By the numbers: Maryland Terrapins
Maryland loves to run the ball, and the stats don’t lie.
Maryland running back Ty Johnson (6) returns a kickoff 65 yards for a touchdown past Ohio State kicker Sean Nuernberger (96) at Ohio Stadium in Columbus, Ohio, on October 7, 2017.
October 19, 2018
Homecoming is upon Iowa City, and while the alumni descend upon their old stomping grounds, the Maryland football team traveled 905 miles to Kinnick.
The Terrapins come into the game unranked but hold a positive record of 4-2.
Maryland started off 2018 with a bang, beating then-No. 23 Texas, 34-29, in the season-opener (the Longhorns are now ranked No. 7 in the nation).
Since then, the Terrapins went 1-1 in their remaining nonconference games, beating Bowling Green and losing to Temple.
Three games into Big Ten play, Maryland owns a 2-1 conference record. The Terrapins kicked off the conference slate by taking down Minnesota in dominating fashion, 42-13, lost to Michigan by 21, then beat Rutgers last weekend, 24-7.
8.1: Ty Johnson’s yards per carry
The Terrapins average 245.2 yards per game on the ground, and they’re led by Ty Johnson, who has 435 yards this season. He’s averaging 8.1 yards per touch, which ties for fifth-best in the country.
In three games, Johnson has averaged 10.3 yards per carry or better. His best outing of the season came this past week against Rutgers, when he totaled 132 rushing yards on just 9 carries (14.7 yards per carry).
The games in which Johnson has topped the century mark happen to be the games in which he’s averaged 10.3 yards per carry or better.
In his other games, he’s averaged just 2.5 yards per touch (56 yards on 22 carries). In both losses, Johnson has just 26 yards combined.
He’s also one of the Big Ten’s best kick returners. He’s already taken one kick back to the house, and he’s averaging 28.3 yards per return.
3: sub-100 yard games from Kasim Hill
If you were to find the word “consistency” in the dictionary, chances are quarterback Kasim Hill’s name wouldn’t appear next to it.
In half of Maryland’s games, Hill has thrown for fewer than 100 yards. The Terrapins don’t favor the pass by any means, but there hasn’t been a balance between the run and pass lately. In Maryland’s last three games, it has ran the ball 38 times on average, respectively, while throwing an average of 15.6 times.
One of Hill’s favorite targets in the passing game is wideout Taivon Jacobs. He’s got 14 receptions for 160 yards and 2 touchdowns on the season. He’s also got 30 yards on the ground.
36: punts
Coming in at third in the conference for most punts (behind punting powerhouses Illinois and Rutgers), Maryland clocks in at 36 boots through six games.
Punter Wade Lees has all 36 kicks so far this season, averaging 41.6 yards per punt. His count ties for second-most in the conference.
Maryland’s third-down conversion rate isn’t helping its cause in keeping Lees off the field. The Terrapins convert on third downs 36.4 percent — they’re 28-for-77.
As far as the positives go, Lees has improved upon his punting average from 2017 — his boots are going just more than 2 yards farther. Last season he punted 64 times for 2,511 yards — that’s more punting yards than Maryland had passing yards last season.
