Defense shines in first full scrimmage

By Greg Schimmel

Senior staff writer

Saturday was a very long day for Chris Turner.

Not only did the Terrapin football quarterback arrive at Gossett Football Team House at 9 a.m. for the Terps' scrimmage that was suppose to begin at 1 p.m. but didn't start until after 2:30 p.m. and end until about 5 p.m., but the senior signal caller and the Terp offense had by far their worst day of the spring practice season.

Turner - who had been playing very well this spring until Saturday - threw three interceptions and didn't lead the first-team offense on any touchdown drives until the goal line portion of the scrimmage.

The event started late because the Terps tried to wait out rainy conditions and went long because head coach Ralph Friedgen said he wanted to get his young team as many repetitions as possible.

"I don't want to make excuses, but it was just one of those days," Turner said. "We're not like this every day."

The quarterback's struggles were a combination of poor throws, subpar wide-receiver play and the impressive performance of an energized Terp defense that looks miles ahead of the offense at this point in the spring.

The first- and second-team defensive units each shut down Turner's first-team offense on several possessions Saturday, rendering the Terps' passing game virtually non-existent.

Despite featuring several young, inexperienced players in key positions, the defense has been thriving under new defensive coordinator Don Brown's attack-oriented system, which has players excited.

"Their intensity was a whole lot better than our offense. They played harder, they played with more enthusiasm, and they totally dominated the scrimmage," Friedgen said. "That happens in spring practice. It will be interesting to see how our offense responds and how they come back next week."

The Terps' three offensive teams each ran possessions from different starting points on the field, beginning at their own five-yard line and eventually concluding with possessions from the opponent's four-yard line during the goal-line part of the practice.

Not including the goal-line possessions - when the first-team offense scored two touchdowns but also watched as cornerback Nolan Carroll returned an interception 95 yards for a touchdown - Turner's unit ended with three punts, three interceptions, two field goals and two missed field goals.

The second-team offense also struggled to move the ball but scored on rushing touchdowns by running backs Morgan Green and Dan Bonato during possessions that began at the opponent's 20. The third-team offense scored three rushing touchdowns - two by Andrew Braxton and one by Gary Douglas.

But the defense clearly ruled the long afternoon.

"The defense, we were moving pretty fast today," said safety Kenny Tate, who grabbed two of the interceptions. "We like the defense coach Brown has installed because it allows us to fly around and make plays, and today that's what we did."

TERP NOTES: Defensive tackle Travis Ivey left the scrimmage with a concussion, and defensive end Masengo Kabongo left with a turned ankle. Linebacker Adrian Moten grabbed one of Turner's interceptions but was then chewed out by Friedgen for picking up an unsportsmanlike penalty after flipping the ball in the air after the play. "You make a great play, and you negate it with a stupid-ass move," Friedgen yelled.

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