TAKE YOUR PICK

Given the choice, the Terrapin football team would prefer to use plane tickets rather than Metro fare cards to get to its bowl game.

And thanks to a series of events this weekend that shook up the ACC bowl picture, the Terps have a better chance of ending up in a marquee bowl locale and avoiding the Washington-based Military Bowl, which gets the last pick of bowl-eligible conference teams.

Saturday, South Florida upset Miami, precipitating the dismissal of Hurricane coach Randy Shannon and potentially spoiling the team's chances for a better bowl selection. Clemson, another desirable pick due to its loyal fan base, lost to South Carolina, leaving the Tigers with a mediocre 6-6 record.

The Terps, on the other hand, beat N.C. State, keeping the Wolfpack out of the ACC Championship game and putting the Terps in position to move up the bowl-selection ladder when the spots are officially announced Sunday.

"You're not going to find many 8-4 teams in the country, especially where we came from," coach Ralph Friedgen said. "I think, to me, we should be a pretty attractive bowl option [with] the story we had and the way our kids play with attitude and enthusiasm. I'm hoping that people will recognize that and be very interested in us."

The Terps tied with N.C. State and Miami for the third-best record (5-3) in the conference behind title contenders Virginia Tech and Florida State. And after their win against N.C. State and a narrow earlier loss to a now coach-less Miami team, the Terps could be the most desirable of those three options.

Despite their record, the Terps could fall down the pecking order because bowl organizers, to an extent, are not required to choose the competitors based on record. Even in a tie for third place, the Terps could still fall near the bottom of the ACC bowl heap because of concerns about ticket sales to fans.

But Greg Creese, the director of communications for the Champs Sports Bowl, recalled the Terp faithful who traveled to Orlando four seasons ago to watch the team beat Purdue in its season finale.

"Maryland traveled well in their last appearance in 2006," Creese said. "We are hopeful that if selected, the Maryland faithful would support Coach Friedgen and the team after such a tremendous turnaround this season."

Had the Terps lost to the Wolfpack, Creese said the Terps likely would not have had a shot at the Champs Sports Bowl, which has third pick of conference teams, behind only the Bowl Championship Series and the Chick-fil-A Bowl.

But with the victory, the Terps appear to be in contention. ESPN college football blogger Andrea Adelson and CBS Sports both have the Terps playing in the Orlando-based bowl opposite Notre Dame in their latest projections.

Still, the Military Bowl remains one of the team's most likely options. The Terps have struggled with low attendance and lack the rabid fan bases of other ACC schools such as Clemson and North Carolina. But Military Bowl officials said they would love to get the Terps to RFK Stadium to introduce a local appeal to the game.

The bowl would benefit the Terps from an economic standpoint, as sending the team to a bowl game 20 minutes away would cost significantly less than sending them on a weeklong trip.

But the Terps believe they have earned a bowl in a different — and warmer — destination, and Friedgen said at his teleconference Sunday he would lobby hard to give his players that opportunity.

"I try to do all I can because of their efforts this season," Friedgen said. "They need to be rewarded. I'm hoping that will come to fruition."

If the Terps avoid the Military Bowl but fall short of an invitation to the Champs Sports Bowl, a trip to North Carolina could be in the works.

Will Webb, the executive director of the Meineke Car Care Bowl in Charlotte, which has the fifth pick of ACC teams, said although he did not foresee the Terps getting a spot in the Champs Sports Bowl, everything below was fair game. Webb noted the Terps' strong end to the season "put Maryland in the picture for a lot of bowls," including the Meineke Car Care Bowl.

Other bowl possibilities include the Sun Bowl in El Paso, Texas, with the fourth ACC selection, the Music City Bowl in Nashville, with the sixth, and the Independence Bowl in Shreveport, La., with the seventh.

"I think some of the upper-tier bowls are interested in us," Friedgen said. "We have to wait until the championship game is slotted. But I think we're in pretty good position. We'll have to wait and see."

kyanchulis@umdbk.com