Oct 21, 2009 8:06 am US/Eastern
Despite Rough Start, Resilient Terps Remain Upbeat
COLLEGE PARK, Md. (AP) ―
When a young football team gets off to a horrid start, the head coach usually must find a way to keep his players' spirits up.
At Maryland, it's the other way around.
Since taking over as head coach at his alma mater in 2001, Ralph Friedgen never experienced the anguish of a 2-5 start -- until now.
But his players remain upbeat, and Friedgen said Tuesday their confidence has made it easier for him to cope with this difficult season.
At Monday's practice, linebacker Adrian Moten sneaked into the offensive huddle and kiddingly told the players to watch out for him on defense. Later, there was a spirited field-goal kicking session that featured good-natured insults and put-downs.
"Even though things are tough right now, they still go out and have fun at practice," Friedgen said. "That's kind of why I really like this group. All the time, people talk about how the coaches affect the players. This time it may be the players affecting the coaches. They kind of pick us up."
The Terrapins (2-5, 1-2 Atlantic Coast Conference) are coming off a soggy 20-9 homecoming loss to Virginia. Maryland has appeared in a school-record three straight bowl games, but must go 4-1 the rest of the way to become bowl eligible and keep alive the school-record run.
The players have done the math, and so has Friedgen. The hope is that when the Terrapins play Duke on Saturday, all thoughts about the ACC standings, bowl ramifications and Maryland's minus-13 turnover differential will remain on the team bus.
"Maybe we just need to go out and relax, just have a good time and let it go," Friedgen said. "Maybe that's the way you approach this whole thing. We can't do any worse than what we've been doing. Just enjoy the day."
Friedgen hasn't been in this kind of bind at Maryland, but he experienced similar lackluster seasons as an assistant at Georgia Tech in the 1990s. The players on this squad, however, are different.
"I've never been on a team that's 2-5 that works as hard as this team and has as good an attitude as this team," Friedgen said. "What bothers me as a coach is: What do I have to do to make this team better? I get emotional about it because they're important to me.
"Me as their leader, I can't get down. I've got to keep fighting. It's easier with this team because of their attitude. They help me."
The proper attitude helps, but the Terps must also improve their level of play if they are to beat Duke (3-3, 1-1). In its first two road games, at California and Wake Forest, Maryland was outscored 93-45 -- including 66-16 in the first half.
"We have to set the tempo early," senior center Phil Costa said. "We have to be the first to score or the first to make a big play, get the momentum our way."
Although the schools haven't met on the football field since 2004, Blue Devils coach David Cutcliffe expects the game to be akin to a Duke-Maryland clash on the basketball court.
"The big thing is to understand the intensity level," Cutcliffe said. "In ACC games or annual opponents, there's some energy and rivalry that's surrounding the game that you hope your team understands. This is an ACC opponent. Maryland is facing the same thing. They play at Duke. Obviously, I think both teams should be pretty hungry for a win. It should make for a great football game."
Maryland intends to match Duke's fervor, but hopes to use that emotion in a positive fashion.
"We don't have anything to lose, we don't anything to worry about," safety Jamari McCollough said. "It's just about having fun."
(© 2009 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)
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