Maryland Terrapins (1-0, 0-0 B1G) vs. Charlotte 49ers (1-0, 0-0 AAC) TV: NBC (Noah Eagle-pxp, Todd Blackledge-analyst, Kathryn Tappen-sideline)
Radio: 105.7FM (Balt), 980AM (DC) – Johnny Holliday, Steve Suter, LaMont Jordan
Betting (DraftKings): Maryland -24.5; O/U: 50
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K2XKqNkDrO8
Maryland will look to move to 2-0 when they host Charlotte and first-year head coach Biff Poggi for the first night game inside SECU Stadium this season.
The connections between the two programs feel endless, beginning with Locksley’s longtime connection with Poggi that included Kai Locksley once suiting up for Poggi at Gilman.
“I’ve known Biff probably since about 1997, ‘98 when I came here as a young assistant and he was coach over at Gilman. We recruited his school for some time,” head coach Mike Locksley said on Tuesday. Charlotte also reloaded their roster, adding six former Terps and 28 former St. Frances players in a complete overhaul. The Niners also added Mike Miller, who joined Locksley at Maryland as an assistant back in 2019, as their offensive coordinator, which has helped Maryland prepare.
Charlotte is led by quarterback Jalon Jones, an integral part of its rushing attack that features true freshman running back Durell Robinson. After staying conservative in Poggi’s week one win, Locksley shed light on what the Niners staff is familiar with offensively.
“I do know that Biff’s philosophy, Biff loves gap schemes and he loves to run the ball downhill, power, counter, create walls and kicks. And so I would imagine that we expect to see some of the things that maybe they did at Michigan because of this background there. Obviously we have Josh here and so he’s familiar with Biff’s philosophy offensively, just being up there with him together and then with Mike being here. So we’ve got a lot of hypotheses about it, but we’re gonna have to kind of let it play out and be prepared for a little bit of everything.”
After playing 13 different players along the offensive line, Maryland will look to tighten its rotation against the 49ers while they look for Gottlieb Ayedze to make his first career start. “We’re hopeful that we’re able to get back this week, possibly, which will again allow us to kind of solidify some things there,” Locksley said on Tuesday.
Meanwhile, the defense is expected to return safety Avantae Williams for his first career game as a Terp, bolstering a secondary led by Beau Brade and Dante Trader Jr.
“Yeah, we expect him to be. He is available this week,” Locksley said regarding Williams. “A week ago, obviously, coach’s decision, but definitely hopes us that he’s available and we can figure out a role and get him on the field here.”
Meanwhile, Maryland will look to avoid the familiarity on the field in hopes of getting through its second nonconference game unscathed.
“We’re going to play the game to the standard of our standard, and you know, after the game we’ll talk to those guys and share moments with them, but right now we’re focused on business and taking care of the game and potentially winning it,” running back Roman Hemby added.
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