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Where'd the O go?

While sorting through some of the data for this afternoon's post about Maryland's offensive line, something seemed more striking than usual.

The Terrapins haven't averaged 25 points a game for six straight years, which isn't all that easy to do in college football today.

No, it's not easy to average 25 points every year. Or even most years. But the odds are at some point, a team will crack the 25-point average in a six-year span.

After all, only three major college programs haven't done so once since 2004.

MOST CONSECUTIVE SEASONS, LESS THAN 25 POINTS PER GAME

13: Army

6: Maryland
6: Syracuse

5: Florida International
5: San Jose State
5: Tulane
5: Wyoming

4: Miami (Ohio)
4: New Mexico
4: UCLA
4: Vanderbilt
4: Virginia

The Terps have come close --- 24.5 points a game in 2005, 24.1 points a game in 2007 --- but never quite got over that hump. And while it isn't a divide that instantaneously creates excitement, let's face it: With some of the pinball offenses in play today, not having a single remarkable year of scoring offense hints at a boring (or worse) product in the eyes of the paying customers.

There is one thing that differentiates Maryland from the rest of the teams on this list:

Team(s)	Seasons	.500+	Bowls	Bowl Ws
Maryland	6	2	3	2
Rest	59	10	9	5

That Maryland has scratched out some success in recent years is remarkable given the so-so offense. But if there's going to be a turnaround this year, the Terps will be better off not bucking the odds and fielding a more productive offense.

Common sense, right? But as recent years show, it's easier said than done in College Park.

College football countdown: Nos. 86-90

Five more teams to ponder on the first day of summer ...

90. TEXAS-EL PASO

Sometimes, problems are incredibly easy to identify.

Take the Miners, who have been absolutely horrendous in one particular area for three years running:

Season	Rush Defense	Rank
2007	202.9	104
2008	199.5	104
2009	200.8	106

Give coach Mike Price credit. UTEP has its third defensive coordinator in four years and scrapped a 3-3-5 system for a 4-3. The nonconference schedule swaps out Texas, Kansas and Buffalo for Houston, Memphis and Arkansas-Pine Bluff.

The path to six victories is eminently more reachable. But the Miners are going to have to hold someone in check --- especially on the ground --- to make that happen.

89. OHIO

The Bobcats return just half their starters from a 9-5 team that is due for a bit of a decline anyway after posting a plus-13 turnover margin a season ago (seventh in the country).

But if you're looking for a wild prediction, how about this: The Bobcats will give Ohio State a headache on Oct. 18.

That's not to say the Bobcats will win. But take a look at this recent history against power conference teams:

2007: Virginia Tech 28, Ohio 7
2008: Ohio State 26, Ohio 14
2008: Northwestern 16, Ohio 8
2009: Connecticut 23, Ohio 16
2009: Tennessee 34, Ohio 23

Needless to say, the Bobcats are a pest. And if they give Ohio State a hard time this year, maybe Tom Osborne can call his old assistant Frank Solich up for advice on how to deal with Big Ten teams.

88. SAN DIEGO STATE

The Aztecs are probably the most inexplicable of the 10 teams with the longest bowl droughts in major college football (UL Monroe, which moved up in 1994, has not played in a bowl).

School	Last bowl
New Mexico St.	1960
UL Lafayette	1970
Kent State	1972
Eastern Michigan	1987
Baylor	1994
Duke	1994
Army	1996
Utah State	1997
San Diego State	1998
UNLV	2000

So, does San Diego State put an end to the dry spell this year? Possibly.

The Aztecs play Nicholls State, New Mexico State and Utah State in nonconference games, and all are winnable. The bottom half of the Mountain West isn't particularly imposing, and Air Force --- the middle tier of the league pretty much by itself --- pays a visit to San Diego.

It won't matter if the Aztecs can't hold onto the ball (minus-10 turnover margin last year) or establish even a modest running game (held to less 80 yards a game in each of the last two years). As difficult as it is to believe a school nestled in southern California is so far removed from its last postseason appearance, it is easy to figure out what needs to be fixed from the last couple seasons.

87. VANDERBILT

There's no better way to sum up the Commodores than this simple record: 2-6.

Somehow, Vanderbilt held eight opponents to 25 points or less, and couldn't come close to winning half of those games.

Certainly, the Commodores could be better against the run, and returning only a couple starters on the front seven won't help that.

But the greater issue here is an offense that simply hasn't been any good at all the last couple seasons.

Vanderbilt somehow overcame that in 2008 and reached a bowl game. Last year, reality set in and the Commodores crashed to 2-10.

Things should be better this year, but maybe not by much. Over the last two years, Vanderbilt has lost games by margins of 17-14, 10-7, 20-10, 15-3, 16-13 and 14-10. If the defense regresses at all, things could get ugly in Nashville once conference play begins in earnest.

86. ARMY

A bowl berth for the Black Knights? Don't laugh. Rich Ellerson found a way to get a team that barely averaged 15 points within a game of a bowl berth.

Only four bowl teams from a year ago (Temple, Rutgers, Air Force, Navy) dot Army's schedule, and assuming sophomore quarterback Trent Steelman continues to mature in Ellerson's option scheme, there could be enough to reach the postseason.

The linchpin could wind up being the service academy games, a severe aggravation for Black Knights fans in recent years. Army, after all, has dropped nine straight, 15 of 16 and 20 of 22 to its fellow academies.

And that makes the Aughts (2-18) a decidedly lousy time to be a fan on the banks of the Hudson:

ARMY'S LONGEST LOSING STREAKS vs. SERVICE ACADEMIES

9: 2005-present (Navy 5, Air Force 4)

6: 2002-04 (Air Force 3, Navy 3)

5: 1939-43 (Navy 5)
5: 1999-2001 (Air Force 3, Navy 2)

If beating Air Force or Navy turns out to be the difference in going to a bowl for the first time since 1996, that elusive victory will somehow be even sweeter than anticipated for the Black Knights.

Expect no significant changes to Navy's lacrosse schedule

Today's conversation with Navy coach Richie Meade about new Maryland coach John Tillman eventually led to a brief discussion about the Midshipmen's 2011 schedule.

In short, don't expect much different.

The Mids play six conference games. Local games against Loyola and Towson remain on the schedule. So do more traditional rivalries like North Carolina, Georgetown, Maryland and Johns Hopkins.

Navy wants to play a 13-game regular season. That last paragraph accounts for 12 of them.

"We could try to move the Towson game, but no matter where you put it, it's a midweek game," Meade said. "Our schedule is very tight early. We have Loyola, Carolina early, then got Bucknell, Lehigh, Towson. I don't think we have any flexibility. I think we'll keep it where it is."

One thing that will be different --- as noted this week by the Baltimore Sun --- is the return of the Army-Navy game to campus. Next spring's game will be in Annapolis, and is the second half of the Day of Rivals to return to a normal home-and-home setup. Johns Hopkins coach Dave Pietramala said last week his school's game with Maryland will be played next year in College Park.

"Our seniors have never played at home against Army," Meade said. "I'm sure Army feels the same way. The Day of Rivals was nice but I feel like playing home-and-home is a better situation for us to go with."