Philadelphia, PA (Sports Network) - Freshman quarterback Perry Hills threw for
two touchdowns and ran for another, as the Maryland Terrapins defeated Temple,
36-27, in non-conference action at Lincoln Financial Field.
Marcus Leak caught one of those TD passes and finished with 90 yards receiving
for the Terrapins (2-0), who were coming off an ugly 7-6 win over FCS school
William & Mary in the season opener.
Chris Coyer put forth a strong effort for the Owls (1-1), throwing for two
touchdowns while also leading the team with 53 yards on the ground.
Temple turned the ball over twice in its first four offensive plays, although
Maryland could only capitalize with three points.
Early in the second quarter, Maryland broke a 3-3 tie on Hills' 22-yard
touchdown pass to Matt Furstenburg.
The Terps extended their lead to 17-3 at the 6:19 mark of the second quarter,
as Hills found a wide open Leak for a 32-yard scoring strike on a well-
executed play-action pass.
Less than a minute later, Temple surrendered a safety when a shotgun snap
sailed over Hills' head and into the end zone. On the play, running back Matt
Brown injured his right ankle and had to be helped off the field, although he
would later return.
Later in the second quarter, Maryland pushed its lead to 26-3 on a broken play
on 3rd-and-goal. The shotgun snap got away from Hills, but he calmly picked up
the ball and scampered 11 yards into the end zone.
However, the Owls came out of the locker room on a mission in the second half.
The defense recovered a fumble on the first play from scrimmage, setting up a
one-yard touchdown plunge by Kenneth Harper four plays later.
Shortly after a 26-yard field goal by Maryland's Brad Craddock midway through
the third quarter, Coyer took a shot downfield and found C.J. Hammond for a
62-yard touchdown pass to cut the deficit to 29-17.
The Owls continued to fight their way back in the fourth quarter, as McManus
made a 40-yard field goal with 13:46 remaining to make it a 29-20 game.
With just over nine minutes to play, Temple had a 1st-and-10 at the Maryland
12 after recovering a muffed punt. However, the Owls came away with no points
as McManus had a short field goal attempt blocked. But on the very next play
from scrimmage, Maryland gave the ball right back when Wes Brown lost a fumble
near midfield. That turnover resulted in a 35-yard touchdown pass from Coyer
to Jalen Fitzpatrick on a 3rd-and-1, trimming the margin to 29-27 with 7:04
remaining.
Despite the Owls' valiant second-half charge, Maryland iced the game with an
11-play, 75-yard drive, punctuated by Justus Pickett's seven-yard TD scamper
with just under three minutes to play. That back-breaking score was set up by
a 38-yard completion from Hills to Stefon Diggs, which gave the Terps a first
down on the Temple 11.
The Owls were without running back Montel Harris because of a hamstring
injury. Despite the absence of Harris and a limited Brown, the Owls ran the
ball 39 times to only 18 pass attempts, and they averaged just 1.3 yards per
rush. After a lackluster offensive showing against William & Mary last week,
the Terps managed 12 first downs in the first half alone -- one less than they
managed in four quarters against W&M.
GAME NOTES:
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