Indiana Football Week 7 Opponent: Maryland Terrapins' Key Players to Watch
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – After a 3-0 start to the season, Indiana is back to .500 at the halfway point of the 2022 campaign with Maryland coming to Bloomington on Saturday. The Terrapins are favored by 11 points, according to the SI Sportsbook, and hold a 4-2 record on the season.
Indiana coach Tom Allen said on Monday that Maryland always has a lot of speed and athleticism, and that is especially true this season with Maryland's deep wide receiver corps. Start with Rakim Jarrett, who leads Maryland with 24 receptions to go with 277 yards and two touchdowns. This highlight was his first-career touchdown in 2020 against Penn State.
As a junior, the 6-foot Jarrett is on pace to fall below his 2021 receiving totals, perhaps because opposing defense have placed a stronger emphasis on containing his big-play ability. Jarrett posted three games with over 100 receiving yards last year, and he started the 2022 campaign with a 110-yard effort against Buffalo.
Jeshaun Jones has been at Maryland since the 2018 season due to two season-ending leg injuries, and he has a good chance to surpass his top single-season receiving totals against Indiana. At 6-foot-2, Jones is third on the team with 253 receiving yards, including a 60-yard performance in Maryland's win over Michigan State.
Dontay Demus Jr. is in his fifth season at Maryland, and he'll finish his collegiate career with well over 2,000 receiving yards. The 6-foot-4 Demus is a big red zone target, but he's had a quiet season relative to the previous years. This could simply be a result of all the pass-catching talent on Maryland's roster.
The Terrapins also have two talented tight ends in sophomores Corey Dyches and CJ Dippre. Dyches is the bigger pass-catching threat, and he leads the team with 322 receiving yards and three touchdowns. Maryland took a narrow 31-29 loss to Purdue last weekend, but Dyches provided a highlight-reel 68-yard touchdown.
Maryland's deep receiving corps also has one of the Big Ten's top quarterbacks throwing them the ball. In his junior season, Taulia Tagovailoa ranks second in the conference with 1,731 passing yards behind Ohio State's CJ Stroud at 1,737. Last year, Tagovailoa set Maryland single-season records in passing yards (3,860), completions (328), completion percentage (69.2%), passing touchdowns (26) and 300-yard passing games (7).
The biggest sign of Tagovailoa's development is his steady increase in accuracy. He completed 61.5 percent of his passes in 2020, which rose to 69.2 in 2021 and 74.1 this season. Through six games, Tagovailoa is top-25 in the nation in completion percentage (74.1), completions per game (24.3), passing yards (1,731), total offense (303.2) and passing efficiency (161.3).
The Terrapins lean on their passing game, but they've also been productive when keeping it on the ground. Roman Hemby is an example of the breakaway speed Allen mentioned, averaging 6.2 yards per carry on 64 attempts. Maryland also uses Hemby in the passing game, hauling in 20 receptions for 200 yards.
Despite Hemby's 114-yard game against Buffalo and 151-yard performance against SMU, Antwain Littleton II has seen expanded role recently, and for good reason. At 6-foot and 285 pounds, Littleton is a load to bring down. He first broke out with a 59-yard run against Charlotte, and took 19 carries for 120 yards and a touchdown against Michigan State. Before Purdue kept Littleton out of the end zone last week, he held the nation's longest streak with a rushing touchdown in six consecutive games.
With the speed of Hemby and the size of Littleton, Maryland's running back duo gives opposing defenses two different looks, both of which have proven difficult to defend.
On the defensive side of the ball, true freshman linebacker Jashawn Barham has made an immediate impact for the Terrapins. A four-star recruit ranked just outside the top 100 out of District Heights, Md., Barham leads Maryland with three sacks, which is tied for ninth among all Big Ten pass rushers. Barham is second on the team with 35 total tackles, and he won Big Ten Freshman of the Week after two sacks, two tackles for loss and a fumble recovery against Purdue.
As a team, Maryland is third in the Big Ten with 15 sacks, which have come from 12 different players. Defensive lineman Henry Chibueze and linebacker Durrell Nchami slot behind Barham with two sacks apiece.
Safety Beau Brade leads Maryland with 46 total tackles, and he's second on the team with four passes defended. Jakorian Bennett is tied for second in the Big Ten with nine pass breakups, three of which came last week against Purdue. Bennett was an All-Big Ten honorable mention, and he's continued to elevate his game as a senior. However, Maryland allows the third-most passing yards per game at 270.3, and Michigan State is the only team Big Ten Team with fewer interceptions.
Maryland has a veteran defensive line with all four starters in their senior or redshirt senior season. As a team, the Terrapins allow the fifth-most rushing yards per game at 118.5.
The story of Maryland's defense in 2022 so far has been impactful halftime adjustments. The Terrapins have allowed 88 total points in the first half this season, but just 48 in the second half. This is especially notable in Saturday's matchup against an Indiana team that was shut out in the second half against Michigan and Nebraska in the last two weeks.
Related stories on Indiana football:
- MARYLAND'S MIKE LOCKSLEY PREVIEWS INDIANA: Maryland football coach Mike Locksley anticipates a fast-paced offense and a blitz-heavy defense when the Terrapins travel to Indiana in Week 7. CLICK HERE
- WEEK 7 DEPTH CHART, INJURY NOTES: Heading into a Week 7 matchup with Maryland, Indiana football is dealing with injuries to key players Cam Jones, AJ Barner, D.J. Matthews and Jaylin Williams. CLICK HERE
- INDIANA DOUBLE-DIGIT UNDERDOG IN WEEK 7: Indiana (3-3) hosts Maryland (4-2) on Saturday at 3:30 p.m. ET at Memorial Stadium in Bloomington, Ind. Following three straight losses, Indiana is a double-digit underdog in Week 7. CLICK HERE
