COLLEGE PARK, Md — Billy Edwards Jr. locked eyes with Tai Felton from the beginning.
The redshirt junior quarterback stepped back in the pocket, aiming his right arm to the sky and firing a lofted pass towards the endzone. In one fluid motion, Felton sidestepped to his left before pivoting around to face Rutgers defensive back Eric Rogers.
Felton made the contested grab near the back left pylon, making sure his feet were inbounds before celebrating the score.
“He always makes the big plays when we need it,” running back Roman Hemby said. “He’s been a great leader, a tremendous player for us … a player that we can all look up to.”
The play put Felton in the Maryland football record books, now fifth all-time with 15 career receiving scores. His latest gave the Terps a three-point lead over the Scarlet Knights midway through the second quarter, but that advantage didn’t hold. Maryland fell to Rutgers on Saturday, 31-17, in its penultimate home game of the 2024 season.
The initial touchdown came after Felton set Maryland’s single-season receptions record — previously held by D.J. Moore in the 2017 campaign. The record-breaking 81st catch came on a fourth down to save an early first quarter possession.
Maryland entered the second half down four and set to receive. The Terps marched up field fueled by a dynamic offensive sequence, searching for an answer on a third-and-one at the Rutgers 34 yard line.
Hemby provided it — and then some.
The redshirt junior running back caught a quick pass from Edwards Jr. before looking up field and sprinting through open turf. A plethora of yards after the catch resulted in a 32-yard gain for Hemby, putting the Terps in prime redzone territory.
Hemby’s explosive play continued just seconds later. Another clutch gain — this time a one-yard rush up the middle — provided the go-ahead touchdown less than four minutes into the second half.
Hemby’s 27th career score placed him fourth all-time at Maryland in total touchdowns. He’s now tied with fellow running back Louis Carter, who played for the Terps from 1972-1974.
“It feels good to do my part, if at all possible,” Hemby said. “But we want to win, and that’s the main goal, that’s all I really care about … it would feel a lot better if we won.”
The end zone score and Jack Howes’ extra point to follow gave the Terps a 17-14 advantage. It would be Maryland’s last points and lead of the game, and it didn’t hold for long.
Rutgers stormed back throughout the remainder of the game, racking up the next 17 points.
The Scarlet Knights’ first and only fourth down conversion of the second half came in a pressure sequence to end the third quarter. A completed six-yard short pass from senior quarterback Athan Kaliakmanis to senior receiver Dymere Miller cleared the first down marker. The clutch gain gave Rutgers new life, setting up a Kyle Monangai rushing touchdown to take the lead.
Then, on the very first play of the fourth quarter, Kaliakmanis skied a looping pass towards the end zone. Miller hauled in the catch for another Rutgers touchdown.
A Jai Patel 46-yard field goal sailed through the uprights five minutes later, capping a Scarlet Knights scoring surge that was never contested by Maryland.
“On the defensive side, our inability to play well … has allowed teams to sustain and continue drives,” coach Michael Locksley said. “… It’s come back to hurt us in critical situations.”
Maryland dropped its third straight despite the record-breaking night for Felton and Hemby. The loss marked the Terps’ first home defeat in more than a month, moving to a nightmarish 1-6 record in Big Ten play — while dropping to 4-6 overall.
“We all know that individual awards are good when you are successful as a team,” Locksley said. “… But to sit here with four wins and opportunities in some games, I’m sure [they] would give up some of those yardages, some of those catches to add a few more wins.”
Since storming the SECU Stadium field after a comeback win over USC, Maryland’s last three outings — against Minnesota, No. 1 Oregon and Rutgers — have all resulted in losses with an average point differential of 20.
In the Oct. 26 defeat to the Golden Gophers, Felton was the only Terps player to notch more than 70 receiving yards — finishing the night with 104. Two weeks later against the top-ranked Ducks, the senior led all receivers with 72 total yards and a game-high 34-yard single play reception. Hemby led Maryland in both rushing yards and carries in each game.
The two were the only touchdown scorers for Maryland in Saturday’s loss to Rutgers. Felton and Hemby — the bright spots in an otherwise underwhelming season.
“It’s very disappointing, just because we go to practice every day and we work really hard to fine tune those details … and we don’t get it done on Saturdays necessarily,” Hemby said. “It hurts when you let the game slip away.”
