So the Terps lost to Wisconsin 78-69 to finish fourth in the 2009 Maui Invitational. It was their second loss in two days after being overmatched in every sense that that word can convey against Cincinnati.

There are a few causes. One is Grevis Vasquez’s continued shooting woes (4-11 until garbage time). Another is that Wisconsin simply won the battle of wills in terms of game style. Who knew it was legal to actually remove the air from the basketball during play? Check and mate, Phoenix Suns.

Perhaps the biggest problem, however, was perimeter defense. They don’t exactly have the arc on lockdown…it’s like the Shawshank Redemption up in there, ba dum bum. But seriously, folks, their plan seems to be all playground style…once it’s clear someone is definitely going to shoot a three (ie, once it’s too late), someone runs at the shooter and throws up a hand. Sometimes I can almost hear them calling out “don’t miss!” as the ball goes up. Extremely effective back in my driveway against that twitchy kid with the Garbage Pail Kid in his bike spoke. Not so effective against Division I basketball opponents.

Don’t believe me? Let’s go to the stats. Wisconsin hit 45 percent from three against the Terps. In their other two games in Maui, they shot 27 percent against Arizona and 21 percent against Gonzaga. So they DOUBLED their output against the Terps. Maryland held Cincinnati to 24 percent shooting from three. That’s great and all, but Vanderbilt held them to 20. Prairie View A&M, the university known for its prairie views, held them to 27.

There are a couple of teams on the horizon who are pretty decent at shooting. Indiana, for one. Villanova, for another. Duke and Carolina, for a third and fourth. If we’re going to be all half-hearted in contesting the three-pointer, well, that’s not gonna win us many ball games. I’m not a coach. I’m just saying.

For more on Maryland basketball (and all other Maryland sports), check out www.shell-games.com.

It would seem inconceivable that the season finale for a 2-9 team that is clearly going nowhere could be important but I think this game does have real significance for the staff and the future of Maryland football. Depending on what paper you read the athletic department has already marshaled the necessary war chest to buyout the contracts of both Ralph Friedgen and offensive coordinator James Franklin or there is doubt that the University administration would allow such a massive expenditure (even if it is in the form of a loan) in a budget crisis that has resulted in furloughs and layoffs for employees.

If the team has another embarrassing blow out to end the season it will turn up the heat even more on Friedgen and perhaps give the athletic department the political cover it requires to spend an extravagant sum on a buyout for the head coach and his staff during a time when the buzzword at the University is cost cutting. If instead the team has an impressive performance against 7-4 Boston College and Jamarr Robinson continues to show improvement then it might be much more difficult to clean house on the staff. A young team with some dynamic playmakers in Robinson, Da’Rel Scott and Torrey Smith could improve dramatically next season but a coaching change would insert an unknown variable in that equation. It is impossible to say if the personnel would fit the scheme of the new coach or if the change in leadership might result in key players transferring.

Boston College’s defense will provide a much stiffer test for the offense than Florida State did last week ranking in the top 30 in both total defense and scoring defense nationally, fourth in the ACC.  If BC is vulnerable it is in the pass defense as they don’t have many sacks and rank 57th in the nation. Robinson will have to prove he can connect down the field as many of his passes have been checkdowns and dump offs the last two weeks. The plays have been available for Robinson like the possible deep touchdown pass to Torrey Smith that was just off the mark against FSU.  The running game lead by a healthy Da’Rel Scott and Davin Meggett needs to continue to take some of the pressure off of Robinson. It will also be interesting to see if the offensive line, coming off their best game of the season, can continue to open holes in the running game. Tackles Bruce Campbell and R.J. Dill were particularly impressive against the Seminoles.

The Eagles offense will turn the ball over so the defense would do well to continue its string of forcing turnovers, eight in the last three games. The defense has also scored off turnovers, two in the last three games, but while that is great the defense needs to get some stops at critical moments in the game as well. The defensive line has been fading the last few weeks and linebackers have failed to make the stops near the line of scrimmage that they need to make.

This game will be worth watching because it could have more effect on the future of Maryland football than any game in the last five years.

Despite the fact that Maryland gave another game away to Florida State today, there were a few high points.  Jamarr Robinson looked like the player he was touted to be, putting it together on the ground and in the air.  I was at the game about this time last year when Florida State used a relentless blitz to beat the Terps into submission.  I love Chris Turner, but he didn’t have the legs to escape it, and every play looked like a jailbreak against the Terps offensive line.

Robinson was able to keep the defense offense by getting out of the pocket and, at times, running for first downs.  His stat line was quite impressive: 20/27, 214yds, 1TD, 0INT, and 58 yards on the ground.  That line gave him a 153 QB rating, meaning he had about as good a game as you can have.  Most importantly, Robinson seemed to shake off the happy feet he had against Virginia Tech and focus on his throws.

With his play, Davin Meggett made a case for being the starting tailback next year.  Although Meggett and Scott had virtually the same yards per carry, he seemed to be hitting the hole with more authority and getting more of the tough yards than Scott.  I feel like this has been the case for most of the past two years.  One has to wonder if injuries have taken away Scott’s first step.  We’ll have to see how Scott looks after the off-season.

Defensively, there was little to get excited about.  Although the Terps did force a couple of big turnovers, Florida State seemed to be moving the ball at will in the fourth quarter.  It looked as though the patented Don Brown Blitz left the team gassed at the end of the game.  I know it’s Brown’s first year, and I know the team had a lot of injuries on defense this year, but Maryland has to seriously consider whether he should come back next year.  The team gave up 21pts/gm in 2008, and this year they’re giving up 32 pts/game.  That’s a 52% increase.  I don’t believe in Brown’s new system.  The Terps are getting burnt for big plays on a regular basis, and this overly aggressive approach has left the team unable to finish games.

Against Boston College next weekend, the Terps have one last dress rehearsal for 2010 starting jobs.  Chism, Meggett, and Robinson all made strong statements against Florida State.  For the rest of the team, you got to show me something.

-terphed (http://www.shell-games.com)

It is easy to get caught up in all the excitement and hype that the basketball team is generating at the moment.  But the football team still has two games left, and even if it may not seem like much of a difference, going 4-8 is much better than going 2-10.  With number one Florida in the season finale the game against Maryland looms large for Florida State if they hope to avoid failing to qualify for a bowl for the first time since 1981.

It is another chance for quarterback Jamarr Robinson to get some game experience against a very weak FSU defense. The return of running back Da’Rel Scott could be a huge boost as neither Davin Meggett, Gary Douglas or Caleb Porzel has been able to muster a decent ground game. Although they did a decent job against Wake Forest’s Riley Skinner this is not a vintage Mickey Andrews’ defense. Keeping up with FSU’s potent offense will be a tremendous challenge for Don Brown’s defense. A position to keep an eye on is corner, where both Anthony Wiseman and Cameron Chism were benched at times in recent weeks. Wiseman seems to have given way to Trenton Hughes while senior Richard Taylor is a likely start in the final home game against Boston College.

Both the offense and defense face a stiff challenge this week and the effort will be a good indication of whether the team has given up on this season.