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Tracking the bowl-pocalypse: Oct. 31

Good news for college football's bowls: It has nearly half the teams needed to fill all 70 bowl slots. Twelve teams secured bowl eligibility this week, including Maryland.

In addition, if every team within a victory of eligibility wins once more, the total of eligible teams will leap to 58.

Now the bad news: If all the current six-loss teams stumble once more, there will be 27 ineligible teams --- more than half the 51 needed to lead to the bowl-pocalypse (or the issuance of a invitation to a team with a losing record to continue its season).

The weekly rundown:

ELIGIBLE (34)

Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, Auburn, Baylor, Boise State, Central Florida, Florida State, Hawaii, Iowa

Louisiana State, Maryland, Michigan State, Mississippi State, Missouri, Nebraska, Nevada, N.C. State, Northern Illinois, Northwestern

Ohio, Ohio State, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, Oregon, San Diego State, South Carolina, Stanford, Temple, Texas Christian

Toledo, Utah, Virginia Tech, Wisconsin

ONE MORE WIN TO BE ELIGIBLE (24)

Air Force, Army, East Carolina, Florida, Fresno State, Georgia Tech, Houston, Illinois, Iowa State, Kansas State

Miami, Miami-Ohio, Michigan, Navy, North Carolina, Penn State, Pittsburgh, Southern Methodist, Southern Mississippi, Syracuse

Texas A&M, Texas-El Paso, Tulsa, West Virginia

INELIGIBLE (14)

Akron, Ball State, Bowling Green, Central Michigan, Eastern Michigan, Memphis, Minnesota, New Mexico, San Jose State, Southern California

UNLV, Washington State, Western Kentucky, Wyoming

ONE MORE LOSS TO BE INELIGIBLE (13)

Buffalo, Colorado State, Duke, Kansas, Louisiana-Lafayette, Marshall, New Mexico State, North Texas, Rice, Tennessee

Utah State, Vanderbilt, Wake Forest

Sunday teleconference tidbits

A few items to pass along from Maryland coach Ralph Friedgen's teleconference this afternoon ...

* Cornerback Avery Graham (groin) could return Saturday at Miami. He's missed the last three games.

* Torrey Smith is inching closer to reclaiming the kickoff return job full-time.

"We think Torrey's about full-speed, so we're hoping to get him going again," Friedgen said.

* Friedgen wouldn't commit (barring injury) to redshirting Max Garcia, the freshman offensive tackle who has yet to play this season.

"I can't say that," Friedgen said. "I'm going to do what I've got to do to win the last four games. He's got to be ready to play. I'm not going to waste his redshirt in a 62-14 game, though. But if we have to win a game, I'm going to play him."

* Friedgen hopes to have "a little package" involving D.J. Adams to get the redshirt freshman tailback more involved in the offense. More on Adams sometime in the next few days, but he's carved up Morgan State and Wake Forest in garbage time.

Maryland-Miami a noon kickoff on Saturday

The ACC (and, in all fairness, its TV partners) finally got around to announcing next Saturday's gametimes in the middle of this afternoon.

Maryland, which improved to 6-2 on Saturday with a 62-14 rout of Wake Forest, drew a noon kickoff against Miami at Sun Life Stadium.

The full conference slate:

Nov. 4

Georgia Tech at Virginia Tech, 7:30 (ESPN)

Nov. 6

N.C. State at Clemson, Noon (ACC Network/Raycom)
Maryland at Miami, Noon (ESPNU)
Virginia at Duke, Noon (ESPN3.com)
Boston College at Wake Forest, 3:30 (ESPN3.com)
North Carolina at Florida State, 3:30 (ABC regional)

 

Maryland gets 11 points in AP poll

Maryland received 11 points in this week's AP football poll, ranking 29th in the weekly balloting.

Among the teams behind the Terrapins, who set a season-high for poll points: Florida, Miami and Southern California.

Some perspective here: Even though, Maryland isn't technically ranked, it still finished ahead of all three of those schools in a weekly ballot for the first time since Oct. 30, 1978. The Terps were No. 5, USC was No. 6 and both Florida and Miami were unranked. Maryland lost to Penn State the next week (as was the annual custom at the time), while the Trojans went on to win the national title.

As for the voting breakdown, the following voters put Maryland on their ballots (h/t, Pollspeak):

23rd

Rob Long, AM-1370, Baltimore

24th

Coley Harvey, Macon (Ga.) Telegraph
Ray Ratto, CSNBayArea.com

25th

Andy Staples, SI.com
John Niyo, Detroit News
Matt McCoy, WTVN-AM, Columbus, Ohio
Rick Wright, Albuquerque Journal

ACC satisfaction rankings, end of October edition

As noted about this time last month, it's not hard to rank teams based on accomplishments. But 7-5 is glorious to some teams and dreadful to others. It all depends on the context.

With everyone in the ACC through eight games and October coming to a close, it's a good time to re-evaluate how happy the realistic contingents among the conference's fanbases are (or at least probably should be). Last month's rankings included as well.

1. N.C. State (6-2, last month: 1). The Wolfpack is bowl eligible before the end of October for the first time since 2003 and can win the Atlantic Division by winning out. Sure, the loss to East Carolina stung, but better to lose out of conference. The amusing thing, of course, is many N.C. State fans are conditioned to expect bad things around every turn. Here's hoping Wolfpack supporters are enjoying the season to date.

2. Maryland (6-2, last month: 4). The Terrapins might not have a signature victory, but they are doing a fine job of upending struggling teams. They're bowl eligible a year after going 2-10, just dropped 62 points on Wake Forest and have a real chance to be an Atlantic Division factor deep into November. Are they a little unproven still? Sure. But after last year, Maryland fans should be ecstatic --- and perhaps even interested in pushing attendance at Byrd beyond 40,000 in three weeks.

3. Virginia (4-4, last month: 2). The Cavaliers are playing in front of more than 20,000 empty seats, so clearly fans aren't quite this satisfied. But with four victories, Virginia supporters should be pleased with how this season has unfolded. The Cavaliers won't go 0-for-the-ACC, and might even manage a .500 record. Given the circumstances (yes, that's an Al Groh reference), Virginia has exceeded expectations thanks to its upset of Miami.

4. Virginia Tech (6-2, last month: 11). A six-game winning streak doesn't erase the memory of the loss to James Madison (realistically, the Boise State setback is excusable, but the Hokies are in better shape in the conference race than anyone. Like Maryland and N.C. State, they control their own destiny. Unlike those teams, the Hokies can lose any one of their remaining conference games and still be in a secure spot. Oh, and there's a Thursday night game at Lane Stadium this week. That usually makes a Hokie crowd happy.

5. Florida State (6-2, last month: 5). The Seminoles would be first or second with a victory against N.C. State, but that's life. Instead, the Seminoles are still in decent shape in the conference and are poised to pounce if and when the Wolfpack stumbles next (possibly against Clemson next weekend). The pieces are in place to make a conference title run, and to beat Florida as well. Get one of the two, and Florida State backers should be pleased.

6. North Carolina (5-3, last month: 9). Things get a little trickier here, but the assumption is Tar Heels fans have recalibrated expectations in the wake of player suspensions and the NCAA investigation. Sure, the defeat of William and Mary was completely ugly, but no matter. The Tar Heels appear headed for a bowl game, and 7-5 isn't completely unthinkable. T.J. Yates has performed steadily all season, and there is still enough to knock off some combination of Florida State, N.C. State and Virginia Tech. Things could be much worse.

7. Georgia Tech (5-3, last month: 12). Sure, the loss at Clemson stunk and it's evident the Yellow Jackets aren't as good as they were in 2009. But the Kansas loss is the only true humiliation endured, and there's still a decent chance to win eight games in the regular season. That's not great compared to Paul Johnson's first two campaigns, but having a down year that is still better than an average Chan Gailey season isn't the worst thing in the world.

8. Duke (2-6, last month: 10). It's basketball season in Durham, so there can't be too much unhappiness. Nonetheless, while the record is disappointing, the Blue Devils only got demolished once in October and had a chance to beat Maryland. The possibility of 4-8 still exists, and while that isn't great, it's not a substantial step backward in what was an obvious rebuilding year.

9. Miami (5-3, last month: 3).  Yes, the Hurricanes have fallen short of expectations, and a Jacory Harris injury pretty much changes the calculus of how the final month is viewed. But Miami is still well on its way to a bowl game and remains in better shape than how coach Randy Shannon found it. Not saying that's good enough; just saying it's not as bad as what three other fanbases face right now.

10. Boston College (3-5, last month: 7). The Eagles avoid the cellar thanks to Saturday's defeat of Clemson, though quite a few Boston College fans might disagree. The first two months were always going to be tougher than November, though losing at home to Notre Dame and Maryland understandably was aggravating. A chance remains, however, to snag a bowl berth with three wins against an underwhelming slate in the final four games.

11. Clemson (4-4, last month: 6). The Tigers' schedule is difficult, and 7-5 was going to be a good year even if the team looked to be a little better than that in terms of talent. But dropping a close game at a Boston College team that had lost five in a row coming in ... well, that's so Clemson.  The Tigers will somehow win two of the next four and go to a bowl, but they're just as erratic --- and, I imagine, difficult to follow --- as ever.

12. Wake Forest (2-6, last month: 8). Because regardless of expectations and program history, no one can be remotely satisfied with a six-game losing streak featuring noncompetitive road losses by scores of 68-24, 31-0, 52-21 and 62-14. The Demon Deacons' average margin of defeat away from the Dash: 38.5. Yuck.

The Morning After: ACC Week 9

(Ten observations from this week's action around the ACC)

1. Without Jacory Harris, Miami is up a creek. Harris might be one of the more maddening, inconsistent and erratic players in the ACC. He's also arguably the most valuable. That's the conclusion to take from Miami's musical quarterbacks after Harris left the 24-19 loss at Virginia with an injury. Until the closing minutes, Miami could do little against arguably the ACC's least talented team.

It's already a disappointing season for The U at 5-3, and it's not like Georgia Tech and Virginia Tech (or Maryland, for that matter) will roll over. If Harris misses considerable time, it will be a decided step back for Randy Shannon in just the year fans expected him to move the program forward.

2. N.C. State might be the Atlantic Division favorite. Granted, that title could be gone once the Wolfpack gets done with Clemson. But Tom O'Brien's team gets Wake Forest and North Carolina the two weeks after that (and he's owned the Tar Heels the last three years), so there's a real chance N.C. State will stay atop the division for a while.

State has the tiebreaker over Florida State, the quarterback to make things happen and a defense that acquitted itself well in the second half against the Seminoles. There's no guarantees, but the Wolfpack is the division's most accomplished team to date.

3. Meanwhile, Maryland at least has earned a place in the division race analysis. No, the Terrapins' ACC victories don't make for a thick resume. But at 3-1, Maryland at least deserves a mention in the discussion.

The Terps can split the next two games and still control their own Atlantic Division destiny --- and do so with the final two games of the season at Byrd Stadium. This is not to say Maryland is the most accomplished team; it isn't. But it is probably going to get its chance to have a say in matters in the Atlantic, and that means the Terps should be part of the debate.

4. Regardless of what is to come, Virginia can say it had a successful season. The Cavaliers have surpassed last year's win total, have a trip to Duke coming up and then get Maryland in Charlottesville the week after that. Win both --- plausible, if not necessarily likely --- and the Hoos could be 6-4 and needing one win in the final two weeks to reach a bowl game.

It's not a big thing, but the fact Virginia could even entertain thoughts of a bowl berth this season is a credit to Mike London. Beating Miami was a significant win for the Cavaliers, the first time they've done something quite that surprising in a few years. For those still paying attention, Virginia has some hope --- and that's quite a change.

5. Frank Spaziani got a victory he desperately needed. Boston College had to have some wiggle room heading into November, and it got it with a 16-10 defeat of Clemson. The schedule is quite favorable going forward (trips to Wake Forest, Duke and Syracuse, a visit from Virginia), and the Eagles need three wins to clinch a bowl berth.

If BC was going to beat anyone remotely decent, it was going to have to be in the fashion it knocked off Clemson. The Eagles' defense is still plenty good --- the four touchdowns scored on them the last two weeks were a pick-six and three Maryland drives that started in BC territory --- and the offense still has Montel Harris to move the pile against more malleable run defenses even if the passing game is scattered at best. Duke (No. 103 nationally against the run), Virginia (No. 111) and Wake Forest (No. 115) all qualify as malleable. November set up all along for a stealthy push. It won't result in a division title for the Eagles, but the season can still be modestly salvaged.

6. Clemson's new coach isn't much different than its old coach --- at least where tight games are concerned. Remember that old Clemson coach with the famous surname who could never quite get the Tigers over the hump in close games? Well, Dabo Swinney is starting to give Tommy Bowden a run for his money in fan frustration.

Clemson fell to 3-9 in one-possession games under Swinney with its 16-10 loss at Boston College, and that's with the loosest definition of "one-possession" (eight points). Scale it back to seven, and the Tigers' Music City Bowl 21-13 defeat of Kentucky is removed from the discussion. In any case, Clemson has a close game problem, and that's the sort of scenario where coaching goes under the microscope.

7. Johnny White is one of the ACC's best stories this year. It's not a surprise Montel Harris leads the ACC in rushing. But White, a complete afterthought before suspensions wrecked North Carolina's season, checks in at No. 2 with 89.1 yards a game.

White had 164 yards Saturday against William & Mary, including a game-clinching gallop in the fourth quarter to help the Tar Heels escape. While there's a lot to poke fun at (or worse) with the Tar Heels' run-in with the NCAA, White's opportunity to enjoy a strong senior year after managing 21 carries in 2008 and 2009 combined is something anyone can appreciate.

8. David Cutcliffe kidnapped Peyton Manning for a day. He had to have, right? Sean Renfree, who had thrown 15 interceptions during a six-game skid, torched Navy for a 28 of 30, 314-yard performance that included three total touchdowns (one passing, two rushing). Given Renfree's struggles, conspiracy theorists might want to consider the possibility of a ringer.

It was in many ways the conference's most out-of-nowhere performance of the season (at least when T.J. Yates unloaded on Louisiana State, the Tar Heels were behind; Josh Harris' 241-yard day against Virginia Tech is in the disccusion, too). It's a great sign for the Blue Devils, who at 2-6 probably didn't just start a five-game winning streak to end the season. But some opportunities for wins exist (Virginia, Boston College and North Carolina all at home), and getting Renfree back on track is a good start in avoiding an 0-for-8 in the ACC.

9. Wake Forest might have hit rock bottom. While Maryland deserves credit for the pummeling it administered in a 62-14 shellacking, the Demon Deacons were flat-out awful. They had two punts blocked, two interceptions returned for touchdowns and allowed Maryland to match a school record for points scored in an ACC game while coming off a bye week.

The Demon Deacons are in a dreadful Catch-22 right now. They can't ask freshman quarterback Tanner Price to win a shootout every week, but their defense is inexperienced and, for now anyway, terrible. Wake might just lose out --- Boston College, N.C. State, Clemson and Vanderbilt remain --- but it's tough to believe things will look worse than they did in College Park. As someone who's had an up-close look at three of the four struggling ACC teams (Boston College, Duke and Wake), the Demon Deacons were clearly the most inept of the bunch.

10. Virginia Tech avoided the weekend's carnage  --- and is sitting pretty after a crazy Saturday. Miami's loss made the Hokies' path to a Coastal Division title a lot easier to navigate. Sure, the Hokies still have Georgia Tech, Miami and North Carolina to face, but with a two-game lead there's a built-in cushion entering the final month of the season.

While the Atlantic could be muddled to the final weekend, Virginia Tech can assure itself a spot in Charlotte on Dec. 4 with wins the next two weeks and a Miami loss to either Maryland or Georgia Tech. That's not a bad place to be in after an 0-2 start overall.

The D1scourse 30: Week 9

The unbeatens are thinned out, with just five of them entering November. That number will decrease to four (and possibly less) next week, since Utah and Texas Christian meet in Salt Lake City.

That will finally be a chance to answer the Utah Question --- namely, how good is a Utes team that arguably just got its best result of the season, a 28-23 victory at Air Force.

(To be fair, that rout at Iowa State looks more valuable than it did at the time).

Onto the full top 30, which Maryland narrowly missed ...

1. Auburn (9-0). Steady at No. 1. The Tigers have four legitimate top-25 victories to their name --- Louisiana State, South Carolina, Arkansas and Mississippi State --- and just turned back Mississippi. Their resume remains the best in all the land, plus they have a fantastic Choose Your Own Adventure tale from SB Nation/Every Day Should Be Saturday. What more could anyone want?

2. Oregon (8-0). Up from No. 3. The Ducks have three-touchdown victories over their two best opponents to date (Stanford and now Southern Cal), but the schedule strengths drops considerably after those two games. Of course, no one wants to hear that while they're oohing and aahing about an offense that's hung half-a-hundred five times already. Sound familiar? Then you must be acquainted with Oklahoma circa 2008. In any case, the Ducks should blitz Washington and California the next two weeks before things get really interesting.

3. Boise State (7-0). Up from No. 5. The Broncos roasted another bad team, and Oregon State's win gave it a mild boost. The thing really helping Boise is that Hawaii and Nevada keep winning. Stronger opponents near the top of the league can only help.

4. Texas Christian (9-0). Up from No. 7. The Horned Frogs have a huge thing going against them in the final three weeks of the season: They play nobody. OK, they play New Mexico on Nov. 27, but that's their only game after Nov. 13. Clearly, TCU must beat Utah and San Diego State as well, but it is not going to do anything to improve its resume after the next two weeks. One thing helping right now: Baylor's continued success.

5. Alabama (7-1). Up from No. 9. The Crimson Tide had the week off, but its best victories (Arkansas, Florida, Penn State) all look a bit better now than 24 hours ago. Plus, losses by Big Ten and Big 12 unbeatens devalued not only those teams, but the teams they had beaten.

6. Nebraska (7-1). Up from No. 15. So commences a scrum through No. 16 that is difficult to differentiate. The Cornhuskers can stick here thanks to beating Missouri, but they're tied to the Tigers' welfare at the time being. If Missouri falls again, look for Nebraska to take a hit here as well.

7. Missouri (7-1). Down from No. 4. No shame in losing to the Cornhuskers, and Gary Pinkel's team still has a victory over Oklahoma to prop it up. The national title hopes are probably dead, but this can still be a good season in Columbia.

8. Michigan State (8-1). Down from No. 2. Like Mizzou, Sparty's national championship hopes are gone. But they do have the victory over Wisconsin, though nothing else on their resume holds up right now.

9. Wisconsin (7-1). Down from No. 6. A one-loss Badgers team doesn't belong ahead of one-loss Michigan State, which depresses Wisconsin's value at the moment. The victory over Iowa, though, looks more excellent.

10. Oklahoma (7-1). Down from No. 8. Sure, the Sooners pushed Dan Hawkins a step closer to the firing line. But Florida State, Texas, Air Force, Cincinnati ... they all lost. The only Oklahoma victory that got more valuable was its thrashing of Iowa State, and even that is marginal since the Cyclones beat Kansas. Plus, Missouri (who beat Oklahoma) lost. Overall, another unhelpful weekend for the Sooners.

11. Louisiana State (7-1). Up from No. 13. Struggled with Utah and LSU in this spot. Pretty much a push. The Tigers' best wins look a little bit better this week (Mississippi State, Florida) and its lone loss is against No. 1. With Alabama up next, it'll be clear whetherthe Tigers are a top-10 team.

12. Utah (8-0). Steady at No. 12. A difficult November awaits the Utes, though that trip to South Bend looks easier by the day. Oddly, that's not what Utah needs at the moment.

13. Ohio State (8-1). Down from No. 10. What do we know of the Buckeyes? They're better than Miami, which means less by the day, and Illinois. Oh, and that they lost at Camp Randall. The resume is toward the bottom of the 6-through-16 scrum.

14. Arizona (7-1). Up from No. 16. It helped to beat UCLA, but the Wildcats' boat rises with Iowa. And the Hawkeyes knocked off Michigan State this week.

15. Iowa (6-2). Up from No. 22. The first of the two-loss teams absorbed its setbacks against a pair of 7-1 outfits. The Michigan State win is by far the Hawkeyes' best accomplishment, and the schedule turns favorable in November (Ohio State at home, three winnable Big Ten games otherwise).

16. Stanford (7-1). Down from No. 14. A very Oklahoma-like week for the Cardinal, who won easily but had all of its top victims lose.

17. South Carolina (6-2). Steady at No. 17. Not much changing here. The next tier of teams begins with the Gamecocks at the moment.

18. Virginia Tech (6-2). Up from No. 21. The Hokies rise along with N.C. State, which beat Florida State.

19. N.C. State (6-2). Up from No. 24. As long as the Wolfpack has just two losses, they'll be ahead of Florida State.

20. Mississippi State (7-2). Down from No. 19. Not in the Alabama/Auburn/Louisiana State neighborhood and without the signature victory of South Carolina, the Bulldogs are still better than the non-Gamecocks portion of the SEC East and Ole Miss. Alabama and Arkansas are up next.

21. Arkansas (6-2). Down from No. 20. The Razorbacks might be better than this ranking, but a resume featuring Georgia, Texas A&M and Mississippi makes that more faith-based than anything. Arkansas' greatest accomplishment might still be scaring Alabama.

22. Oklahoma State (7-1). Up from No. 23. A big prove-it game in the Big 12 looms next week when the Pokes welcome Baylor to Stillwater.

23. Florida State (6-2). Down from No. 11. The Miami win isn't doing much to help the Seminoles these days.

24. Baylor (7-2). Up from No. 26. Think Art Briles might be a popular candidate for a job opening this offseason?

25. Nevada (7-1). Not ranked last week. Like last week, this is about where the resumes get a bit skimpier.

26. Oregon State (4-3). Not ranked last week. The Beavers won at Arizona, lost to a pair of unbeatens and fell to Washington in overtime. That's an impressive 4-3.

27. Miami (5-3). Down from No. 18. The Hurricanes still have defeats of North Carolina, Pittsburgh and Clemson, which isn't bad. But if Jacory Harris is out for an extended stretch, The U will need to be evaluated differently.

28. North Carolina (5-3). Not ranked last week. And even this week, it's a stretch.

29. Florida (5-3). Not ranked last week The Gators' best feat is beating Georgia in overtime. This year, that doesn't mean a whole lot.

30. Southern Cal (5-3). Steady at No. 30. Irrelevant curiosity for November: How will the Trojans fare now that there's nothing to play for. At least one more loss (at Arizona and/or at Oregon State) probably still looms.

Dropped out: No. 25 Texas, No. 27 Clemson, No. 28 Michigan, No. 29 East Carolina

On the doorstep: Maryland, Hawaii, Illinois, Texas A&M, San Diego State, Penn State

Reviewing the Wake Forest game day predictions

Let's go to the video tape ...

1. Da'Rel Scott will reach the 2,000-yard plateau for his career in the first quarter. 

CORRECT. Scott needed 11 yards in the first quarter to get to 2,000 and wound up with 12. Scott ran for 50 yards on the day, and he has 2,048 yards --- 10th on the school's career list.

2. It will be a good day for wideouts.

SEMI-CORRECT. Torrey Smith had a strong day --- five catches, 66 yards and a touchdown --- but it was more a collective effort than a single individual. LaQuan Williams  and Quintin McCree also caught touchdowns for Maryland. Wake's Chris Givens, though, had three catches for six yards.

3. Speaking of Smith, the ACC kickoff return yardage record will be his. Finally.

INCORRECT. Smith didn't have a return all day. He wasn't back for Wake's first kickoff, and was kicked away from in another instance.

4. Danny O'Brien will thrive against his hometown team.

CORRECT. Four touchdown passes in 20 pass attempts qualifies as "thriving."

5. Maryland will become bowl eligible.

CORRECT. The Terrapins are headed somewhere for the holidays after the 62-14 rout. Now it's just a matter of figuring out where. The next four games will determine that, but Maryland doesn't have to talk about bowl eligibility again this season.

Wake Forest: 3.5-for-5
Season: 24-for-40

Tony Logan Tracker: Post-Wake Forest

Steve Suter had a huge game in the eighth contest of the 2002 season.

Tony Logan, meanwhile, had a chance to return only three of Wake Forest's 10 punts in Maryland's 62-14 pummeling.

Logan managed 22 yards, which keeps him 28 yards ahead of Suter's '02 pace. But ...

TONY LOGAN PUNT RETURN TRACKER (YARDS THROUGH EACH GAME)

Game	Suter (2002)	Logan (2010)	Difference
1	16	57	+41
2	128	185	+57
3	148	192	+44
4	165	327	+162
5	233	415	+182
6	375	443	+68
7	378	488	+110
8	482	510	+28
9	574	---	---
10	609	---	---
11	639	---	---
12	647	---	---
13	676	---	---
14	771	---	---

Logan's lead is almost gone, and one of Suter's two big remaining outings came in his ninth contest.

So for the first time all season, there's a real chance Logan will be behind Suter's pace after next week.

Of course, it's all about pace. If Maryland plays 13 games (i.e. does not win the Atlantic Division), Logan needs to average 52.4 yards a game the rest of the way. If the Terps do have a 14-game season, the average drops to 43.7 yards.

Logan has 95 yards over the last three weeks  --- great in comparison to recent Maryland punt returners, but off the junior's electrifying early results. He'll wind up with a fine season, regardless, but clearly he'll need a big return or two the rest of the way if he's going to topple Suter's eight-year-old record.

Rout 62, Part II

There's two sides to every blowout, and Wake Forest's Jim Grobe didn't have many answers after the Demon Deacons' 62-14 loss to Maryland.

“We’re just not playing good enough to beat a good team right now,” Grobe said.

And so it would seem the Terrapins (6-2, 3-1 ACC) qualify as that.

Certainly, beating the struggling Demon Deacons doesn't exactly boost Maryland's profile. But the way it happened certainly warrants some attention.

Maryland dropped 62 points on an opponent for the second time this season, and while Wake isn't exactly an annual ACC title contender, it certainly has some more cache than Morgan State.

What's more the 62 points ties a school record against an ACC opponent; the Terps mauled Virginia 62-24 in 1975.

And as for how a 48-point pummeling of a conference opponent ranks in program history. Well, it's the third largest margin of victory for the Terps in an ACC game. Take a look:

52: Wake Forest, 1996 (52-0)
52: at North Carolina, 2002 (59-7)

48: Wake Forest, 2010 (62-14)

47: Wake Forest, 1974 (47-0)

43: Virginia, 1959 (55-12)
43: vs. Duke, 1974 (56-13)

42: Duke, 2001 (59-17)

41: Clemson, 1974 (41-0)
41: Virginia, 1981 (48-7)

That's a whole lot of Wake Forest --- and Wake Forest on Homecoming, no less --- at the top of the list.

There's only so much of a statement that can be made against a team that's dropped six in a row. But however big it can be, Maryland surely managed it.