Maryland football looks to reset in Rose Bowl debut vs UCLA

jmcconn3
Oct 18
3 min read

Maryland football voyages to the west coast this Saturday, facing off against an unfamiliar UCLA Bruins squad. Maryland hasn’t matched up against the Bruins in seventy years, dating back to September 24, 1955, in a game they won 7-0.

This time around, they will be playing in the historic Rose Bowl for the first time in program history, adding onto the momentous occasions for Maryland this weekend.

The Terps have a lot to prove against the Bruins, having blown back-to-back games against the Washington Huskies and the Nebraska Cornhusker, both in the fourth quarter. These losses have swirled around the program, desperate to get back on track after starting the season 4-0.

This past Monday, players such as Quarterback Malik Washington, Running Back Nolan Ray, and Linebacker Daniel Wingate, took part in a “modified” players-only meeting. This came of wind after Washington told the media after their loss to Nebraska that they would evaluate how to move forward and improve into the future of the season.

Washington after the players-only meeting on Monday mentioned how it wasn’t really a traditional meeting after all, just a way to clear the air during the short week at home.

“It wasn’t like a formal thing,” Washington said. “Everybody sat down in one area and, like, had a meeting. It was just like, you know, we’re talking among the leaders in each position group about, you know, what we see moving forward, and how to, you know, the team energized and going.”

Ray and Wingate took much of the meeting to heart and making an emphasis to correct past mistakes and being able to move forward, making sure that these losses don’t define their seasons.

“Nobody’s panicking,” Ray said. “We still know what kind of team we are. We know the work we put in, you know, guys still have high spirits and still high hopes, and everything we want is right in front of us, so for the season. So, nobody’s worried.”

“Just having guys being able to be ready for that opportunity when it’s players-only meetings usually have that reputation for, you know, hashing stuff out and airing out grievances was anything like that,” Wingate said. “Just to not let one loss continue to go into two and go into three, you know, just letting that week be last week and moving on to the next week because we don’t worry about last week or the next week, worry about the week that’s on right now.”

Moving into this week, Washington is aware of the defense he will be going up against, acknowledging their recent success.

“They play fast,” Washington said. “They stick to their rules. They’re a sound team and they’re going to go out there and do what they do.”

Moving to the defensive end of the ball for Maryland, Wingate is prepared to help clean up the fourth quarter fatigue and believes the defense is ready to go out and close out games.

“I think we’re all there with the mindset,” Wingate said. “We play good three quarters of football, you know, and this, we have the mindset going into the fourth quarter, at that point, it’s just about executing and making the plays when it’s given to us.”

One of the positives that came from Maryland with the loss to Nebraska was the improved production on the ground game. Ray was able to put up a touchdown and 62 rushing yards, his most of the season. Ray credited his support up front and looks to build from that against the Bruins.

“My o-line did a great job blocking, and I just think we were flowing as an offense,” Ray said. “I mean, just kind of coming out here and putting it in guys hands, just making sure I give the best performance I can every day, practicing hard, leaving it out, making sure I’m exhausted after practice because if I’m not, then I didn’t do enough.”

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