Four takeaways for 2024 from Maryland's Music City Bowl win

Maryland dominated Auburn on Saturday, 31-13, to move to .500 all-time in bowl games and 8-4 since 2002, the best record by any current Big Ten team entering the current bowl season. Head coach Mike Locksley saw his team make more program history as bowl win cements an 8-5 (4-5) season, marking the second consecutive eight-win season for the first time since 2002-03. Saturday’s win also marks the first time that Maryland has ever won three bowl games in consecutive seasons, providing credence to Mike Locksley’s vision for his program. “Think we've got a bright future, and I've said that around here,” Locksley said following the win. “The best part of this program is still ahead for us.” With that, we dive into four takeaways that Maryland showed on Saturday that impact the early outlook of the 2024 season. QBs Billy Edwards & Cam Edge show flashes Head coach Mike Locksley wasn’t shy that Saturday served as a chance for the available quarterbacks to shine in their first showing as potential starters in 2024. It wasn’t a surprise that Billy Edwards Jr. took the first snap under center, and the Terps’ bowl game starter admitted the planned to start fast as the game reflected that. “I knew in those first 15-ish plays we were going to be really aggressive, so I immediately started listening to my meditation music to try to calm myself down for the next 24 hours,” Edwards said after the game. Edwards opened the game 4-of-8 after connecting with TE Preston Howard on a five-yard touchdown reception, then connected with WR Jeshaun Jones on a pair of throws for 28 combined yards. After that, the success fizzled as Edwards ended his day with ten consecutive incompletions. Edge didn’t get as much run as Edwards, but impressed after finishing 4-of-5 for 82 yards and came out firing. https://twitter.com/ghafirtheturtle/status/1741279328627839010?s=46 He showed no sign of rust after connecting with Kaden Prather on a 57-yard throw on his first play from scrimmage. Edge found TE Dylan Wade on the next play for a touchdown, the first in Edge’s career and second for Wade in 2023, before finding Wade again for a 15-yard reception in the 2nd quarter. Edge’s final completion was to Shaleak Knotts for a first down in the closing minutes of the third quarter, but Edge's fifth and final throw wasn't entirely his fault after Knotts tangled feet with the Auburn cornerback to give the safety an easy takeaway. The lone negative? All three of Auburn’s sacks came on third downs with a pair of takedowns driving the Terps out of field goal range, prompting Locksley to punt from both the Auburn 41 and 35 in the second and third quarters. After posting 226 yards of total offense in the first quarter, Maryland finished with just 84 yards the rest of the game as Locksley cited the need to milk the clock in the second half. “I talked to Josh about just slowing down the tempo, maybe taking the air off the ball a little bit, but we still did enough with our offense to be able to evaluate the quarterback stuff,” he added. “So it's a balance between let's use some clock because the defense was playing a few snaps with the turnovers they created, but it was good work for us to be able to execute our offense and give both Billy and Cam some opportunities to learn and get game experience.” It wasn’t all pretty, but both quarterbacks showed enough as it’s up to MJ Morris to learn the offense after taking his first snaps in practice this past week. It’ll be an intriguing QB battle in College Spring in just a few months. WR room has something to prove While the room only loses Jeshaun Jones, next year’s wide receiver room will now turn to Tai Felton and Kaden Prather as the primary wideouts while Octavian Smith and Shaleak Knotts step into primary roles. After becoming a bigger piece in the rotation over the final three games of the season, Knotts finished with just one catch for seven yards on a pair of targets, while Smith finished with 17 yards on one catch and three targets. How well Preston Howard can transition into a TE1 role in 2024 will be an fun storyline as he fills the role that Corey Dyches once shined in, while soon-to-be second-year TE Dylan Wade fills Howard's role. But 2024 will mark the first season that fans get a chance to see the next wave of underclassmen emerge as guys like Braeden Wisloski and Ryan Manning sit patiently awaiting their turns. Front seven shows early potential in 2024 The key to stopping Auburn's offense was limiting their production on the ground as they entered Saturday 16th nationally in rushing yards per game. Maryland’s defense answered the call, though, after the Tigers failed to eclipse 100 rushing yards for the first time this season. Even better news? That's the fourth time that Maryland's defense has done that in 2023. Maryland was able to limit the chunk plays from Jarquez Hunter, whose longest run of the day was just eight yards and held Auburn to just 2.2 yards per carry in the win. Payton Thorne was also a big piece in Auburn's rushing attack as he's been all season, but he found minimal success after posting negative run yardage. It wasn’t just one player stepping up for Maryland’s defense, either. Quashon Fuller finished tied for second on the team in tackles (5) while Tommy Akingbesote and Jordan Phillips were able to disrupt the pocket. Akingbesote registered a pass breakup at the line of scrimmage, but Taizse Johnson came down with one of the three sacks after taking Thorne down on 3rd down to open the second half. While Fa'Najae Gotay led the team in tackles (6) in his final game as a Terp, Ruben Hyppolite wasn't far behind after showcasing himself once more as fans look to the Florida native to anchor next year's inside linebacker room. As for who's behind him, Caleb Wheatland answered the call once more after posting a third-down sack and QB hurry as he'll be leaned on in next year’s rotation. Daniel Wingate and Mike Harris were also able to rotate into the game through the second half to provide a glimpse into the future at the position, but there are tangible signs of optimism in the front seven. And that isn’t even considering Neeo Avery, the four-star freshman who remained sidelined through the 2023 season and can bolster next year’s pass rush. DBs Glen Miller & Perry Fisher shine in the secondary Depth at cornerback was a question mark heading into the bowl game following the opt out of Tarheeb Still and transfers from Corey Coley and Gavin Gibson, but it was a second-year player who shined brightest on Saturday afternoon. If there was one breakout performer from Saturday’s game, it was cornerback Perry Fisher. The Florida native saw extended run at cornerback, finishing with a pair of pass deflections and one tackle for loss in his first extended run. Fisher was always tabbed as a high-ceiling prospect ever since he made the position switch nearly immediately after enrolling in June of 2022. A former quarterback with defensive back experience in high school, learning the technique at the position was his biggest focus over the last season, but Saturday marked his first true breakout game as a Terp. Fisher turned heads early with a great pass deflection in deep coverage, one of two great individual plays on the final drive of the first quarter. Fisher wasn’t the only defensive back to shine as Glen Miller continues to add buzz around his name heading into the 2024 season, coming down with his fourth interception of the season and first touchdown after jumping an outside route for a 38-yard pick-six. Fisher would reemerge on the ensuing kickoff after Rex Fleming forced a fumble on the return with Fisher pouncing on the ball, setting up Maryland at the AUB 40. While the offense squandered a prime scoring opportunity to cement the game early in the third quarter, Fisher's first-down sack on QB Payton Thorne not just marked his first career sack but pinned the Tigers' offense deep enough to force an eventual punt. With Beau Brade officially moving onto the NFL, Miller steps into a comfortable role along the backline next to Dante Trader Jr. where he’ll look to become the latest Terp to solidify the secondary. As for Fisher, cornerback depth remains a question heading into 2024 with Bowling Green transfer Jalen Huskey likely locking down one starting spot. Lionell Whitaker was able to rotate in, but Fisher’s performance adds confidence to next year’s rotation at the position. https://open.spotify.com/episode/765MvYqPCrNOQXreD44YBU?si=b882c47ec2314b36 Related Links Beau Brade declares for 2024 NFL DraftYoung Terps: Maryland dominates Auburn in Music City BowlMike Locksley on Maryland’s “bright future” after bowl win vs. AuburnWatch: WR Jeshaun Jones, LB Ruben Hyppolite recap Music City Bowl winInstant reactions: Maryland 31, Auburn 13