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Maryland Preview and Prediction
By The Lowes Line Staff
Matchup: Northwestern Wildcats (2-3, 0-2) at Maryland Terrapins (3-2, 0-2)
Date: Friday, October 11, 2024, 7:00 p.m. (CDT)
Place: SECU Stadium, College Park, MD
TV: FOX
Line: Maryland (-10.5) 45.5 O/U
Recap:
Well, Northwestern fans, grab your tissues because Indiana beat us like
a drum in a high school band: loud and repetitive. Indiana quarterback
Kurtis Rourke threw for 380 yards and three touchdowns like he was
playing a casual game of Madden on rookie mode. After a brief moment of
optimism in the first half when Cam Porter tied the game at 7-7,
Indiana steadily pulled away and by halftime, they were up 17-10.
The second half was just a formality. Rourke’s steady passing and a
couple of key plays in the fourth quarter were the nails in our purple
coffin.
On the bright side, QB Jack Lausch continued to show signs of
improvement. He started the game looking as jittery I am after my XXL
Dunkin coffee and managed just 54 passing yards in the first half. But
after halftime (which is becoming a habit), Lausch came back swinging,
finishing with 243 yards and two touchdowns. Both were caught by A.J.
Henning, who is quickly becoming the guy we’ll talk about when we try
to find something positive to say.
Outlook:
Ah, Maryland, a team that makes us feel a little bit better about our
struggles. They’ve had a solid season when they’re not playing Big Ten
teams. They’re 0-2 in conference play, but had a solid nonconference
record earlier in the season. Their standout player is senior
wide receiver Tai Felton, who racks up yards like spent chicken wing
bones the day after a party. He already has 642 yards and five
touchdowns. A strong passing game is does not match up well
with NU as demonstrated by the Indiana game, but we’ll hold out hope
that the Terrapins continue to fall apart in big moments.
Maryland’s been averaging 33.4 points per game, while we’ve been
putting up a more modest 18.6 points per game (again, with an upward
trend). Our defense has allowed a respectable 20.8 points per game, but
let’s face it, when we’ve been up against tougher offenses with an
aerial threat, it’s been more of a “Do Not Disturb” sign than a wall
and trending in the wrong direction.
Prediction:
If you’re a Northwestern fan, you might want to spend Friday night
binge-watching Netflix instead of watching Maryland pull away at home.
The experts are calling for a 10.5-point spread, but honestly, that
feels generous. With our offensive struggles and Maryland’s more
balanced attack, I’d say the only question is whether Maryland stops at
30 points out of politeness, or if they get excited and push closer to
40. I’m predicting a score of 38-24 in favor of Maryland, with
Northwestern continuing the second half scoring trend. Just in
time for us to say, “Well, next year might be better!” Small victories,
people, small victories.
Season To Date:
Straight Up: 4-1, Against The Spread: 4-1
The Lowes Line is an
e-mailed description of NU's
next
football game, with an invariably fearless prediction of the outcome
and
how NU will fare against what the other "experts" predict. Our
good
friend and Brother Marcus Lowes began the broadcast mailing in 1996.
The crack Lowes Line Staff (alumni Lone Star Cat,
GallopingGrapes, P.S. O'Briant, Eric Cockerill, Joel Kanvik, Charlie Simon, and
MO'Cats) have continued the Line in memory of Marcus.
For
the 2024 season it has returned to HailToPurple.com,
for anyone to enjoy. Thanks to the gridiron brain trust at the Lowes
Line!
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