Terps Lead, Then Fall Low
Once Again, Maryland Jumps Ahead, Only to Let Virginia Squeeze Past for Seventh Straight Win: Virginia 18, Maryland 17

By Marc Carig
Washington Post Staff Writer
Sunday, October 21, 2007

On one side of the field stood a team that had crafted a gaudy record mostly on its ability to finish strong. On the other stood a team that had built a solid mark despite a tendency to fade down the stretch. And midway through the fourth quarter last night, Maryland and Virginia had filled their expected roles, with the Terrapins jumping to an early lead and the Cavaliers charging late.

From there, it was as if each team followed a script they had spent the past six weeks writing.

Little-used Virginia running back Mikell Simpson scored from one yard out with 16 seconds left, capping a dramatic and controversial final drive to help the Cavaliers rally to beat the rival Terrapins to a 18-17 victory in front of an announced crowd 52,782, the seventh largest in school history.

"That's what we are," Virginia Coach Al Groh said of his team's comeback, which resulted in the Cavaliers' first victory at Byrd Stadium since 1999. "We don't have a lot of stars. We don't have fantastic talents. But what we do have is a lot of togetherness."

As expected, Virginia's defensive line caused trouble for the Terrapins.

All-American defensive end Chris Long lived up to his billing, sacking Chris Turner twice -- once for a safety to trim Maryland's lead to 17-12 late in the third quarter. Long finished with 10 tackles, 3 1/2 of them for losses. He also batted down two of Turner's passes.

"There's no better player in college football than Chris Long," Groh said.

Terrapins inside linebacker Erin Henderson enjoyed a marquee evening in his return from injury. Henderson, who played through a broken thumb and cut his lip late in the game, recorded a career-high 18 tackles, eclipsing his previous best against Clemson last season.

But the Cavaliers rallied with help from an unexpected source. Simpson, a reserve who had four carries to his credit entering the game, finished with 271 rushing and receiving yards including a 44-yard touchdown run in the first half. Simpson saved his best work for last, with 78 yards on Virginia's decisive drive.

"It was definitely a tough loss," Maryland Coach Ralph Friedgen said. "On that last drive, it just seemed like things didn't go our way. We faced some more adversity."

After taking over at its 10-yard line with 7 minutes 42 seconds left, Virginia drove 90 yards, aided by a pass interference penalty on Terrapins cornerback Kevin Barnes with two minutes left.

"If I were in the NFL, I'd get fined a lot of money for saying what I want to," Barnes said. "But I don't believe it was a pass interference. But the [referee] did, and I've got to live with it. . . . I just don't want the refs to decide the game."

Virginia then converted on a critical fourth down deep in Terrapins territory when Cavaliers quarterback Jameel Sewell hit Simpson for a four-yard gain. Virginia converted by the nose of the football, and the officials' spot survived a video review, though Friedgen said he though Simpson had been stopped short.

Video review came into play again, this time on Simpson's winning touchdown dive. The Terrapins contended the ball had come loose. But the review went in Virginia's favor.

"I knew I scored," Simpson said of the close calls. "I looked down to see the yellow line [goal line], the ball crossed and they hit it out. I really wasn't too worried about that. The play that got me was the fourth down. . . . I didn't know if I had it."

Virginia tied a single-season school record by winning its seventh straight game. The Cavaliers improved to 4-0 in the ACC for the first time since 1995. The Terrapins fell to 4-3, 1-2.

Maryland jumped to a 14-3 lead behind first-half touchdown runs by Keon Lattimore and Lance Ball. But the Terrapins managed just one score after that, a 41-yard field goal by Obi Egekeze early in the third quarter that pushed the lead to 17-10.

Long helped change the momentum with his sack of Turner. Matched up one-on-one, Long blew by tackle Scott Burley to hit Turner.

"I didn't have time to react to that," Turner said. "It was just so fast."

Both teams suffered injuries to key players in the first half. Tight end Tom Santi, Virginia's leading receiver this season, left the game after the first play from scrimmage with an injury to the lower part of his right leg.

Maryland left guard Jaimie Thomas left the game early in the second quarter because of an injury to his lower leg. Friedgen said after the game Thomas suffered a broken leg and will miss the rest of the season.

It added up to what had already looked, in a way, predetermined. Virginia became the only team in the country to win five games by five or fewer points. And the Terrapins surrendered a double-digit lead for the fifth time this year.

"It's a humbling loss," Turner said. "We've just got to regroup, we've got to regroup. It doesn't feel good. It hurts."

Staff writer Adam Kilgore contributed to this report.