Absence of McCree and Tyler looms over loss to West Virginia

The suspension of wide receivers Quintin McCree and Ronnie Tyler had no impact on the outcome of the Terrapins football team's loss to then-No. 18 West Virginia on Saturday. That much, coach Randy Edsall said, he was sure of.

"Missing the two receivers didn't mean a thing," he said emphatically in his postgame news conference.

Tyler was arrested and charged with second-degree assault early Thursday morning after an altercation in front of the 7-Eleven on Knox Road. Police said McCree was with Tyler but was not involved in the altercation Thursday, and the specifics of his suspension are not known.

Quantifying the absence of McCree and Tyler, two of the team's top three receivers, is nearly impossible. Still, something was clearly amiss in the Terps' passing game Saturday, especially in the first half against the Mountaineers.

After moving through Miami's defense with precision in the Terps' season-opening win, quarterback Danny O'Brien and the Terps' offense struggled to do much against West Virginia in the 37-31 loss.

O'Brien, who threw for 289 yards and was intercepted twice in the first half despite 25 attempts, hardly seemed on the same page with wide receivers Kerry Boykins and Tony Logan, McCree and Tyler's respective replacements.

"I have a lot of trust in my teammates. We have a great receiving corps," O'Brien said. "I think the fact that we have guys like Tony Logan, Devin Burns, Marcus Leak, Kerry Boykins coming in and playing, filling in for the two guys, that's not what beat us today."

Still, the Terps' positional shuffle wasn't seamless. Of O'Brien's three interceptions, both the first, which was returned for a touchdown, and the third, which sealed the win for the Mountaineers, were the result of apparent miscommunication.

"I just had to be on the same page [with my receiver] and we would have probably scored if I'd hit that," O'Brien said of his final interception, a pass intended for Logan.

So while there's no way to tell if things might have been different with McCree and Tyler on the field, it's likely the Terps' offense would have at least been crisper with them in the lineup.

And considering the huge impact O'Brien's three interceptions had on the outcome, his familiarity with the suspended duo may have made all the difference.

cwalsh@umdbk.com