– by Adesina O. Koiki
A Lot of Sports Talk editor-in-chief
Follow @Koiki_Sport
COLLEGE PARK, Md. — Coming back to his roots after a successful stint as offensive coordinator at Alabama, D.C. native Mike Locksley was tasked to change the culture of the Maryland Terrapins program when he was hired this offseason. After two games of the 2019 regular season, what must be changed is the team’s expectations for this season, as Maryland showed a national television audience that its rebuild is progressing rapidly.
Another new Terrapin for 2019, Virginia Tech transfer Josh Jackson, threw for 296 yards and three touchdowns while Maryland’s run game scythed Syracuse’s defense all game in the Terrapins’ 63-20 demolition of the No. 21 Orange at Maryland Stadium on Saturday afternoon.
Locksley’s first game as Maryland head coach was a 79-0 whitewash of MEAC member Howard, but as resounding as that win was on the scoreline, defeating a 10-win team from last season in dominating fashion should put the program in the Top 25 of the national rankings by the time the weekend comes to a close.
Maryland scored touchdowns on six of its seven possessions in the first half to take a 42-13 lead after just 30 minutes.
“We were able to start quickly. We got a good three and out on defense and then offensively, we
were able to go out and score down quick,” said Locksley. “We keep stressing that starting fast is really important for us in all three phases for us to get a good start and then finish faster and we did that. I was happy with the offensive execution early in the game.”
*Editor’s note: Above the byline is the photo gallery from Saturday afternoon’s game, with all photos taken by DC-Area photographers Yusuf Abdullah and Rodney Pierce. After clicking on the first photo to enlarge the picture, make sure to press the left and right arrow buttons to scroll through the rest of the pictures. There are 42 pictures in total.
