[Baltimore Sun] Maryland football drops to 1-7 in Big Ten with 29-13 loss to Iowa
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COLLEGE PARK — Fighting for life in the postseason, Maryland football just didn’t have enough of it.
Iowa pushed and bruised the Terps with a punishing rushing offense headlined by running backs Kaleb Johnson and Kamari Moulton, and Maryland’s response was a too-little, too-late effort in a 29-13 loss Saturday afternoon at SECU Stadium.
The setback was the sixth in the past seven games for the Terps (4-7, 1-7 Big Ten), who were all but eliminated from bowl consideration. The seven conference losses are the second most during coach Mike Locksley’s tenure after he went 1-8 against the Big Ten during his first season in 2019. Maryland must find a way to upset No. 4 Penn State (9-1, 6-1) next Saturday to avoid its eighth league setback, which would match the highest total in program history.
On a day when Maryland celebrated 22 seniors — some of whom played in the final home games of their careers — several members of that group finished with subpar performances.
Redshirt junior quarterback Billy Edwards Jr. was pulled after the offense’s second possession of the game in favor of redshirt sophomore MJ Morris and then was knocked out of the game after a hard tackle in the third quarter. He finished with season lows in completions (five), attempts (eight) and passing yards (26).
Redshirt junior running back Roman Hemby, an Edgewood native and John Carroll graduate, carried the ball just eight times for 19 yards and caught four passes for 25 yards. And senior safety Dante Trader Jr. (McDonogh), senior outside linebacker Donnell Brown and junior inside linebacker Caleb Wheatland each were flagged for infractions that contributed to scoring drives for Iowa (7-4, 5-3).
Terps senior wide receiver Tai Felton provided some semblance of joy when he caught six passes for 57 yards and two touchdowns. With nine touchdown grabs, he is tied for second in program history for touchdown receptions in a season with Marcus Badgett (1992) and Jermaine Lewis (1994) and sits alone in fifth place for touchdown catches in a career with 16.
Aside from Felton, though, it was a forgettable showing by the offense, which mustered only 65 total yards, 13 rushing yards, three first downs and a 7:08 time of possession in the first half. The unit never got past the Terps’ 45-yard line, and redshirt sophomore Bryce McFerson was perhaps the team’s most active player with four punts in the opening frame.
The defense wasn’t much better. Earlier in the week, Locksley had lauded the unit’s effort against the run as one of its strengths.
The Hawkeyes, however, moved the ball seemingly at will against Maryland. By halftime, they amassed 200 total yards, 139 rushing yards and 15 first downs while controlling the clock with a 22:52 time of possession.
Johnson, a 6-foot, 225-pound junior who entered the game as the Big Ten leader in rushing yards (1,328) and touchdown runs (20), gained 101 yards and a 2-yard touchdown on 18 carries midway through the second quarter. He finished with 35 attempts for 164 yards.
In his first start of the season, sophomore quarterback Jackson Stratton completed 10 of 14 passes for 76 yards. Then again, the fourth-stringer didn’t have to do much except turn and hand the ball off to Johnson or redshirt freshman running back Kamari Moulton (12 carries for 114 yards and one touchdown).
Moulton actually gifted Maryland with its first takeaway in four games when he failed to secure a handoff from Stratton, and junior safety Jalen Huskey pounced on the fumble at the Terps’ 10 early in the first quarter. But after one first down, the offense was forced to punt.
Iowa got a 27-yard field goal from junior kicker Drew Stevens with 22 seconds left in the period. After the defense forced Maryland into a three-and-out, the Hawkeyes went 77 yards in 14 plays and 7:26 before Johnson rumbled up the middle for his 21st rushing touchdown of the season. Iowa enjoyed a 13-0 lead at halftime.
Returning to the field after the break, Edwards helmed a march from the Terps’ 30-yard to Iowa’s 3 but appeared to collide helmets with junior safety Xavier Nwankpa with 7:27 left in the third quarter. After a few minutes getting attention from trainers, Edwards walked off the field but did not return to the game.
Morris, a transfer from North Carolina State, promptly found Felton for an 8-yard touchdown with 5:57 remaining and then a 12-yard score with 11:05 left in the fourth quarter. But Moulton ripped off a 68-yard run for a touchdown to give the Hawkeyes a 26-13 advantage with 9:19 to go in the game, and junior cornerback TJ Hall and senior middle linebacker Jay Higgins intercepted Morris (12 of 23 for 103 yards and two touchdowns passes and nine carries for six yards) later in the fourth quarter to cement the win for Iowa.
Besides Higgins (eight tackles) and Hall (four), senior defensive end Ethan Hurkett posted six tackles (three for loss) and two sacks. And Stevens drilled five field goals, including distances of 53, 50 and 49 yards.
This article will be updated. Have a news tip? Contact Edward Lee at eklee@baltsun.com, 410-332-6200 and x.com/EdwardLeeSun.
UP NEXT
Maryland at No. 4 Penn State
Saturday, 3:30 p.m.
TV: Big Ten Network
Radio: 105.7 FM
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