UConn’s first brush with Big Ten size and speed in the Jason Candle era ended the way a lot of lopsided Saturdays do: with the Huskies chasing the game, then getting worn down, then watching Maryland pull away to a 38-14 win at Rentschler Field.
The scoreboard told the story well enough, but the numbers behind it were even starker. Maryland piled up 475 total yards and controlled the game after the opening stretch, while UConn finished with 223. Sophomore quarterback Malik Washington was the engine for the Terps, stringing together 18 straight completions starting late in the first half and finishing 34 of 41 for 347 yards and two touchdowns.
UConn did find some early rhythm. The Huskies pinned Maryland at its own 10-yard line with a punt, forced a quick 3-and-out on the next possession and cashed in on the short field. It took only three plays for Kalieb Osborne to loft a ball to JD Willoughby, who beat his man on a deep post and walked into the end zone from 32 yards out.
That lead didn’t last long. On UConn’s next defensive series, the Huskies were on the verge of forcing a third straight punt to open the game before Washington hit Na’eem Abdul-Rahim Gladding over the middle on third-and-8. Gladding turned it into a 60-yard touchdown, and Maryland was off and running.
Osborne finished 10 of 21 for 156 yards and two touchdowns while adding 13 carries for 30 yards, but the offense never found much consistency after that opening burst. Maryland’s pressure led to a strip sack late in the first quarter, Osborne’s second turnover of the season, though the defense bailed him out by forcing a turnover on downs.
The next time the Terps got the ball, though, penalties helped them move the chains. A pair of pass interference calls pushed Maryland downfield on a drive that ended with Harry Dalton III scoring from the 4.
By halftime, UConn had already been pushed into a tough spot. The Huskies were flagged eight times in the game, five of those on defense, and Maryland outgained them 158-30 in the second quarter alone. Still, UConn’s defense held at the goal line before the break and forced Maryland to settle for a short field goal, leaving the Terps up 17-7 at the half.
“I was big issue for us. When you’re gonna pressure the quarterback, you’ve gotta get to him.”
The second half brought more of the same. UConn opened with a three-and-out, Maryland answered with a 10-play, 71-yard drive, and Iverson Howard finished it with a 1-yard rushing touchdown. Washington stayed sharp throughout, throwing just one incomplete pass after halftime.
“They made some really tough catches at really critical times, pivotal times throughout the course of the game. And when you play man coverage damn near the whole game like we do, you’re gonna have some of those things where they’re 50/50 balls and credit their quarterback and their kids for making some plays on the football in some tough moments,” Candle said.
Shamar Porter briefly gave UConn a spark after four straight empty possessions. The third-year Husky ripped off a 20-yard gain to cross midfield, then got loose again two plays later and dove for the pylon on a 39-yard touchdown that cut the deficit to 14.
Maryland answered again, this time with Dalton’s second rushing touchdown of the afternoon, and the Terps finished the job in the fourth quarter when Washington completed his 17th straight pass, a 13-yard touchdown to Chris Durr Jr.
Candle didn’t sound interested in letting the loss linger.
“My biggest worry coming out of Week One was there wasn’t any adverse moments in our first football game. This team is a whole different animal.
We were gonna have to toe the line and play a Big Ten football team,” Candle said. “We got hit in the mouth today.
So we’re gonna have to bounce back. As I just told (the team), ‘Nobody’s coming to save us.’
And if you’re a real competitor, you don’t want anybody to come save you. You want to get better, you want to improve, you want to learn from today.
You want to be able to address the tape and fix it, and that’s what we’re going to do.”
He closed with a reminder that the season is still young.
“For me, it’s Week Two, we’ve got a long way to go. This certainly isn’t going to define us. We’ve got to see this as an opportunity to grow and continue to get better,” Candle said.
In Other News...
Tar Heels Face A Huge Recruiting Test In Crowded 2027 Battle
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
Illinois had been working to keep its footing with five-star guard target NaVorro Bowman Jr., but the 2027 pursuit ended when he committed to UConn. For a program trying to map out its future backcourt, losing that kind of high-end target before the class even takes shape is a sharp reminder of how quickly recruiting boards can change.
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 🡒]