Look, Laviano has had many head scratching moments this season, but there is no denying his toughness.
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Maryland freshman Ty Johnson takes off for one of his two touchdown runs – his only carries of the game.
There was bedlam on the Terps sideline. Running back Brandon Ross and the Terrapins are stuck in an eight game losing streak, most recently with a loss to in by a 47-28 final score. Saturday, the Terps overcame an 18-point halftime deficit to beat the Scarlet Knights.
This position did not come easy for Maryland, however, as coach Brenda Frese’s team trailed the South Dakota State Jackrabbits midway through the fourth quarter in Friday’s win.
“He’s a great wide receiver”, middle linebacker Jermaine Carter Jr. said.
But Maryland’s 80-yard score on the next play from scrimmage plunged the nail into Rutgers’ coffin.
Maryland answered with a 77-yard drive of their own. Isaiah Wharton became the school’s first player since Logan Ryan in 2011 to rack up four pass breakups. IL scored first on a one-yard run from QB Wes Lunt, and stayed in the game in the third on a 58-yard pick-six from Mason Monheim, but the Wildcats got a 39-yard Jack Mitchell field goal to pull ahead for good.
“When he’s been on the field, he’s shown the ability to make plays for them, and I know for a quarterback to have a safety net like him – a guy you know you can count on if you put the ball up in his vicinity – that he’ll go make plays for you”, interim coach Mike Locksley said. Johnson tallied on run of 43 and 44 yards and backup quarterback Caleb Rowe came off the bench in the second quarter and threw for 239 yards and ran for 98.
Green Bay kicked off the second quarter with a 5-0 run to lead by 11. This is where we want the Rutgers women’s soccer program to be every year – we want to be competing for championships. A play after another big play to Leonte Carroo, Chris Laviano would throw for his second touchdown of the game to put Rutgers up 17-0. Two plays later Ross, in his last game as a Terp, rumbled in for a touchdown that drew the Terps within five at 38-33 after they failed on a two-point conversion. Maryland (3-9) ensured that with a miraculous second-half surge, one eerily resembling Rutgers’ 25-point comeback last season in College Park. Rowe got the Terps down to the 16 with a 20-yard scramble on third-down, and then Ross scored his fourth touchdown in two games with a zig-zagging 16-yard score to cut the Rutgers lead to 31-20.
What the loss means for Rutgers: This might’ve been a worst-case scenario for the Scarlet Knights. Headed to the final quarter, the Scarlet Knights led 38-27. However, this time the line carved out a huge hole for Goins and he would rumble down the field for a 42-yard house call.
On the very next Maryland possession, the Terps couldn’t get anything going and quarterback Perry Hills was sacked on third down to force another punt.
Johnson brought Maryland to within four points with a 44-yard touchdown run straight through the center of the Rutgers defense. The successful kick gave Rutgers a 41-39 lead. But the officials ruled that kick returner Justin Goodwin’s knee was down.
Offensively, Rutgers quieted in the second-half as it managed just 10 points through the final two quarters of play.
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ABOUT RUTGERS (4-7, 1-6): Rutgers suspended safety Anthony Cioffi for a violation of team rules and moved running back Josh Hicks to defense for Saturday’s game against Army, which the Scarlet Knights won 31-21 despite being outgained 401-359.
