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Maryland Dominates Virginia Tech From Start to Finish in the Pinstripe Bowl, 54-10

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Football

It was a record-setting day for Maryland as the Terps won the 2021 New Era Pinstripe Bowl with a dominating 54-10 victory over Virginia Tech on Wednesday at Yankee Stadium. Maryland's 54 points is the most points ever scored in the New Era Pinstripe Bowl and most by a Terrapin team in a bowl game.

Tarheeb Still opened the scoring with a school-record long punt return of 92 yards. That was followed by a 70-yard touchdown pass – the longest in Maryland's bowl history – from Taulia Tagovailoa to Darryl Jones opening a 14-3 lead for the Terps (7-6 overall) and they rolled from there. 

Tagovailoa piled up 307 yards of total offense - as Maryland totaled 481 yards on offense – on his way to earning the game's Most Valuable Player. He was 20-of-24 for 265 passing yards with two touchdowns, including 14-15 for 192 yards and a touchdown in the first half. He also ran four times for 42 yards. Tagovailoa tied the Maryland program record for touchdown passes in a single-season with 26. 

Jones finished with four catches for a career-high 111 yards and his first two career touchdowns. Rakim Jarrett had six catches for 60 receiving yards while Tayon Fleet-Davis carried the ball eight times for 57 yards. 

For all three of Maryland's first-half touchdown scorers, all three scored the first touchdown of their career (Still, Jones, and Antwaine Littleton II - on a 4-yard rushing touchdown). Greg Rose's 10-yard fumble return for a touchdown in the fourth quarter - was also his first-career score. 

On defense, Ruben Hyppolite II had a career-high 12 tackles as Maryland limited the Hokies (6-7) to just 259 yards of total offense. 

The 44-point margin of victory is the third-largest margin of victory in Big Ten history, second only to Michigan's 49-point wins in the 1902 and 1948 Rose Bowl, against Stanford and USC, respectively.

From The Coach

"I can't even put into words just how proud I am of this team. I will forever be indebted [to the seniors] because they really have put this thing on a really solid foundation that I think shows the trajectory of what our program can be. We've come a long way as a program since 2019. It's been a lot of hard work and hasn't been easy. But these guys have really bought into what you have to do to have winning football, the culture, the way you have to work, the habits and behaviors you have to create. To send the Seniors out with a significant bowl in a winning season means the world to me. I will forever be indebted for the leadership that they've shown. This season was a huge step for our program. But I still believe again that the best is ahead. You saw young players making plays for us, you saw our quarterback again continue to show the consistency, our defense stepped up, but it really leads me to believe that the best is ahead for our program. I'm looking forward to continuing to lead us as we take that next step."

Breaking Down The Action 

  • After a quick three-and-out from the defense, Tarheeb Still took the ensuing punt 92-yards for a touchdown to make it 7-0 Maryland with 12:44 remaining in the first quarter. The teams traded punts for the rest of the quarter, with the Terps offense rarely seeing the field. 
  • After a Hokie field goal, Tagovailoa needed just one play to answer as he launched a 70-yard touchdown pass to Darryl Jones to put Maryland up 14-3 with 9:13 remaining in the half. Another three-and-out from the defense and a spectacular one-handed grab from Brian Cobbs set the Terps up with a goal-to-go situation, and freshman Antwain Littleton II punched it in for his first career touchdown. After a Virginia Tech touchdown to make it 21-10, Tagovailoa led the Terps right down the field in just 59 seconds for a last-second field goal by Joseph Petrino to make it 24-10 Maryland heading into halftime. 
  • The Terps took the second-half kickoff down the field and another field goal by Petrino extended the lead to 27-10 with 10:13 remaining. Tagovailoa and the offense kept pouring it on as the Hawaiian found Jones for a 32-yard touchdown to bring the lead to 34-10 with 6:48 remaining. Roman Hemby added another goal-line touchdown with a two-yard rushing touchdown to make it 41-10 with 18 seconds left in the third quarter. 
  • The fourth quarter started with a bang as Nick Cross sacked the Hokie quarterback, forcing a fumble, that was picked up by Greg Rose who returned it for a touchdown to make it 47-10 with 14:50 left in the game. The Terps would close out the rest of the game with mostly second-string players, including backup quarterback Reece Udinski. Colby McDonald punched in the final touchdown of the game, a 20-yard rush to make it 54-10 with 1:12 left in the game.

Still's Record-Breaking Punt Return

  • Tarheeb Still's 92-yard punt return for a touchdown in the first quarter was a record-setter.
    • It is the longest punt return in Maryland history, surpassing the record of a 90-yard punt return by Dick Nolan in 1953 vs. Clemson.
    • It is the longest punt return for a touchdown in Maryland bowl history, surpassing Steve Suter's 76-yard punt return against West Virginia in the 2004 Gator Bowl. 
    • It is also the first punt return for a touchdown in the 11-game history of the New Era Pinstripe Bowl. 
    • Additionally, it is the first punt return for a touchdown by a Big Ten player in a bowl game since Iowa's Matt Melloy vs. Florida in the 2004 Outback Bowl. 

Darryl Jones Delivers

  • Senior receiver Darryl Jones scored his first career touchdown on a 70-yard catch and run from Tagovailoa.
  • The pass was the longest touchdown reception in Terps Bowl history, breaking Walter White's 68-yard touchdown reception on a halfback option pass from Louis Carter in the 1973 Peach Bowl. 
  • It was also the longest offensive play by Maryland this season. 
  • The last Maryland pass play of more than 70 yards was a 76-yard touchdown pass from Tagovailoa to Jeshaun Jones against Minnesota on Oct. 30, 2020. 
  • Jones added a second score on a 32-yard catch and run from Tagovailoa in the third quarter. His 111 yards are a career-high and his first career 100-yard receiving game. 

Bowl History

  • The New Era Pinstripe Bowl is Maryland's 28th bowl appearance all-time as the Terps are now 12-14-2 in bowl games.
  • This was the Terps' first bowl win since the 2010 Military Bowl, a 51-20 win over East Carolina. That total of 51 points was the previous record for most points in a bowl game for Maryland. 
  • The New Era Pinstripe Bowl is the 19th different bowl the Terps have played in and marks the second-straight bowl game against an ACC team (2016, Boston College).
  • With the New Era Pinstripe Bowl taking place in Yankee Stadium, this was the first time Maryland has played in a baseball stadium since the 2007 Emerald Bowl (12/28) at AT&T Park in San Francisco against Oregon State.
  • It was the first time Maryland played in New York City since 1936, when it beat Syracuse, 20-0 at the Polo Grounds.


Winning Season!

  • The Terps secured their first winning season since the 2014 season with a 7-6 record in 2021. They also went 7-6 in 2014, their first year in the Big Ten.
  • Maryland played one of the toughest schedules in the nation as four losses came against teams ranked in the Top 10 and five total were against ranked teams. 


Series History

  • The Terps are now 17-15 all-time against Virginia Tech and played five times when both Maryland and the Hokies were a member of the ACC from 2004-13. 
  • The last time Maryland and Virginia Tech met was in 2013, and C.J. Brown ran for 122  yards, including a touchdown in overtime, as Maryland beat Virginia Tech 27-24 in  Blacksburg to become bowl eligible. 


Notable Numbers

  • Colton Spangler boomed a 59-yard punt in the first quarter, his ninth punt this season of 50 or more yards and 14 of his career. 
  • Greg Rose's 10-yard fumble return for a touchdown was the first in a bowl game since Scott Tye had an 8-yard fumble return vs Syracuse in the 1985 Cherry Bowl.