Navy at Maryland College Football Picks
Navy and Maryland are all set to do battle in a nationally televised (ESPN) contest on Labor Day. Navy leads the all-time series 14-6, and NCAA football lines makers expect the Midshipmen to improve on that mark. They have listed Navy as a 6.5-point favorite with the total set at 49.
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Ken Niumatalolo’s Navy Midshipmen enter the 2010 season off a strong 10-win campaign, their seventh straight season with at least eight wins.
Ralph Friedgen has shown what he can do, posting 10-win seasons in each of his first three years at Maryland. That simple fact had to make last year’s 2-10 campaign especially tough to take.
Navy appears to have the better team, but we can’t overlook the fact that Friedgen’s Terps have won five of their last six season openers.
Quarterback Ricky Dobbs will once again be the key to Navy’s success. Dobbs rushed for 1,203 yards and passed for another 1,031. His 27 rushing touchdowns last season set an NCAA record for a quarterback.
Along with Dobbs, Aaron Santiago and Gee Gee Greene will get plenty of opportunities in coach Niumatalolo’s option attack.
An offensive line anchored by seniors Jeff Battipaglia and Matt Malloy ensure that Navy will be running wild again in 2010.
While Navy’s offense gets all the attention, the performance of its defense should not go unnoticed. Navy ranked No. 18 in the country in scoring defense last year, allowing only 19.4 points per game.
Jabarree Tuani anchors the defensive line and Tyler Simmons leads the linebacker corps.
The Midshipmen should be even stronger in the secondary, where Wyatt Middleton, Kevin Edwards and Emmett Merchant roam. If you think the Midshipmen have what it takes to cover the spread, bet Navy at -6.5 at Sports Interaction.
The Terps had major issues on offense in 2009. In fact, they ranked No. 98 in the country in scoring offense, averaging just 21.3 ppg. However, with key performers such as Da’Rel Scott back, Maryland believes it can show improvement.
Scott, who was a 1st-team all-conference pick in 2008, only managed 424 yards on the ground last season due to a wrist injury. With three starters returning on the offensive line, Maryland fully expects Scott to have a bounce back year. The Terps have a solid runner behind Scott as well in Davin Meggett.
Junior Jamarr Robinson has been handed the reigns at the quarterback position after playing well down the stretch last year. The Terps are hoping he can pick up where he left off. He threw for 459 yards and two touchdowns with no interceptions, and also rushed for 229 yards last season.
When Maryland takes to the air it will be looking to get the ball in the hands of wideout Torrey Smith, who finished No. 6 in the nation in all-purpose yards a season ago.
Defensively, the Terps have a lot of work to do. We’re talking about a unit that allowed an ACC-worst 31.3 points per game in 2009.
While some improvement is expected, it’s hard to think a unit returning just five starters can undergo a complete transformation.
One player the Terps can count on to leave it all out on the field is linebacker Alex Wujciak. The first-team all-league pick is considered one of the top linebackers in the country following a season in which he averaged nearly 11 stops per game.
With three sophomores expected to get starting nods up front, Wujciak and the linebacker unit figures to be busy again in 2010.
The secondary is led by cornerback Cameron Chism, who picked off four passes last year.
If you think the Terps can give Navy a game, bet Maryland at +6.5 at Sports Interaction.
Be sure to check out my college football picks Monday to see which one of these teams I might be playing.
