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Taulia Tagovailoa accounts for 4 first-half touchdowns in Maryland's 38-6 win over Towson
COLLEGE PARK, Md. (AP) It was clear from the beginning that Maryland was going to let Taulia Tagovailoa shine in its season opener.
Tagovailoa threw for three touchdowns and ran for one in the first half of Maryland's 38-6 rout of Towson on Saturday. The Terrapins took their standout quarterback out late in the third quarter, allowing backups to play against an FCS opponent. But that was after Tagovailoa attempted a whopping 32 passes in the first half as Maryland pulled away.
“When people play man and they get the extra guys in the box, you want to throw the ball,” Terps coach Michael Locksley said. “We wanted to start off fast. Our quarterback is our strength, and I'm going to keep talking about - we have to play to our strengths.”
The Terrapins (1-0) had little trouble against a Towson team playing its first game under coach Pete Shinnick. Tagovailoa threw for 260 yards, and Corey Dyches had six catches for 108 yards and a touchdown.
The Terrapins have high hopes in Locksley's fifth season at the helm. They're coming off an eight-win campaign last year and have a talented, experienced quarterback in Tagovailoa. He opened the scoring with a 23-yard touchdown run.
“He made a lot of plays,” Shinnick said. “That’s what he’s done against everybody we watched on film."
Tagovailoa struck twice more in the first quarter with a 23-yard TD pass to Dyches and a 24-yarder to Jeshaun Jones. He added a 13-yard scoring toss to Kaden Prather with 14 seconds left in the half to make it 28-3.
Roman Hemby scored on a 9-yard run in the third quarter.
Tagovailoa had only one pass attempt in the second half before he was replaced by Billy Edwards Jr.
Nathan Kent threw for 128 yards for Towson (0-1).
THE TAKEAWAY
Towson: Locksley didn’t run up the score against his alma mater, removing Tagovailoa. The Tigers never got into the end zone, but they avoided turnovers, which helped keep the final score somewhat reasonable. In fact, neither team had a turnover.
Maryland: Jones and Dyches were the top returning pass catchers for the Terps, and their chemistry with Tagovailoa looked strong as expected. Tagovailoa did have to do his share of scrambling, so Maryland’s pass protection will be something to watch in the coming weeks.
“I feel like we had three or four blitzes where if we could get him down, we’re one-on-one with him, it changes the complexion of the game,” Shinnick said. “But that’s why he’s who he is, and that’s why he does what he does."
STREAK
Maryland has held three straight opponents without a touchdown, dating to last season. It's the first time the Terps have accomplished that since they shut out Cincinnati, Clemson and Virginia to finish off an undefeated regular season in 1976.
LOCAL MATCHUP
As a Towson alum, it's no surprise that Locksley was willing to play the Baltimore-area school, but he also said he wants to schedule other teams in the region like Morgan State and Howard.
“What a great thing it is to be able to play local teams, in-state programs,” Locksley said.
EXODOUS
There was an impressive crowd in the student section for the game.
“We got off to the fast start that we like to get off to, scoring 21 points in the first quarter," Locksley said. “I think you can attribute some of that to our fans. Our student section especially gave us that energy right from the start.”
That said, after Maryland took a big lead the crowd thinned out.
“It was booming in the beginning,” said Prather, a West Virginia transfer. “After halftime, I looked up and I was like, ‘What’s going on?' It got a little slow.”
UP NEXT
Towson: The Tigers open conference play in the CAA when they host Monmouth on Saturday night.
Maryland: The Terps host Charlotte on Saturday night.
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AP college football: https://apnews.com/hub/college-football and https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-football-poll
Copyright 2024 STATS LLC and Associated Press. Any commercial use or distribution without the express written consent of STATS LLC and Associated Press is strictly prohibited.
N. Kent
15 QB 128 PaYds, 41 RuYds |
|
T. Tagovailoa
3 QB 260 PaYds, 3 PaTDs, 28 RuYds, RuTD |
Team Stats | ||
---|---|---|
1st Downs | 16 | 28 |
Rushing | 9 | 11 |
Passing | 6 | 13 |
Penalty | 1 | 4 |
3rd Down Conv | 5-15 | 7-14 |
4th Down Conv | 1-3 | 2-2 |
Total Net Yards | 276 | 449 |
Total Plays | 65 | 79 |
Avg Gain | 4.2 | 5.7 |
Net Yards Rushing | 148 | 166 |
Rush Attempts | 34 | 36 |
Avg Rush Yards | 4.4 | 4.6 |
Yards Passing | 128 | 283 |
Comp. - Att. | 16-31 | 26-43 |
Yards Per Pass | 3.5 | 6.2 |
Penalties - Yards | 10-90 | 6-54 |
Touchdowns | 0 | 5 |
Rushing TDs | 0 | 2 |
Passing TDs | 0 | 3 |
Other | 0 | 0 |
Turnovers | 0 | 0 |
Fumbles - Lost | 0-0 | 0-0 |
Int. Thrown | 0 | 0 |
Punts - Avg | 5-34.2 | 3-49.3 |
Return Yards | 12 | 0 |
Punts - Returns | 2-12 | 0-0 |
Kickoffs - Returns | 0-0 | 0-0 |
Int. - Returns | 0-0 | 0-0 |
Safeties | 0 | 0 |
Passing | CP/ATT | YDS | TD | INT |
N. Kent
15 QB
|
N. Kent | 16/31 | 128 | 0 | 0 |
Rushing | ATT | YDS | TD | LG |
D. Matthews
3 RB
|
D. Matthews | 12 | 48 | 0 | 8 | ||||||||||||||||||||
N. Kent
15 QB
|
N. Kent | 10 | 41 | 0 | 17 | ||||||||||||||||||||
D. Hunter
0 RB
|
D. Hunter | 8 | 33 | 0 | 5 | ||||||||||||||||||||
C. Watkins
26 RB
|
C. Watkins | 3 | 18 | 0 | 8 | ||||||||||||||||||||
S. Folley
21 RB
|
S. Folley | 1 | 8 | 0 | 8 |
Receiving | TAR | REC | YDS | TD | LG |
D. James
13 WR
|
D. James | 9 | 4 | 49 | 0 | 24 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
I. Perkins
19 WR
|
I. Perkins | 4 | 3 | 30 | 0 | 15 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
L. Londono
14 WR
|
L. Londono | 3 | 2 | 22 | 0 | 18 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
D. Hunter
0 RB
|
D. Hunter | 5 | 4 | 13 | 0 | 9 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
M. Jackson
81 TE
|
M. Jackson | 2 | 2 | 9 | 0 | 5 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
M. Akuchie
7 WR
|
M. Akuchie | 2 | 1 | 5 | 0 | 5 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
C. Runyon
80 TE
|
C. Runyon | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
D. Thompson IV
11 WR
|
D. Thompson IV | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Defense | T-A | SACK | INT |
M. Woods
55 LB
|
M. Woods | 5-3 | 0.0 | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||
D. Davis
2 DB
|
D. Davis | 5-1 | 0.0 | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||
J. Gay
6 LB
|
J. Gay | 4-3 | 0.0 | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||
E. Rutkowski
21 LB
|
E. Rutkowski | 3-0 | 0.0 | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||
D. Raymond
4 LB
|
D. Raymond | 2-1 | 0.0 | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||
E. Smith
90 DL
|
E. Smith | 2-0 | 0.0 | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||
X. Terry
38 DB
|
X. Terry | 2-3 | 0.0 | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||
S. Smith
31 DB
|
S. Smith | 1-0 | 0.0 | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||
M. Smith
9 DL
|
M. Smith | 1-2 | 0.0 | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||
J. Reddock
28 DB
|
J. Reddock | 1-0 | 0.0 | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||
T. Wallace
99 DL
|
T. Wallace | 1-0 | 0.0 | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||
R. Javier
3 DB
|
R. Javier | 1-0 | 0.0 | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||
N. Haynes
27 LB
|
N. Haynes | 1-0 | 0.0 | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||
J. Patterson
17 LB
|
J. Patterson | 1-0 | 0.0 | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||
J. Gibbs
8 DL
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J. Gibbs | 1-0 | 0.0 | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||
M. Swain
24 DB
|
M. Swain | 0-1 | 0.0 | 0 |
Kicking | FG | LG | XP | PTS |
K. Vaughan
30 K
|
K. Vaughan | 2/2 | 38 | 0/0 | 6 | ||||||||||||||||
C. Williams
47 K
|
C. Williams | 1/1 | 39 | 0/0 | 3 |
Punting | NO | AVG | IN20 | LG |
J. Ritter
97 P
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J. Ritter | 5 | 34.2 | 1 | 41 | ||||||||||||||||||||
T. Greene Jr.
4 RB
|
T. Greene Jr. | 1 | 38.0 | 0 | 38 |
Kickoff Returns | NO | AVG | LG | TD |
D. Hunter
0 RB
|
D. Hunter | 1 | 11.0 | 11 | 0 |
Punt Returns | NO | AVG | LG | TD |
D. Hunter 0 RB
|
D. Hunter | 2 | 6.0 | 10 | 0 |
Passing | CP/ATT | YDS | TD | INT |
T. Tagovailoa
3 QB
|
T. Tagovailoa | 22/33 | 260 | 3 | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
C. Edge
12 QB
|
C. Edge | 2/3 | 18 | 0 | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
B. Edwards Jr.
9 QB
|
B. Edwards Jr. | 2/7 | 5 | 0 | 0 |
Rushing | ATT | YDS | TD | LG |
R. Hemby
24 RB
|
R. Hemby | 12 | 58 | 1 | 14 | ||||||||||||||||||||
A. Littleton II
7 RB
|
A. Littleton II | 10 | 37 | 0 | 8 | ||||||||||||||||||||
T. Tagovailoa
3 QB
|
T. Tagovailoa | 2 | 28 | 1 | 23 | ||||||||||||||||||||
B. Edwards Jr.
9 QB
|
B. Edwards Jr. | 3 | 27 | 0 | 9 | ||||||||||||||||||||
C. McDonald
23 RB
|
C. McDonald | 3 | 18 | 0 | 16 | ||||||||||||||||||||
N. Ray
25 RB
|
N. Ray | 3 | 7 | 0 | 6 | ||||||||||||||||||||
E. Mason
27 RB
|
E. Mason | 2 | 2 | 0 | 2 | ||||||||||||||||||||
C. Edge
12 QB
|
C. Edge | 1 | -11 | 0 | -11 |
Receiving | TAR | REC | YDS | TD | LG |
C. Dyches
84 TE
|
C. Dyches | 6 | 6 | 108 | 1 | 44 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
J. Jones
6 WR
|
J. Jones | 6 | 5 | 57 | 1 | 24 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
O. Smith Jr.
5 WR
|
O. Smith Jr. | 7 | 4 | 42 | 0 | 16 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
K. Prather
1 WR
|
K. Prather | 4 | 2 | 18 | 1 | 13 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
R. Manning
11 WR
|
R. Manning | 2 | 2 | 18 | 0 | 11 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
T. Felton
10 WR
|
T. Felton | 4 | 2 | 15 | 0 | 11 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
R. Hemby
24 RB
|
R. Hemby | 2 | 2 | 14 | 0 | 7 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
T. Chambers
0 WR
|
T. Chambers | 4 | 2 | 9 | 0 | 6 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
R. Walker
17 TE
|
R. Walker | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 2 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
D. Wade
18 TE
|
D. Wade | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
A. Littleton II
7 RB
|
A. Littleton II | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
R. Smith
87 WR
|
R. Smith | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
S. Knotts
4 WR
|