Baltimore Sports Report » Maryland Terps

Parker To Leave Maryland

Gregg Cobert — Tue, 10 Apr 2012 15:44:54 +0000

Sophomore Mychal Parker is leaving the Terps and transferring to a different program. At this time, no decision has been made by Parker. In his freshman season, he was little used and saw very little time on the court. However, in his sophomore season, he improved and was a contributor off the bench averaging 18 minutes and 4 points and 3 rebounds.

Parker is 6’5 and 195 pounds that played predominantly the wing positions this past year. Parker did not give a reason for transferring but one of the reasons may have been the crowded backcourt situation as Terrell Stoglin and Nick Faust seem entrenched for the Terps next year and Pe’Shon Howard returns from injuries as well as the incoming recruits.

Parker had a lot of talent and potential and Terps fans caught glimpses of it this past year like against Duke on February 11 when he had 12 points on 3 of 4 shooting and 6 for 6 from the charity stripe. I hope he does well wherever he transfers to and gets some playing time. While Parker’s leaving is a blow to the Terps, the crowded Terps backcourt opened up.

I’m From Out of Town

Patrick Guthrie — Tue, 10 Apr 2012 14:13:25 +0000

Good morning Baltimore. If you listen to the BSR Podcast, you probably actually know who I am, good for you. If not, then maybe you’ve seen the one or two Maryland basketball posts I’ve done, or the few Maryland football previews I was able to muster up before the stink of the team overwhelmed me. Well, for a while now (last week) I’ve been trying to figure out what the best medium would be to post on this site more than once every 3 months. And after a few hours spent in seclusion mulling over deep thoughts (Pickles on Friday), I came up with the idea of an out of towner’s perspective of all the sports teams in this area.

I’ve lived down in Maryland for about 6 years now, and with the exception of the alma mater (Go Terps), I feel like I’ve got a pretty good handle on objective reality when it comes to Baltimore’s sports teams. Since this is the “let’s get to know each other” phase of the relationship, I’ll tell you a little about myself before giving my judgments on each of your kids.

In a family made up of exclusively of Giants-Yankees fans, I blame Wayne Chrebet and Todd Pratt for ruining my life as a sports fan. I lived next Wayne’s aunt and uncle as a little kid in New Jersey, and when he got drafted by the Jets, I contracted a serious case of Gang Green which has been festering for about 16 years now.

Baseball’s a little more convoluted: like plenty of kids growing up in the 90’s, I worshipped at the altar of Ken Griffey Jr. For that whole decade, I was a huge fan of what I consider to be one of the most talented teams not to win a championship. Big Unit, Griffey, A-Rod – THAT’S THREE FIRST BALLOT HALL OF FAMERS (four if you think Edgar Martinez should be in like I do. If you don’t, watch this and come back to me).

After the Mariners missed the playoffs in 1999, and Griffey trade rumors started haunting my nightmares, Todd Pratt gave me the greatest thrill I’d had as a baseball fan. That walk off from a guy who never hit more than 8 HR’s in a season is on my depressed viewing list (you know, the 5 videos you watch after a big loss to reaffirm that at some point, good things have happened to your teams. Mine goes Greivis triple double, Jets/Patriots 2010, Pratt walk off, Ventura walk off, Allan Houston buzzer beater. Leave yours in the comments). After that HR, two things happened. 1) I figured out that seeing Steve Finley frown gave me a sadistic sense of enjoyment 2) My casual fling with the Mets exploded into full blown devotion, and I’ve been a loyal follower of the Wilpons’ favorite mistake ever since.

But enough about my teams, you didn’t come here to read about the Mets and the Jets, you came here to read about the Charm City’s finest.

I Like Seeing The Orioles Win

An argument I get into all the time with Orioles fans: Would you rather have been an O’s fan for the past 10 years, stuck in baseball purgatory permanently renting out the basement of the AL East. OR would you rather have been me: renting out a whole floor on the heartbreak hotel (rooms 2006, 2007, and 2008), and slowly turning your liver to mush every September. I would’ve rather been you guys. Whichever literary nancy penned “tis better to have loved and lost…” clearly didn’t lose enough times to know what the hell he was talking about.

But suffice it to say, that’s why I like seeing the O’s do well. I know what being a tortured fan is like. That stadium is too nice to house a losing team, and the fans in Baltimore deserve much more than the apathetic ones in Toronto and the one family with season tickets in Tampa. It was awesome to see you guys go out and hammer what looks to be one of the worst team’s in baseball to drum up some excitement around here.

I’m brownie-high on a few players on this team, Adam Jones for starters. Before he had a weird injury in late August at Minnesota, Jonesy was knocking on the door of .300/25/15 steals, All-Star numbers in anyone’s book. After going to the hospital for a few days for an unknown ailment, AJ finished the last 28 games .180/3/2 with a black cat like .194 BABIP. This is not a coincidence. If Jones stays healthy all this year, I really think .300/30/15 is in play, with an all around improvement being a guarantee.

90% of pitchers in baseball would kill for the arsenal of pitches Jake Arrieta has, a legit mid 90’s fastball and a 12 to 6 curve. It will be fun for me and extremely frustrating for you to see if he can ever figure out how to use them. Arrieta definitely has a head start with the stuff, but he’s still got a way to go. If he can start assaulting the inside corner and be more stingy with his pitch count, that’s one step. Another would be learning how to work an umpire, and knowing to let the really good stuff age to the later innings (Verlander taught a class in that last year). Just know this, Arrieta’s success all depends on his head at this point.

I wish I could say something positive about Matusz, but I didn’t work for the O’s until last year, which leaves little positive to be said. I knew peripherally of how he ended 2010, and he was definitely very impressive in the spring. As a pitcher, he reminds me of if they cloned Cole Hamels but lost a few chromosomes in the process. He seems like a good guy, and I hope he’s back to where he was in 2010.

Speaking of Hamels, that’s your guy to go after in the offseason. I like Greinke, but I prefer Cole (and his consistent success pitching in a Camden-esque bandbox) more. Fielder would’ve been a dumb decision, but when a number one starter hits the open market, you back up the money truck.

I Don’t Hate The Ravens

Although as a Rex sympathizer, I’m guessing you’re not too fond of me. I’ve got enough hate going around for the Patriots and Steelers, once you knock my team out of the playoffs I’ll add a line to the shit list. Until then, I was rooting for you guys in the AFC Championship game.

If you listened to the podcast last week, you know I’m not a huge fan of the Flacco comments. The bravado is nice – to a point – but if anyone knows how badly that can backfire, it’s a Jets fan. Granted, Flacco’s comments weren’t as ridiculously braggadocios as Rex’s, but if the Ravens get out to a rough start, that quote will get dredged up by every major media outlet and drunk fan in the state limits.

After spending the last few years as a bit player behind the defense and Ray Rice, Flacco will have the spotlight firmly affixed to him this year. There is one way to make this situation work, and Eli Manning (a significantly better QB than mine or yours) did it last year. This year was a great step, but unlike the Masters, the invite to the 2013 AFC Championship will not be coming in the mail. It’s going to be tough sledding again this season, this time with a division winners schedule, and games like Flacco had in Tennessee and Jacksonville last year are going to be under much heavier scrutiny. There’s a bullseye over that 5 this year, it’s just matter of whether Flacco is the One who can dodge all the bullets.

A couple of quick hitters to get us out of here. I think Rice deserves the extension because LT was a similar back and rushed for over 1,000 at age 29. I think Pitta and Dixon are one of the best (and most underutilized) tight end combos in the league. I think the smart draft pick for the Ravens is the center from Wisconsin to help spell A-G-I-N-G B-I-R-K. I think the exciting draft pick, if he were to fall to the 20’s, would be to trade up and grab Michael Floyd to give Flacco two dynamic down the field receivers with my favorite Terp in the NFL Torrey Smith.

I’m Indifferent On The Caps (DOES ANYBODY WATCH THE NBA)

I’m from 45 minutes outside New York, we watch basketball there. Seriously, ANY BASKETBALL FANS AT ALL OUT HERE? In particular, any people supporting local product and 4th quarter property owner Carmelo Anthony? I’ve been a Knicks fan since solid food, and followed them through the leanest of lean times (I once eBayed a Michael Doleac jersey). If we have any basketball fans around, I’ll start writing some basketball stuff in here. If not, I’ll shut up and keep my opinions to baseball and football until Terps season starts up.

So there’s my very loose take on things, in the next few weeks I’ll get down to brass tacks (what the hell does that mean?). If you liked reading this, hit me with a few of those 5 cathartic sports videos down below in the comments. If you didn’t, my effigy should be about 6’3,” thin, and wearing a Wayne Chrebet jersey that I’ll supply (the Jets are about 1-56 when I wear it). See you O’s fans in the World Series at a collective 323-1.

FACT OF THE DAY: Matt Holliday’s nickname according to baseballreference.com is “Big Daddy”. If you can find a weirder one, post it.

Patrick Guthrie is a University of Maryland alumnus, lifelong Mets and Jets fan from New York and co-host of the BSR Podcast. You can follow him on twitter @patguth321.

MD Preview: Terps Hoping to Party Like It’s 2004

Marco Romanell — Thu, 08 Mar 2012 14:09:05 +0000

ACC Tournament First Round

#8 Maryland Terrapins (16-14, 6-10 ACC) VS #9 Wake Forest Demon Deacons (13-17, 4-12ACC)

Thursday, March 8th: Phillips Arena– Atlanta, GA

Leading scorer: MD- Terrell Stoglin: 21.2 ppg
Wake- CJ Harris: 16.8ppg

Last game: MD- lost to UVA 75-72
Wake- lost to GTech 69-62

Outlook:
The ACC Tournament leaves Tobacco Road and heads south for the first time in a few years, however the change of venue should not really effect who plays in the championship, and unfortunately it’s very likely not going to be either of the teams who play in this game. Both Maryland and Wake Forest need to win the ACC Tournament in order to make it to the NCAA Tournament, and they will take the first step towards trying to reach that goal Thursday. The earlier meeting between these two came down the to the wire with the Terps pulling out a six point win at home, but the neutral court makes this game a toss-up. Both teams have some bad losses, no signature wins, and at times both have looked like the worst in the conference. Despite their records, both teams have players who can fill up the score sheet and are capable of carrying their respective teams to a win. Whoever plays better between Stoglin and Harris will likely lead their team to take on UNC in the next round.

I wish I could give some hard hitting analysis on this game but the truth is I have no idea which Maryland team will show up. If it’s the Terp team that showed up in the first half against Wake in the first meeting then it will be a blowout…but if it’s not, they will likely be sent home packing. With this being such a young team, it will be interesting to see if they will play loose with nothing to lose or if they come out flat and tight. The noon start time and the likely docile atmosphere in the arena could also be a factor and lead to the Terps sleep walking their way through the first half. Focus and execution will be the key; unfortunately that has been Maryland’s Achilles heel this season.

Prediction:
I will leave the predicting to you guys. Flip a coin: heads for Maryland, tails for Terps. Okay, I guess I will give my prediction although a coin flip is probably a fairly accurate way to decide it. The winner of this game gets the prize of facing top seeded North Carolina on Friday thus leading to the end of their season. That being said I would like to think neither team wants to lose this game. I am going strictly on which team has the best player and that is the Terps. Terrell Stoglin will have a big game and the Terps advance.
Terps 69 Wake 65.

follow Marco on Twitter @mromanell and Baltimore Sports Report @BalSportsReport

MD Preview: Carolina Likely to Leave Terps Feeling Blue In Chapel Hill

Marco Romanell — Wed, 29 Feb 2012 19:27:33 +0000

Maryland Terrapins (16-12, 6-8 ACC) At #6 North Carolina Tarheels (25-4, 12-2 ACC)

Wednesday, Feb. 29th– 7pm at Dean E. Smith Center, Chapel Hill, NC

Leading scorer: MD- Terrell Stoglin 21.2 ppg
UNC: Harrison Barnes 17.7ppg

Last game: MD- lost to GTech 63-61
UNC- def. UVA 54-51

Outlook:
Well, the greatest month in sports is just around the corner and barring every other team in the ACC not making it to Atlanta for the ACC Tournament, the Terps will once again be watching March Madness just like the rest of us, but certainly North Carolina expects to be playing deep into March. Carolina is 3rd in the country in points scored, and to make matters worse for their opponents, they average almost 46 rebounds per game which is 1st in Division 1 play, and you can expect similar numbers like that on Wednesday night. John Henson and Tyler Zeller are total mismatches for the likes of Weis, Pankey and Len, and both should have no problem recording a double double. North Carolina looks to be rolling and their height inside will likely lead to a deep run to the Final Four. It is likely they will be looking past this game, but truthfully it won’t matter as the Tarheels’ ability to turn it on at any second is enough to beat any opponent.

This has been one of the most frustrating Terps teams in recent memory, and Saturday was microcosm of a frustrating season that is likely to get even worse. Just imagine where this team would be had they gotten any consistent scoring outside of Stoglin, or if they had been able to hold on to some leads against the likes of UNC, Duke and FSU. There is just not enough depth or offensive talent for the Terps to compete with the upper echelon teams in the conference: this will be seen very quickly against the Tarheels. I can’t wait to see this team next year– unfortunately 2012 is not quite over, so I and the rest of Terp nation will have to suffer through a few more games. Stranger things have happened but I doubt it will happen on Wednesday night in Chapel Hill.

Prediction:
There really is only one compliment Terps fans like to give North Carolina: at least they aren’t Duke…but they are hated almost as much and are even more talented. The first game between these two teams in College Park was close until the final few minutes, but this one will likely be over when the Terps get off the bus. Carolina’s one flaw is that they seem to not care and play the entire 40 minutes because they know they are that much better than everyone they play. Even just playing a half will be enough as Carolina runs the Terps out of the gym.

UNC 88 Terps 71.

follow Marco on Twitter @mromanell and Baltimore Sports Report @BalSportsReport

Bill Simmons’ Twitter Avatar Reads “Duke Sucks”

Zach Wilt — Wed, 29 Feb 2012 13:25:32 +0000

Even after his Joe Flacco comments this winter, the Sports Guy just gained a number of fans in the DC/Maryland/Virginia area with the simple changing of a Twitter avatar. Bill Simmons of ESPN’s Grantland.com change his Twitter picture to an icon that reads “Duke Sucks” in reaction to the University’s response to his credential request. The Sports Guy explained.

“Duke wouldn’t credential Grantland for Saturday’s UNC-Duke game. I already hated Duke but was diplomatic about it… no more. IT IS ON!”

Don’t get me wrong, I’m all for publicly ripping Duke, but my love/hate relationship with Simmons kind of has me rooting against him on this one. I know that most sports franchises do not honor credential requests from websites, so I’m not surprised that Simmons was shot down by Duke and it’s kind of funny to see him shutout.

But anybody that works in the media that shouts “Duke Sucks” to 1,640,340 people has to receive some love from Maryland, right?

MD Preview: Jackets Lack Of Sting Is Good News For Terps

Marco Romanell — Sat, 25 Feb 2012 15:37:23 +0000

Maryland Terrapins (16-11, 6-7 ACC) At Georgia Tech (9-18, 2-11 ACC)

Saturday Feb. 25 2:30pm Phillips Arena, Atlanta, GA

Leading scorer: MD – Terrell Stoglin 21.3 ppg
GT – Mfon Udofia 9.8ppg

Last game: MD – def. Miami 75-70
GT – lost to Clem 56-37

Outlook:
I have been trying to think of ways to get people to spend two hours of their Saturday to watch this game but I can’t think of any reason anyone would want to. I am sure we all have something better to do right? Why not make it a Saturday funday and just drink every time Terrell Stoglin puts up a shot?

I wouldn’t recommend that if you had to drive anywhere. If you do decide to watch this game you are likely to see some sloppy basketball and poor offensive execution at some points during the game. Georgia Tech lost their leading scorer Glen Rice Jr. and is coming off a stellar 38 point performance at home against Clemson, so there is no way the Terps can go in there and lose, can they?

One thing the Terps have been known for this season is their ability to beat the teams they are supposed to beat and they are clearly more talented than the host Yellow Jackets. Outside of the second half of the UVA game the Terps have showed a lot of heart this season and they should have confidence going into what is likely to be quiet Phillips Arena Saturday.

While I have criticized him for much of the season, Nick Faust seems to be gaining confidence and his play is improving tremendously since taking over the point guard position. He is now showing why I created the Facebook group “Faust 3:16” and he showed all aspects of his game against Miami.

This team showed no quit in their game against Miami as they had no business winning that game yet they were able to pull it out, however, stringing together consistency has been a problem but Georgia Tech is just that bad that it won’t really matter how the Terps play. Maryland should have no problem leaving Atlanta at .500 in the conference, a place not many thought they would be at this point

Prediction:
Those of you who have been reading my previews all season know I don’t really beat around the bush and have been right in most of my predictions this season (ignore the UVA preview) and my prediction for this game is an easy Terp victory. This will be a nice game to get the Terps some confidence as they should head in to Chapel Hill coming off a double digit blow out of the Yellow Jackets. Nothing the Terps have done this season has surprised but I would be shocked if they lost this game. I know it’s on the road but the Yellow Jackets have likely mailed it in and there is a good chance that nobody in Atlanta even knows this game is going so I doubt anyone shows up. Terps win easy and themselves up with a chance to play their way onto the tourney bubble with in their last two games.
Terps 71 Tech 56.

Follow Marco on twitter @mromanell and Baltimore Sports Report @BalSportsReport

BSR Podcast: Oscars Preview, Jay Gibbons’ New Gig And Don Zimmer Teddy Bears

Zach Wilt — Thu, 23 Feb 2012 14:31:41 +0000

We’re not going to lie. It’s the worst sports time of year. There’s just no getting around it.

So this week on the BSR Podcast, Matt Lund and Zach Wilt break away from sports and discuss the upcoming Academy Awards with filmmaker Zach Griffin. They are also joined by co-host Patrick Guthrie live via satellite (or Skype) from San Francisco to talk some Maryland Terps.

Here are some of the topics discussed on this week’s edition of the BSR Podcast.

Terps National Embarassment

The Maryland Terrapins finally granted Danny O’Brien the right to transfer to Vanderbilt.
Maryland will continue with its tampering complaint against Vanderbilt.
Mark Turgeon’s Terps rallied past the Hurricanes, but appear to be NIT bound.

You can get in touch with the BSR Podcast by sending your emails to podcast@baltimoresportsreport.com or leaving a voicemail at 443-379-4BSR (4377).

Bonnie Bernstein Begs Maryland To Let Danny O’Brien Transfer To Vanderbilt

Zach Wilt — Wed, 22 Feb 2012 13:25:05 +0000

The University of Maryland and Randy Edsall seem to be finding themselves making national headlines for all the wrong reasons.

In case you missed it yesterday, Michael Rosenberg of Sports Illustrated ripped Randy Edsall and the Terps football program for their restrictions on quarterback Danny O’Brien during his attempted transfer to Vanderbilt.

“O’Brien wants to go to Vanderbilt, to play for former Maryland offensive coordinator James Franklin,” Rosenberg wrote. ”Maryland won’t let him, because of jealousies, insecurities and indisputable hypocrisy.”

Harsh words. But ones that alumnus and CBS Sportscaster Bonnie Bernstein agrees seems to agree with.

@BonnieBernstein
Bonnie Bernstein Dear @UofMaryland: Please let Danny O’Brien transfer wherever he wants. It’s the right thing to do. Thanks, a faithful #Terps alum.
Feb 21 via TweetDeck Favorite Retweet Reply

Is this finally the time that Maryland decides to do the right thing?

MD Preview: Trouble In ‘Hoo Ville? Only For The Home Team

Marco Romanell — Sat, 18 Feb 2012 02:27:28 +0000

Maryland Terrapins (15-10, 5-6 ACC) At #22 Virginia Cavaliers (19-6, 6-5 ACC)

Saturday Feb 18^th John Paul Jones Arena Charlottesville, VA

Leading scorer: MD- Terrell Stoglin 21.7 ppg UVA- Mike Scott 16.9ppg

Last game: MD- def. Boston College 81-65 UVA- lost to Clem 60-48

Outlook:

Thursday night during the Terps 7 for 9 start from 3 point range Tim Brando who was calling the game said “ I haven’t seen the Terps shoot this well all season”, that may be the understatement of the year as I haven’t seen them shoot that well in about two years. Maryland couldn’t seem to miss against Boston College and showed that if they shoot like that they are a tough team to beat, however few Terps fans expect the same against the Cavaliers on Saturday. Despite losing two games in a row the Cavaliers are still a staunch defensive team, that, and their size should present problems for the Terps shooters. Even though they beat maybe the worst team in the conference, there is something to be said about coming into this game off a win, so the Terps should have confidence heading into Charlottesville. Will the hot shooting continue? If it does the Terps will be tough to beat.

I was a guest on a Charlottesville radio station two years ago to break down the Maryland/UVA game and I said that within three years Tony Bennett will have the Cavaliers contending for an ACC title. For the first nine ACC games I looked to be prophetic, however a two game losing streak has the Cavs needing wins to strengthen their tournament resume. Watching a UVA play offense is like watching paint dry and that has cost them in all of their losses this season. Scoring less than 50 points doesn’t win you many games and I believe they will need to score in the 60’s to have a chance in this game.

Prediction:

Mike Scott, is versatile enough on the offensesive side to single handedly lead Virginia to a win and the Terps will likely focus their defensive game plan towards stopping him. I do not put a ton of stock in the hot shooting of the Terps last game as most of it was due to an inferior opponent and I believe they will struggle to score points against a Tony Bennett defense. There is no reason to expect a game in the high 60’s for each team but the first team to get there will win the game. UVA’s ineptitude on offense keeps their opponents in the games and it gives the Terps a great shot at winning. Call me crazy but I think the Terps go in to Charlottesville and hand the Wahoos their third straight loss.

Terps 61 UVA 58.

follow Marco on Twitter @mromanell

BSR Podcast: Kate Upton, Linsanity And Mel Kiper’s Lab

BSR Staff — Thu, 16 Feb 2012 14:30:21 +0000

We’re pulling out the roundtable for this week’s podcast. Ross Gore and Dave Gilmore join Zach Wilt, Matt Lund and Pat Guthrie on the program.

While Tebow-mania dominated the football season, Lin-sanity has taken over the slowest sports time of the calendar year. The guys break down Jeremy Lin’s rise to the top, discuss the latest Orioles news, talk some Terps football and of course Kate Upton’s SI swimsuit issue cover.

Here are some of the topics discussed on this week’s show.

The Orioles Can’t Seem To Catch A Break

Major League Baseball voids the Orioles contract with 17-year old Korean pitcher, Seong-Min Kim.
Zach Britton’s lingering shoulder injury could land him on the disabled list at the season’s start.
The O’s avoid arbitration with Adam Jones and have started discussing a long-term contract extension.
Rumor has it that Peter Angelos is shopping around the Orioles.

Capitals Are On The Outside Looking In As NHL Trade Deadline Approaches

Mike Knuble has been a healthy scratch for Dale Hunter in three straight games. The 39-year old veteran is likely on the way out.
Elliotte Friedman of Hockey Night In Canada reports that Washington’s GM George McPhee is “burning up the phone lines” more than any other general manager in the NHL.
Nicklas Backstrom’s concussion could keep him out of the Capitals lineup until the playoffs — assuming Washington even makes it.
Mike Green’s injury has hurt Washington on defense all year long, but he could be on the way back.
The Capitals have allowed three goals from center ice this month. WTF.

Off-Season Ravens Talk

The Ravens have begun discussions with Joe Flacco’s agent on a long-term extension.
Ricky Williams calls it quits and the Ravens need a new backup for Ray Rice. Perhaps a reunion with Le’Ron McClain could be in the works.

Randy Edsall’s Maryland Terrapins

Terps quarterback Danny O’Brien has decided to transfer from Maryland.
All-Met Defensive Player of the Year, Stefon Diggs, chooses Maryland over Florida, Ohio State and Auburn.

Kate (Freaking) Upton

Kate Upton is this years SI swimsuit cover model.
Watch Upton teach David Price how to throw a circle change.
Her interview with Colin Cowherd was just plain awkward.