Maryland’s tuition raffle made one fan very happy.
asserted
fan → make → ?
Most of the others found out they didn’t win late in the third quarter, and some headed toward the exits right then.
asserted
some → find → exits
Such was the atmosphere as the Terrapins played their first game after coach Michael Locksley’s departure — although on the field, there were some encouraging signs.
asserted
Terrapins → play → field
Under interim coach Aazaar Abdul-Rahim, Maryland took Illinois down to the final play in a 20-17 loss Saturday.
asserted
Maryland → take → loss
“I thank them for the buy-in.
asserted
I → thank → in
This team could have went a lot of ways the last two weeks, with all the craziness that they had to deal with,” Abdul-Rahim said.
uncertain
Rahim → go → that
“I wanted to let them know how appreciative I am to be their head coach.
asserted
I → want → ?
I think they showed some of the new things that we talked about.”
asserted
we → think → that
Locksley’s exit became official two Wednesdays ago, with the Terrapins on an open date.
asserted
exit → become → date
Abdul-Rahim, who had been on the defensive staff, was promoted to interim coach.
asserted
who → promote → coach
Perhaps it was no surprise that the Terps looked inspired on defense, never trailing until early in the fourth quarter.
asserted
Terps → look → quarter
Maryland has had its problems with penalties but committed only one against the Illini.
asserted
Maryland → have → Illini
Locksley posted a supportive message to the team on social media, and the Terps were tied at the end before a field goal on the final play beat them.
asserted
goal → post → them
Still, the announced crowd was just 27,207, and that’s an indication of the challenge this program faces going forward — beyond snapping its current six-game losing streak.
asserted
program → announce → streak
Maryland held a raffle, the prize being free in-state tuition for the spring of 2027.
asserted
prize → hold → 2027
The winner was announced in the fourth quarter.
asserted
winner → announce → quarter
That provided some incentive for fans to show up and stay for most of the game, but when the raffle’s handful of finalists were announced late in the third, a small exodus began after that — even though the Terps led 14-10 at the time.
asserted
Terps → provide → time
“Aazaar has got a good understanding of what his football team is.
asserted
team → get → understanding
Those guys played extremely well,” Illinois coach Bret Bielema said.
asserted
Bielema → play → ?
“I expect them to win some games down the stretch here.”
asserted
them → expect → stretch
One moment when Abdul-Rahim could be second-guessed was at the end of the first half, when the Terps had 27 seconds and all their timeouts but chose to run the clock out from their own 25.
uncertain
Terps → guess → 25
“I made a big deal out of that at half,” Bielema said.
asserted
Bielema → make → half
“I said, ‘Hey, they ain’t got nowhere to run anymore, right?
asserted
they → say → ?
They got to play us the next two quarters.’”
asserted
They → got → us
Abdul-Rahim pointed to the fact that Maryland was getting the ball first after halftime.
asserted
Maryland → point → halftime
The Terps did score a touchdown to begin the third quarter and took a 14-7 lead.
asserted
Terps → score → lead
“I thought we were in a good place going into halftime,” Abdul-Rahim said.
asserted
Rahim → think → halftime
“Sometimes when you get too aggressive, and if you’ve watched our season previous weeks, sometimes those two minutes, we let the defense get on the field again.
asserted
defense → get → field
I wasn’t going to do that.”
asserted
I → go → that
The Aporia
