TERPS BOWL OVER WOLFPACK

RALEIGH, N.C. - Two years ago in the regular-season finale, the Terrapins walked off the field at Carter-Finley Stadium to the N.C. State band playing victorious tunes and the sound of a howling wolfpack over the loudspeaker. N.C. State had just won a close game to clinch bowl eligibility and end the Terps' season.

That was then. This is now.

The N.C. State band hardly sounded, let alone played any celebratory tunes; the wolfpack didn't howl and it was never a close game.

In arguably their most complete performance in four years, the Terps steamrolled N.C. State 37-0 in front of 54,856 fans to extend their season by one more game. Even after such a tough season, which included heartbreaking losses, devastating injuries and countless inconsistencies, the Terps are going bowling.

"I'm really proud of our players, the way they hung in there this year and just kept fighting," coach Ralph Friedgen said. "I wanted them to win this game very badly, for them, because I've never been around a bunch of guys that have just hung in there, no matter what the odds, no matter what things look like. It's great to see them have a chance to go to a bowl game."

The Terps will likely play in the Emerald Bowl in San Francisco or the Humanitarian Bowl in Boise, Idaho. There is also a slim chance they could end up in Charlotte, N.C., in the Meineke Car Care Bowl.

None of those games or destinations is linked to the team's preseason goals, but at this point, that hardly matters. In a season of tribulation, the Terps are thrilled to have football for another month.

"I'm excited to go anywhere," sophomore quarterback Chris Turner said. "We just wanted to be in this position to go to a bowl."

Turner rebounded from last week's subpar game with an outstanding effort. He was 19-of-24 for 206 yards, and even though all four Terp touchdowns came on the ground, Turner was still responsible for effectively leading the offense on seven scoring drives in 11 possessions.

But possibly the biggest reason for the 37 points was Turner's decision-making. Two key back-to-back runs by Turner early in the second quarter snowballed into plenty of other big plays. Both times, Turner lined up in the shotgun, with running back Da'Rel Scott next to him, and both times Turner faked the handoff and optioned to run it himself.

The first run tallied six yards, the second 41, which led to an eventual Keon Lattimore 1-yard touchdown run to give the Terps a 10-0 lead. It opened up hole after hole later in the game when the Terps ran plays from that formation - N.C. State was forced to respect Turner running the ball.

The Terps ran for 249 yards, including a team-high 89 from Scott on just eight carries.

"They weren't playing that, they were playing Da'Rel," Turner said. "So once I took off for that big gain, they started playing me and that opened up Da'Rel."

By the time the first half ended, the Terps (6-6, 3-5 ACC) had beaten down a lifeless N.C. State (5-7, 3-5) team and took a commanding 24-0 lead into the locker room. By the time the second half started, the stadium was almost half empty.

Friedgen said he could not remember the last time the Terps had their way with an opponent this easily. It was the program's biggest win since Nov. 1, 2003, a 59-21 win over North Carolina.

"It was a great way to go out," said senior offensive lineman Andrew Crummey, who played for the first time since Oct. 6, when he broke his fibula. "Just a statement, just a testament to what we wanted, just a great way to end the regular season."

A twist of irony came during the fourth quarter when referee Ron Cherry announced a unique penalty on N.C. State offensive lineman Kalani Heppe.

"Personal foul, 69, offense," Cherry said. "He was giving him the business."

But regardless of that one play, it was the Terps, for 60 straight minutes on Saturday, who gave the Wolfpack the business.

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