Maryland football shocks No. 23 Texas, 51-41, to open 2017 season

Maryland football stuns the college football nation as they upset Texas football in the 2017 season opener.

In the first matchup for Maryland Football in the 2017 season, the Terps went into Royal Texas Memorial Stadium in Austin and upset No. 23 Texas Longhorns 51-41. This win gave Maryland football their first win over a ranked opponent since 2010 and their first road win over a ranked opponent two years prior to that when they beat Clemson.

So the big question coming into this game was how was Tyrrell Pigrome going to do against a Texas defense with a lot of weapons at its disposal?

On his first series, he threw an interception that was run back for a touchdown by Texas Longhorns Cornerback Holton Hill. He followed this up by running for a 25-yard score and giving D.J. Moore his first touchdown of the day with a 20-yard pass. At this point, it was 14-7 Terps in the first quarter.

It was a surprise for many Maryland fans and media on Twitter to see what was going on with the team. What can’t be ignored, however, is how well the Maryland football defense played.  The Terps defense had five sacks against the Longhorns.

Linebacker Jermaine Carter Jr. had two of the Terps five sacks as his first came when he sacked Texas Longhorns Quarterback Shane Buechele for a nine-yard loss putting the Longhorns on their own one-yard line. The next play, a third and 17 for the Longhorns, J.C. Jackson intercepted Buechele leading to that Pigrome to Moore score.

D.J. Moore finished the game with seven receptions, 133 yards and one touchdown reached 1,000 career receiving yards and 10 touchdowns with his performance.

Some bad news on the injury front came when Tyrrell Pigrome went down with a non-contact injury, Cornerback Antwaine Richardson left the game on a stretcher and taken to a nearby hospital. Thankfully it was reported that he was awake and alert at a nearby hospital. Defensive lineman Jessie Aniebonam got injured as well in the game.

Maryland football had a 30-14 lead halfway through the third quarter but it was cut to 10 when Buechele connected with Armanti Foreman for a 33-yard touchdown pass.

Tyrrell Pigrome didn’t get hurt until the final seconds of the third quarter and in the fourth, it was Kasim Hill who had the opportunity to win the game for Maryland football. At the end of the third, the Terps were up three, 37-34.

Maryland football went on to score two more touchdowns on the ground to the Texas Longhorns one, getting the victory.

Penalties were the catalyst for the Texas Longhorns lack of fluidity despite the fact they did score 41 points. The Longhorns recorded 11 penalties for 117 yards while the Terps had 10 penalties for only 53 yards.

The Maryland Terrapins rushing attack proved it has the potential to be as good as expected as 263 of Maryland’s 482 total yards came on the ground. Junior running back Ty Johnson had himself a monster game as he finished the day with 12 carries for 132 yards and a touchdown.

Maryland’s run defense is stout but can it survive the injuries it suffered? They held the Texas Longhorns to 98 rushing yards

Highlights from Maryland football’s victory against Texas

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Maryland football is 1-0 and it was a total team effort. They have Tyrrell Pigrome, D.J. Moore and the defense to thank in particular. Their next opponent is the Towson Tigers who they will be playing in their home opener Sat., Sept. 9.