Maryland has managed to hang with the West Virginia Mountaineers in Morgantown so far, giving up two early touchdowns but responding with one of their own. The Terps trail 14-7 after the first.
Maryland went three-and-out on their first drive, but came up with a big defensive stop on West Virginia's first offensive opportunity. After giving up a first down on a great catch by Stedman Bailey, Brian Stewart's Terrapin defense brought the pressure, forcing a third down incompletion by Geno Smith and a fourth down punt by Corey Smith.
On the Terps' next drive, Perry Hills ran for three yards before completing a play-action pass to Matt Furstenburg for a first down. Brandon Ross ran for a three-yard gain and a West Virginia facemask gave the Terps another first down. Three plays later, on third-and-ten, Hills completed a nice 13-yard pass to Kevin Dorsey for a first down, and that's when everything fell apart.
The Mountaineers brought a perfectly-timed blitz, and Darwin Cook sacked Hills and forced the fumble after Tyler Cierski missed a block. Doug Rigg recovered, returning it all the way to the end zone for a 48-yard West Virginia touchdown. The Mountaineers led 7-0 with just over 11 minutes left in the quarter.
On West Virginia's next drive, they struck quickly. A screen pass to Andrew Buie netted 34 yards, and a pass over the middle to Tavon Austin went 44 yards for the score. Matt Robinson made a poor attempt at the tackle, just throwing his shoulder into Austin and kind of pushing him along his way, and it was 14-0 Mountaineers.
Maryland responded in kind, with a strike of their own. After four straight runs, including first downs from Albert Reid and Brandon Ross, Mike Locksley called a play-action. Hills rolled out to the left side, avoiding the blitz and picking up a big block from Cierski, and found a (somehow) wide-open Diggs on the left sideline. Diggs put on the burners and sprinted past the Mountaineers' defense before diving in for the 42-yard score, bringing it to 14-7 West Virginia.
The Terps forced a three-and-out on West Virginia's next drive, thanks to a tackle and a pass broken up by Kenny Tate, back from injury for the first time this year.
Maryland will start the second quarter on their own 41-yard line with a 3rd-and-4.
The Terps are dominating the time of possession, with nearly 11 minutes compared to West Virginia's 3:42, and are actually leading the yardage battle as well - 109 to 98. Hills has looked great, and is 7/10 for 87 yards and the score, while Brandon Ross has eight rushes for 21 yards. Matt Furstenburg has two catches for 25 yards.
For more on Terps football, visit Maryland blog Testudo Times, plus SB Nation DC. For more on WVU football, visit West Virginia blog The Smoking Musket, plus SB Nation Pittsburgh.