For Terps, an unhealthy trend

ATLANTA – Members of the Terrapins football team were visibly emotional on the sideline at Bobby Dodd Stadium as co-captain and starting left guard Andrew Gonnella lay on the field Saturday afternoon, surrounded by medical personnel.

Minutes before, Gonnella had suffered what coach Randy Edsall later described as a "serious knee injury," and when he was eventually loaded into an ambulance and transported to Atlanta's Grady Medical Center, it seemed all but certain that the senior had played his last game as a Terp.

Edsall confirmed as much yesterday. And while the Terps will certainly miss the lone senior starter on their offensive line, his injury is just a part of a bigger problem sweeping through the team.

Injuries are starting to pile up for the Terps, and at an inopportune time. Gonnella is the second starter lost for the year — safety Matt Robinson (shoulder) was the first — and injuries on the defensive side of the ball have left the Terps scrambling.

Four freshmen started on defense in Saturday's loss to No. 12 Georgia Tech, and when linebacker Demetrius Hartsfield left the game in the third quarter with an undisclosed injury, the Terps were forced to play five freshmen against the Yellow Jackets' triple-option attack for the rest of the game.

Although their defense strung together its best performance of the season, the mounting injuries are starting to take a toll. By the end of their 21-16 defeat, the Terps were missing six players — Hartsfield, Robinson, linebackers Kenny Tate and Darin Drakeford and defensive linemen Isaiah Ross and Andre Monroe — who have started at least one game.

Their replacements may have performed well to this point, but with a steady torrent of injuries, the Terps appear to have reached a tipping point.

"We were thin as it is from the beginning of the year, and then we lose a couple guys: Drake, I don't know what's going on with [Hartsfield], Kenny," defensive tackle Joe Vellano said after Saturday's loss. "Guys stepped up though, which is I think the biggest thing. No time for them to be young anymore."

Some freshmen, such as linebacker Lorne Goree and safety Titus Till, have enjoyed relative success since taking on increased responsibilities.

Another freshman, linebacker Mario Rowson, made seven tackles against the Yellow Jackets in his first career start.

Even linebacker Alex Twine, who replaced Hartsfield midway through the third quarter, came up with a big third-down tackle late in the game.

But the Terps' defense has been far from consistent throughout the year, and a drop-off in experience will only make things tougher for the team.

In the midst of a crucial stretch of games that will make or break the Terps' season — one that continues with No. 8 Clemson on Saturday — the team will need its youngest players to continue to step up for its lofty goal of an ACC Championship to become reality.

"I thought they did what they were coached to do," Edsall said. "They went out and executed the defensive game plan that the defensive coaches put together. When you do that, that's what happens.

"Those are the expectations we want. Everybody has to go in and play as good as they can, and today they did."

TERPS NOTE: Edsall offered no update yesterday on the Terps' quarterback situation in this week's depth chart. The two-deep lists Saturday's starting quarterback as "Danny O'Brien OR C.J. Brown."

cwalsh@umdbk.com