UConn’s early spark wasn’t enough to keep pace with Maryland’s offense, and the Huskies walked out of College Park with a 38-14 loss to the Terrapins on Saturday.
Kalieb Osborne did what he could to keep Connecticut in the game, finishing 10 of 21 for 156 yards and two touchdowns while also leading the team with 62 rushing yards. Shamar Porter gave the Huskies their biggest threat through the air with 62 receiving yards and a touchdown, and JD Willoughby added 36 yards and a score. On defense, Zion Paret piled up 12 tackles, including six solo stops, and K’Von Sherman finished with nine tackles, four of them solo.
Maryland, though, kept landing punch after punch. Malik Washington was sharp all day, completing 34 of 41 passes for 347 yards and two touchdowns.
In the run game, Iverson Howard and Harry Dalton III combined for 57 yards and three touchdowns. Na’eem Abdul-Rahim Gladding led the receivers with 130 yards and a touchdown, while Chris Durr Jr. added 103 yards and another score.
Sidney Stewart and Carlton Smith each finished with six tackles, and Stewart also recorded a sack.
UConn got on the board first after a quick Maryland three-and-out. Julian Allen’s 18-yard punt return gave the Huskies a short field, though a 15-yard unsportsmanlike conduct penalty pushed them back. Even with the setback, Osborne and Kenji Christian helped move the ball, and Osborne finished the drive by finding Willoughby in the end zone from 36 yards out.
Maryland answered right away. Even with two false starts, Washington kept the drive alive, and Abdul-Rahim Gladding turned a 5-yard catch into a 60-yard touchdown to tie it.
The Huskies were hanging around early, but penalties kept opening the door for the Terrapins. Saxton Suchanic was flagged for pass interference on a throw intended for Abdul-Rahim Gladding, and that helped Maryland move into scoring range. Two plays later, Durr Jr. hauled in a 24-yard catch to set up another big opportunity, and when Paret was called for pass interference near the goal line, Dalton III punched it in from the 1-yard line for a 14-7 Maryland lead.
Before halftime, the Terrapins stretched it to 17-7. Howard’s 15-yard run helped Maryland escape trouble deep in its own end, and Washington connected with Dorian Fleming and Howard on a 27-yard gain to keep the drive moving. Howard pushed the ball to the UConn 1-yard line, and though Luke Murphy stopped him on third-and-1, Maryland still settled for a field goal.
Maryland came out of the break and kept rolling. Washington hit Webb for 30 yards and Abdul-Rahim Gladding for 14 more, and Howard finished the drive with a 1-yard score to make it 24-7.
UConn briefly answered. Osborne hit Porter for a 20-yard gain to set up the next shot, and Porter delivered again with a 39-yard touchdown that trimmed the margin to 10.
But the comeback never really caught fire. Washington quickly hit Durr Jr. for 31 yards and Abdul-Rahim Gladding for 24 more, then Manning’s 16-yard catch moved Maryland to the 6-yard line. Dalton III finished that series to push the lead back out, and after an illegal formation on Tommy Warner’s punt gave UConn a small break, Durr Jr. capped the night with a 13-yard touchdown catch to close it out.
Jason Candle didn’t sugarcoat the challenge Maryland presented. “There weren’t any adverse moments in our first football game.
This is a whole different animal,” Head Coach Jason Candle said. “They were going to try and lean on us and run the ball down your throat; play up in the face of your receiver.
They’re going to play pressure-style defense and we’re going to figure out how we’re going to respond.”
In Other News...
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UConns recruiting footprint in the 2027 class got another look this week when DeMarcus Henry Jr., the Arizona Compass Prep standout, made a visit to Storrs as he works through a rapidly moving process. The rising wing has drawn multiple offers and picked up momentum off a strong stretch of performances across the spring and summer, the kind of rise that has put him firmly on the radar of blueblood programs and made every stop on his tour feel meaningful.
Henrys path is still unfolding, which is what makes the Huskies involvement worth watching. He has already narrowed his options and plans to see the rest of his finalists this fall, so the next few months will tell a lot about where UConn stands in a crowded chase for one of the countrys top young prospects. In the meantime, the staff also stayed busy on the road with Class of 2028 guard Michai White, who picked up a Syracuse offer after the teams visit to Prolific Prep in Florida. [Read more 🡒]
Illinois Just Lost A Major Guard Target Now What For The Backcourt
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The Illini still have options to chase, with King Gibson remaining on their radar after putting Illinois in his top 10 schools. Even so, there is no Champaign visit on his schedule, which leaves the staff to weigh how much more runway it has with top-tier prep guards versus leaning harder into the transfer portal or developing the players already on hand. [Read more 🡒]
UConn Just Got The Early Reality Check Fans Feared
The first home game of the season brought UConn back to earth in a hurry, as Maryland controlled the night from the opening stretches and left the Huskies searching for answers on both sides of the ball. The Terps passing game repeatedly found space against a UConn defense that had little margin for error, turning what had looked like a promising early-season setting into a lopsided 38-14 loss.
Maryland quarterback Malik Washington was the engine behind it all, carving up the secondary with a steady rhythm that never let UConn settle in. And while the defense was being stressed snap after snap, the Huskies offense never found much traction either after the explosiveness it showed in the opener, a reminder that this group still has work to do before it looks like a finished product. [Read more 🡒]