maryland’s special teams efficiently covered the ensuing kickoff, forcing USC to start its drive at its own 13 yard line. 

The Terps defense continued their dominant play. They forced a three and out, giving the ball back to their offense with momentum in its favor. 

But that’s when disaster struck for the Terps. 

Edwards Jr. tossed his fourth interception of the season. The Trojans took advantage of the turnover by traveling 80 yards in ten plays, scoring their fourth touchdown of the game. That score re-established USC’s two-score advantage, at 28-14. 

That lead lasted all of three and a half minutes. 

Edwards Jr. and Maryland’s offense didn’t back down though, driving the ball 75 yards for another touchdown. 

Head coach Michael Locksley decided that the Terps should try for a two-point conversion after the score and his faith in the offense was rewarded. Edwards connected with Kaden Prather on a short slant route that put Maryland seven points away from exiting with a victory. 

“I told my team that we were pushing the chips in the middle of the table and we weren’t going to earn it. We were gonna take it,” Locksley said. 

That decision proved to be an important one. After blocking USC’s late field goal attempt, the Terps lined up for the final drive only trailing by six. Edwards Jr. scampered in for the touchdown, before Maryland kicker Jack Howes added the all-important extra point.  

Howes’ kick was ultimately the difference in Maryland’s 29-28 win — arguably the Terps’ best win under Locksley.

Maryland’s defense ended the game with Wheatland forcing an incompletion on a pass intended for Marks over the middle. 

“I was definitely really confused,” said Wheatland. “I was looking around and then I see my teammates started running [onto the field]. You know, it was just a blessed feeling.”

The Terps will try to carry the  momentum into their road matchup against Minnesota next Saturday.