Wahoo Wire

Not only did UVa earn a great road win against Miami last Thursday, but the mid-week game also gave them extra time to prepare for Maryland.  The Cavaliers enter the game 5-3, and just one win away from becoming bowl eligible.  With another road win, this time in College Park, the Cavaliers would remain in contention to win the Coastal Division.  Maryland enters the game 2-6, and just 1-4 in ACC play, with their only win coming over Miami back at the beginning of September.  However, despite their poor record, Maryland has played most of their games extremely competitively.

Maryland: Against the best three teams they have played so far this year, Maryland took all the games down to the wire, losing by six to West Virginia, five to Georgia Tech, and 11 to Clemson despite leading by 18 in the third quarter.  On offense, the Terps split their snaps between two quarterbacks: Danny O’Brien and CJ Brown.  O’Brien, a sophomore has completed 57.4% of his passes for 1275 yards and six TDs, but also has tossed 7 interceptions.  Brown has completed only 47.4% of his passes for 375 yards and four TDs but he also provides a mobile element at quarterback, rushing 332 yards, two TDs, and is averaging 7.2 yards per carry.  The Terrapins use a committee of running backs, but the back carrying most of the workload is Davin Maggett who has rushed for 625 yards and three TDs.  The Terps also have a pretty balanced group of receivers.  Maryland lacks star power at most of its skilled positions, which shows with the Terps ranking just 69^th in total offense and 85^th in points scored (24.0 per game).

Virginia: The Terrapins have earned their 2-6 record by not just being mediocre on offense, but also by being a below average defensive team.  The Terrapins are allowing 31.0 points per game, 87^th best in the nation.  The Cavs, just five days after a disheartening loss to NC State, stopped attempting to run a two-quarterback offense, allowing Michael Rocco to take all the snaps.  Coach London gave the Hurricanes a heavy dose of UVa’s power rushing offense, rushing 42 times for 207 yards, almost 5 yards per carry.  Currently, the Cavs rank 37^th in overall rushing offense; averaging over 186 yards per game.  Rocco also turned in an efficient day against the Canes, completing 11 of 20 passes for 226 yards, two TDs, and no picks.  On the season, Rocco has completed 59.4% of his passes for 1412 yards and six TDs.  In order to leave with a W, the Cavaliers need to protect the ball like they did against Miami, after turning it over four times in the loss to NC State.

Prediction: Cavs overcome two turnovers and pull out another road win to become bowl eligible.  Virginia 24, Maryland 20