Kill me now. As unsurprising as this loss should have been, what an awful way for it to happen.

God Hates the Terps

Can someone tell the Terps they're screwing up our RPI?

- The American University men's basketball team

The pith that comes out of this one is going to be transcendent.

Being a MD fan living in another state made this game especially intolerable. Is this the same program that won the national championship in 2002? Damn.

"I thought about going to bed somewhere in the boring middle of the second half of the Terps-Clemson game. Then I figured, what the heck, this is the best time of the year for college basketball, you never know what these crazy kids might do, might as well stick around. Etc."

That could have been said by just about any viewer who wasn't a fan of Maryland(although I got bored much earlier and don't sleep). I was talking to somebody during the game about how Maryland would squander the lead with turnovers, bad shots and just dumb/careless play all while laughing at crowd shots. Neither of us expected things to go as badly for Maryland as they did. The crowd shots were great especially when considering the lead Maryland had when the sad faces began. The girl with the stunned/small O-face got a lot of jokes although towel guy jokes were probably better. I was hoping somebody had screen caps.... The best and worst part about it was everybody saw the comeback coming. From a RPI standpoint, I think I wanted MD to win, but this helps Tech's ACC positioning for right now.
I didn't listen to the post-game or the call-in show or visit their Scout board. I knew they would be in full meltdown mode. After the post-game somebody told me Gary Williams was close to tears during his press conference? Is that true? As much as I can enjoy Maryland losing, Williams close to tears is not something I want to hear. What happened and what's going on?

Gary was not remotely close to tears. He said its a loss thats going to stay with him for a long time; a loss that the team could potentially not recover from, but that in the next week he would see what the team is made of and that they have to come back in a positive way.

he also was able to take a step back and realize they're not totally dead yet and said that if they win at Virginia next week they'll be 9-7 and go to the ACC tourney from there.

Listen, I am as frustrated as any Terps fan out there, but there's no need to put down the MD basketball program. I was a freshman in 1989 when Gary came to College Park, and the NCAA cowards decided to try to make an example out of us, instead of turds like Billy Tubbs at Oklahoma. Gary can do no wrong in my book.

I definitely thought that this year's team could have been something special, but Greivis is just way too inconsistent. I love his heart, but he seems so careless at times and impatient. James Gist has had a wonderful career at Maryland, and he will definitely get a look in the NBA, but like Terence Morris, he's just not a leader and has disappeared at the end of games at times, usually leading to a loss. And Boom has not played well since Carolina.

The best thing that I can say about this team is that they play with heart. Sometimes without any brains, but they're trying. And the young guys have gotten spurts of playing time, everyone will be back next season except for Gist and Osby, and there is a great group of freshmen coming in.

Who knows. I was hoping they didn't have to win in Charlottesville when I was looking at the schedule a month ago, but they definitely have to now. And they need to get to the semis of the ACC tourney for sure. It's still possible. Except for that BC/AU/Ohio stretch, our boys have done a good job bouncing back after a devastating loss. I like Sean Singletary, but he can eat one on his Senior Day.

"Gary can do no wrong in my book."

Just typical, so the guy who's the coach and face of the team, can't receive any criticism for anything. You my friend single handley just blamed everything on a bunch of 18-22 year olds, yes they play the game on the court, but you have to have made plenty of mistakes coaching not only in this game but over the past let's say 5 years to get to where we are.

Do you realize that MD, PG for that matter has had the best players in the country for the past 4 years. Heck K-State has only Beasley on their team, and they are not going to fullfill their annual membership to the NIT this year. Man in a few years when the entire U.S. Basketball team is filled with PG/MD stars, they should rename the team from "Team U.S.A" to "Team who Gary Williams couldn't recruit"

Thanks for clearing that up, Terps. I didn't want to believe him on that. If that were the case, I'd be really concerned about the program.

How long have you been a Maryland fan, Gary Decenter?

ROFLMAO
Thanks for all the pics. This is THE BEST way to start a day and a week!

Mildly surprised that the NY-based clowns in College Park didn't riot?!

Probably have run out of couches!

I believe the few instances Gary's recruited 5-star/elite MD prospects, inconsistency and failure were the results.

Now, I'm basing this hypothesis on my memory of:

Holden
Garrison
Gilchrist
Jones

Two of whom (Garrison and Gilchrist), I'm not sure of in terms of recruitment ranking. If that list seems like a short sample size, I either missed a few highly heralded prospects, or Gary Williams' recruiting strategy is a foreign concept.

Unbelievable...the sad part is that, as a Maryland alum, I totally saw this coming. The worst part, aside from the stomach punch, is that this rests solely on our starters and Gary. How Gary can take out the two guys on the hottest streak (Bowie and Burney) is beyond me, and then the starters proceeded to come back in and hand the game over. Any chance we can convince Vasquez to transfer?

Joe Gibbs stat of the year:

Gary Williams teams have blown 17 halftime leads over the past 4 years! How many at Duke/Carolina fellas?

I love it. What an awesome way to start off the week. Times like these are the only ones where I am actually glad the Post and local radio/TV shows and personalities act like Maryland is the only college basketball team that anyone cares about around here, because I get to hear everyone cry all day long about it.

Another great part about this is that it serves Gary Williams right for his snake move getting Gus Gilchrist away from VT. Guy was whispering in his ear after the shootings at VT and then Gilchrist suddenly says "he doesn't feel safe" at VT cuz of those shootings, so he is backing out and going to Maryland to play for Moe Sizlack, the bartender from the Simpsons. Classy!

Roger - Gary has definitely lost it, and the Terps suck -- but what does that have to do with your perception of the Post's not giving enough ink to teams like Tech? Isn't VT in eastern Kentucky -- what do you want a beat reporter in Blacksburg?!

As usual, the Terps losing is bigger news than the Hoyas winning. Maybe after we win the Big East AGAIN and get a two or three seed the media in this town will give us some props.

Actually there is a beat reporter for the Post in Blacksburg.

I was very disappointed there were no bonfires. Maryland fans are leaving the couch burnings to West Va now, I guess.

My friends and I had been calling the shocked student hands over head and mouth poses "The Wolverine" (Appalachian State). Now, unfortunately, it might have to be renamed "The Terrapin"

That was perhaps even worse than the famous Duke collapse of '01 because it was in slow motion.

Come ON!! Up 20 with 10:33 to go, with the student section with you! How could you lose?!?

nobody backs us into a corner like we do.
i really have begun to hate those must-win, we control our own destiny games.

Wake in fBall at Md. last season for all the ACC marbles, for example.

Clemson bBall at Md. last night for the NCAAs.

well, we've got us right where we want us: backs against the wall.

soc
it seems that the only way to

At least no one yelled go back to the ghetto at the Tigers.

Stay Classy, College Park. Never change for anyone.

Hey terpalum93, no actually VT stands for Virginia Tech, which means it's in Virginia, in a town that is 1 billion times nicer than COLLEGE PARK MARYLAND! uuugghh.

Not only should their b-ball team get more pub around here just because of the giant alumni base, it should be getting more pub because they have a chance at the 3rd seed in the conference when everyone picked them to finish no higher than 10th in the league this year with all the freshmen.

I love the lack of respect Maryland, starting with Williams, gives to VT. Makes VT's current ownership of Maryland in the major sports that much better.

The heck with the Terp MEN. The Terp WOMEN'S team is one of the best in the country, a serious threat to win it all. Let the men self-destruct. Time to root for the other, much better, University of Maryland basketball team, the LADY TERPS!

LOL at the notion that Gary was in Gus Gilchrist's ear after the VT shootings. This suggests that Gary was actually doing something in the area of recruiting, and we all know that is simply unpossible.

It was a happy night in N. VA! Nothing better than a brutal Maryland loss shoved down the throats of their Washington Post fan club. Keep up the constant Maryland fawning as your circulation continues to fall!

Roger:

Uh, Gilchrist actually wanted to go to Georgetown first, so your story doesn't make a whole lot of sense.

You're a football school, and your "Who's Who" looks more like a police lineup. Whatever it takes to win!

I'm pretty sure the Post's circulation would only be enhanced by more Maryland coverage. After all, you can get to the University of Maryland using the Metro. Virginia/VT? Not so much.

Roger,

with all due respect, giving pub to a team/school based solely on alumni base is ridiculous. next thing you know there will be a beat report for the Massapequa Post in College Park.

check the map, and then talk. The fact that VT is covered here at all is shocking. How many colleges are the same distances away in other directions?

WVU, lots of alumni here - they are now a "local" team. sames goes for Villanova, Rutgers, St. Johns, Penn State, Pitt, etc...

Just be happy the coverage is here, and don't trash the teams that are actually the local teams.

***PAGING ISLAND 1***

UMD Mens B'ball 0.00% Graduation rate.

That's whatever it takes to Wi....eerr choke a 20 point lead at home in a must win game.

SWEAT GARY SWEAT!

HAHAHAHHAAHHAHAAHAHA

"Roger:

Uh, Gilchrist actually wanted to go to Georgetown first, so your story doesn't make a whole lot of sense.

You're a football school, and your "Who's Who" looks more like a police lineup. Whatever it takes to win!"

Faaaaaaantastic! A "VT is thugs" post. Right on cue and totally pathetic. I love it.

Needs more puke.

Sorry Lindemann, but if the Post continues to put out a so-called Virginia addition, it ought to try to actually contain some sports news that might actually be relevant to Virginians. Instead, because virtually all its reporters/editors live in Maryland, and their kids go to school in Maryland, they feel the need to build up the reputation of the school and they consistently overstate the interest in it. If they were to actually set foot in N. VA sometime, (yes, I know they would need a map), they would see how little interest in the University of Maryland there is. But when your reporters play gold with Gary Williams, consistently downplay his zero graduation rate, and have kids that may one day have to attend Maryland if they can't get into a good school this is what you get. Fandom, not journalism.

Comical really the comments about the Post. Terp fans say they hate the Terps, Hoya and Hokie fan say they hate them. Odd UVA hasnt chimed in yet. I'm sorry, they are above any discussion with Hokies and Terps in it. Just give Clemson credit, is that so hard. They have absorbed some brutal losses themselves this year, so no they are learning how to win. Maybe the Terps will learn how to win these types of games in the future.

Odd UVA hasnt chimed in yet.

HAHAHAHAHA That's the funniest thing I've heard all day.

I love how the Hoyas fans are always complaining about being neglected. Maybe having a real fan base would help. The fact is most Gtown alums dont stay in the area while many more of Maryland's do. Not to disparage either school thats just the way it is.

Now I think its just time to make bets about how long before the Hoyas go down hard in the tourny

Reston: I know plenty of Maryland fans who live in Virginia. As someone who apparently is not a Maryland fan, though, it's not surprising that you don't. If you had gone to a good school, you might realize the fallacy in attempting to argue from your personal experience on this issue.

Lindemann I went to UVA, and by every objective source (i.e., US News, etc,) your school doesn't compare. But feel free to use your personal experience to explain how yours is better.

Oh man that was sooooooo sweet. I wish i had watch the whole game i turned it off when maryland was up 20 dissapointed because maryland would win and make the NCAA's. Then i turn it back on later to see the ultimate collapse. It was a thing of beauty.

"Reston: I know plenty of Maryland fans who live in Virginia."

Hilarious. You used the exact same logic as Reston did...personal experience.

And what Reston was saying is spot on. There is very little interest in UMD in Virginia, but it gets jammed down your throat on local radio, comcast sportsnet, and the Post.

and the crickets are out when someone actually posts something that makes sense. not just hysterics or emotion.

and to the posters that say northern virgina isnt catered to for the post. would you say that philly transplants in pittsburgh should feel slighted because their teams/schools are not covered to the degree that those are in the metro area they CHOSE to live in?

give it break, fellas. VT is NOWHERE NEAR HERE. just be lucky you get coverage at all. and leave it at that.

Roger,
Please stop.
Sincerely,
Every Hokie

PS-Adam Kilgore.
PPS-Still no reason to believe that it was Williams/MD that was in the ear of Gilchrist

How long have I been a fan, well I grew up a Terrapin fan and remember can remember the big win over the Hoyas at the US Air Arena, and then I went to Maryland from 02-06 where I attended every game and sat outside for like 4-9 hours for each one just to be the first in the arena.......and like I said earlier who do I blame for Maryland's problems, Gary Williams. Heck I can even tell you when it happened, it happend when he decided to be more of a selfish bum than a teacher and a mentor. Decenter what are you talking about?

Here some of you are blaming Vasquez and before that Gilchrist. Look John literally won the ACC tourney for us, literally it was him going [crazy] and not only scoring a boat load but also distributed the ball to Jamar Smith. So really, Gilchrist didn't work out for us, at that point did you honestly think that?

So when a guy pulls a Randoplh Childress performance, he should go directly to the NBA and Gilchrist was picked to be a lottery pick. But then what did Gary do? He became selfish, lurred the kid back to school when he should have been told to go to the NBA, and then the criminal part about it is that when things started going down hill, he blamed everything on John ruining his draft status. Thanks, Gary you just single handley sent a kid, earning far less than you, from potentially earning millions to scraping for dollars.

And about Vasquez, does he turn the ball over yes (ask Deron Williams), but at the same time there are times when he carries the team and is on the brink of getting a triple double every other game. How many games has he won for us in his two seasons. Its not his fault Gary can't RECRUIT a player with inside presence to create an in and out effect

First, as someone else pointed out to Roger, it was Georgetown who was in Gus Gilchrist's ear after the shootings. But it became apparent to him soon enough that Greg Monroe was more important than him, so he had to look for someplace else. That's how he ended up at Maryland. Gary has enough trouble showing HS kids love that he's certainly not creative enough to get in the hear of a kid who is already signed with another school.

Second, yeah, that sucked. It wasn't as bad as the Gone in :54 game, but it was plenty awful. The worst part was the inevitibility of it all. There was absolutely no doubt that Oglesby's shot was going to go in...it could have been from halfcourt and it was going to be the same.

I just layed on the floor for half an hour, not moving, watching Kelly Johnson's long neck and listening to that new guy Chris Miller say that MD needs to win the ACCT to get in now, which is absurd. They need to beat UVA and then their first ACCT game to get back to where they were before last night...they need a 2nd win in the ACCT to be in for sure.

I don't know why I'm writing. Horrible horrible loss.

C-L-E-M-S-O-N GOOOOOO TIGERS!!!

Post coverage of sports is normally DC and Maryland-centric on everything from youth/high school up to college and professional events. It has been that way as long as I can remember. Instead of more coverage for local events and the Commonwealth, the Sports section has gotten smaller and even more focus has been on the few in recent years.

Please stop what? Gimme a break dude. Gilchrist NOW ATTENDS Maryland. Somehow I think that's reason to believe it was UMD/Williams in his ear. Call me crazy.

And by the way, I am not asking for like Redskins Insider-type blogs and constant coverage on the Hokies, it's just that the Maryland coverage is over-the-top and out of whack compared to the real interest out there. I am definitely not the only one who thinks that.

And you need to do a little deeper analysis than "duuuuh, Blacksburg is very far from here so the Post shouldn't cover VT, duuuuhhh". Something like 11-13% of my 1999 H.S. graduating class (a FFX Co. school) attended VT. It's that way with the majority of FFX Co. schools.

Didn't want to get into all this, so I'm done. It was just fun to see UMD choke and get exposed as a totally mediocre team again.

Are we really arguing that people in NoVA don't care about the Terps? Arlington, Alexandria, and Fairfax have plenty of Terp alums who moved across the Potomac for many of VAs benefits (lower taxes, arguably a less insane traffic picture, jobs in the Ballston-Rosslyn corridor). There's no shortage of Terps fans showing up at sports bars to watch UMD games, and gee... you can find plenty of Terps gear in malls across NoVA. How can any of you determine there's no interest in UMD hoops? It's not like people walk around with signs attached them saying 'No Care UMD" I suppose it's much easier to just assume the insularity...

Ummmm, yeah, I don't think Georgetown was in Gilchrist's ear after he backed out on VT. He played in the Kenner League, but lets be honest, thats where any decent college player in the area plays during the summer.

Georgetown had a scholarship (and also has one for next year), but decided not to pursue Gilchrist because of the potential appearance of impropriety. Not so much at College Park Community College.

Gary D., while I definitely agree with you that there is a plethora of talent in the DC/MD/VA area, don't you think that if you had the opportunity to get a free ride to college, you would want to get away from home? I certainly would. The admissions department has done Gary no favors, either. I don't remember if it was Carmelo Anthony or DerMarr Johnson (or both) who wanted to play at Maryland but wasn't accepted, even though they met the NCAA requirements. It might have been someone else, but it was definitely someone big.

Yes, the Terps haven't done so well in the postseason lately, but 2004 wasn't THAT long ago. Winning the ACC Tournament was a HUGE thing. Quite frankly, that was enough for me that season. They just ran out of gas, and Gilchrist began to melt down starting in the NCAAs. But I will always remember him as the PG of the 2004 ACC champs. The 2007 team was such a fun team, and they overachieved to get that #4 seed. I thought they could beat Butler, but I wasn't THAT surprised when they lost. As a true fan, I appreciated everything that DJ and Mike Jones did in their careers.

I am a proud Maryland Terrapin, but I can still be objective about things. Did you really think they had a shot to be 9-7 in the ACC at the beginning of the season? I certainly didn't. The preseason polls said the same. Of course, they should theoretically have locked up 3rd place already, but just to be in that position means that they have played better than most people thought.

Yes, I have a bias towards Gary Williams. I was there when the NCAA screwed us. I was there when Jarrod Mustaf and Brian Williams decided to leave the program. I was there when Walt Williams decided to man up and stay. I was at Cole for all of the games that could not be televised. I am not saying you had to be there to be a fan, but if you had been there during those times, you would truly know what Gary Williams has done for this program. It's called loyalty. He would have to have several seasons like UVA's this year for me to start crapping on him and the program. Okay, I would never do that, but I would at least be objective enough to say that it's time for a change.

I have definitely hated this team at times this season, but I will always stay loyal. Bandwagon jumping (on or off) is just not my style.

I guess it's really hard to blow a 20 point lead, playing aginst your own self. But wait a minute, Maryland was actually playing another team. Oh It must have slipped my mine, Maryland was playing Clemson. From reading all the above, I would never have known it. I don't like Clemson either, but give them a little credit, not your typical Clemson team. Typical Md. fans, no class.

roger, its not purely a distance thing. hence the first post discussing the large portion of alumni from other schools in this area. (ie WVU) and a large portion of MD alumni in other areas. (ie Long Island) does that mean that a paper 5 hours away has equal coverage of MD athletics as opposed to their local schools? it would be foolish to demand that. wouldn't you think?

all of those points, not just "duhhh distance" is a valid argument. i guess they dont teach reading comprehension in your beloved fairfax county schools.

"I went to Maryland from 02-06"
That's exactly what I expected.

I understand Maryland fans blaming recruiting to a degree, but player development and cohesion as a team is what I've seen as a greater problem. Maryland fans have expected more ever since an undersized kid, over-looked by most led them to a national championship. The Terps have gotten some great recruits, but that hasn't translated into good teams. Gary hasn't been able to get the kids to understand the importance of the season until too late. Th

Incredulous = hater gtown fan

Roger, you graduated from a Fairfax County high school in 1999? I hope you're just trolling. If not, you're the type of person who gives people from northern Virginia a bad name. When Hoyas, Terps and Hokies can come together in a comment section like this to say you're off, you should know you're off. If you take a small step back you'll realize you aren't far off, but you're missing things a mature high school graduate should see.

There are Maryland alum in Virginia. I wouldn't be surprised if there are more VT grads in Maryland than MD in northern Virginia. Strangely, it seems alumni don't impact Post coverage as much as it could.

I was there to watch them pull one out in W/S last Thursday. I live in a house full of Tar Heel fans and I might as well go and shoot myself. My wife didn't appreciate the bruises she woke up with this morning either. Performances by Burney and Bowiewas pleasant surprise.

sitruc -

I don't know what your problem is, but I am simply saying that the coverage of UMD on the local radio, print media, and TV exceeds the level of interest that there really is in that school's athletic programs. I am calling how I see it and I am absolutely not the only one that feels that way.

People in this very thread agree with me. I don't see where this overwhelming consensus of MD, G-town, and VT people saying I'm way off base is.

you gotta give umd credit - not only do they lose an important game at home, but they do it in the most spectacular fashion after being up 20. hide your couches, its riot time in college park.

When the student section puts their hands on their heads in surrender with a minute left in the game, you know the game is already over.

Definitely the most painful one I've watched since accidentally flipping to a Big 10 game earlier this season.

Gary, has done an incredible job of getting us where we are. But we should be a better team than we are. we should be a better program. The old Gary worshippers remember the days when UMD was middle of the pack but those days are no more. we have the arena, the fan base, the students, and the local talent. Are we going to forever dwell on a good run and a national championship? Gary step down and lets get a coach who doesn't scare recruits, motivates his players to the top of their potential (not just the ones who have limited potential), and understands how to beat a full court press (maybe that speedy Adrian Bowie guy can dribble?). And Gary has a lifetime pass he will need to step down.

Roger,

Just because you're not interested in Maryland sports doesn't mean that the level of interest isn't there. This area is saturated with Maryland alumni, boosters, and fans. The coverage is dictated by the demand. The same goes for Georgetown, George Washington, George Mason, American, Howard, etc.

I play softball in Arlington County, and over 50% of my teammates went to Virginia Tech. Their kids go to VTech. I have tons of friends who went to VTech. They do not expect to read about VTech in the Washington Post. There are huge pockets of WVU, UVA, and Richmond grads in this area. I seriously don't think they all expect to read about their teams in the Washington Post, just because they live here. These schools are all over three hours away from DC.

Should Baltimore schools be covered in the Post? Yes, I think it covers Johns Hopkins and UMBC and such, but once again, Baltimore has plenty of newspapers which are online. Navy in Annapolis? There is definitely coverage of the Naval Academy in the Post. Sure, it would be nice for many DC/MD/VA residents if UVA, WVU, and VTech were all covered, but that just isn't possible and shouldn't be expected, either.

Unfortunately, this will probably mean even more coverage of Maryland in the Post ("How is Gary Doing?" etc.)

Believe it or not, people in Virginia are not interested in Maryland sports. We send our children to UVA, Virginia Tech and George Mason. We certainly don't send them to COllege Park.

It's actually scary that the Post miffs us when Northern Virginia is the wealthiest and fastest growing area of the country. Nice that UVA vs. Miami only got an AP blurb in the Post, and today's UVA-Georgia Tech game isn't even listed in the "On the Air" blurb in the sports section, even though it is indeed being televised. Way to go Post! Remind me to drop my subscription.

Gary Williams can stay as long as he wants, based upon what he's done for the program and the university (I'm a Maryland alum)...but whomever succeeds him had better impose his own culture on men's basketball at College Park, and get rid of the cynical, vulgar "you suck" mentality that's overtaken this fan base (if the message board comments above are indicative). You want an upscale, perennially competitive program, like UNC and Duke? Then ACT that way, dammit.

Yea, I am not trying to say VT should get that much more coverage than they do now. The Post does a better job actually than local TV/radio with paying attetion to the very large fan bases of other area teams.

It's just going to be annoying if (heh when?) VT wins their next two games, finishes 10-6, a very unlikely third place finish in the conference, and my entire commute will be filled with dudes on the radio crying about Maryland's plight. Talk about the up and coming ACC basketball program in Blacksburg with Greenberg at the helm gettig it done with a rack of Freshmen for crying out loud. I guarantee ratings would not dip if they did that. Again, there are tons of VT fans in the region.

Vincent,

Do you think Gary does not embody the "you suck" mentality? How much vulgarity comes out his mouth during a game?

I agree that MD has a generally vulgar fan base (MD alum and current MD grad student) but we are no worse than Oregon (dropping derogatory homosexual language on Kevin Love) or any other school. Maybe it would be better if the alumni that attended the game had a quarter of the enthusiasm as the students. There were times yesterday when we had to BEG the alumni to get off their butts and cheer.

GEORGE MASON doesn't get a ton a coverage either and they're LOCAL.
Ah, that's part of what made 2006's Final Four run extra special: local sports networks (ComCast SportsNet) eschewing the usual Terps-Hoya stories to lead with Mason; even the usual ComCast red-and-black color scheme was temporarily changed Mason Green. Those were the days.
Viva Larranaga!
GO, MASON!

Do I embody the "you suck" mentality? Did I go to UMD during 02-06 when it was at its worst, yes and no. I've been playing basketball since I was like 3, so I like to think of myself a basketball intellect. Am I ever going to be getting into it with a player after he's dropped 40+ or we're losing. Nope, I even cheered and clapped it up for Justin Grey a couple of years ago when we went for 48.

But do I embody the "you suck" mentality, in a way yes. Its a complex that those older will never understand. Its easy to have the "you against the world" mentality when your at the bottom looking up. But when you are coming off a nat'l championship and believe that your program is at the top, you look for other issues, such as Duke and UNC not only being the honor roll kids of the ACC, but also the misconceived notion they are better than us.

Heck how many times have you heard MD being called a school of thugs, or Duke get so much praise for literally litering the floor with a bunch of rich kids that get all the calls. How many times have people already here said that CP is in the dumps. Ok, I agree, but guess what I like CP just the way it is Wawa (R.I.P.) and all, and I respect the diversity that the school has today more then it did in the past and most schools around the nation.

When I tell you "hey you suck" me personally who grew up 10 minutes away from MD, I'm not saying you suck because personally you suck, but instead I'm saying you suck to everything you stand for: from paying off loud mouth strippers, to looking down upon minorities, to beleiving that a state college can't produce the youngest and brightest.

Yes Duke, and all of Tabacoo road, I'm talking directly to you. And to the old fans of MD who don't believe in what I'm saying and instead would like to call us a bunch of foul mouth punks, I'll try to cover my ears the next time I here you complaining about how the GPA and SAT standards at MD have become too high. So please choose to leave the arenas early while the Terps are getting throttled or choose not to cheer at big time games or show at games that aren't even on TV, but don't put down our current student body.

Ann,

You couldn't send your children to Maryland even if you didn't turn your elitist nose up to College Park. I would agree that UVA and VT are better overall schools, but Maryland has come a long way since I was there in the early '90s. I graduated from a local private high school in 1989 with a 3.84 GPA, 1450 SATs, and I played varsity tennis and football. I got into Johns Hopkins, Georgetown, Maryland, and UVA. I am not so sure I would get into all of those schools right now, maybe not even College Park. It is quite competitive nowadays.

Even when I was there, several engineering and business-related majors were well regarded. Now, there are many more science, math, economics, and theater/arts majors that are ranked by US News & World Report. There's no need to bad-mouth College Park academics, because it is no longer true.

Once again, everyone in Arlington County and Fairfax County could go to UVA, VTech, Mason, and Richmond, but the only school among those that should be covered regularly by Washington, DC newspapers is George Mason. How many UVA/VT fans are there in the DC area who are not directly affiliated with those schools (alumni or parents of alums)? Roger? Any thoughts? There are many, many people who live in the DC area who are fans of Georgetown and Maryland, even though they didn't go there, because they are the local college teams that have a history of success in basketball (and football for Maryland).

I am sure there was a fan base created for VT when Michael Vick was there, but that was even on a national level. His teams were certainly exciting to watch. And Mason when they had their Final Four run. That was exciting for this area as well, and they definitely got lots of press, and continue to get press, because Larranaga is a heck of a coach.

Ann,

Also, definitely don't go by the Post's On the Air section. It stinks. There have been times when I couldn't even find out what TV station was airing the Maryland game (the horror!). And yes, you should cancel your subscription.

I'm a redskins fan, so this was pretty old hat to me.

I mean, I already broke a bunch of stuff in my apartment during that Giants collapse at home this year, so I didn't feel the need to do it again after getting home from Comcast.

Dan Steinberg wrote:

I thought about going to bed somewhere in the boring middle of the second half of the Terps-Clemson game. Then I figured, what the heck, this is the best time of the year for college basketball, you never know what these crazy kids might do, might as well stick around. Etc.

---

Don, pay no attention to the juvenile posters on TerpTown. Ccsully and his pal HVac/terps286 are a bunch of nobodies, going nowhere fast. They don't appreciate what Gary has done for the program? Do you see my successful sons complaining on a message board. FredTerp.

1. Kudos to Clemson for the win.

2. I would agree that generally UVA -- not VT -- has more better-ranked academic programs than UM (though UM is a top-20 national public, also)

3. Roger can gain support for his argument that his school, while no closer than many other 'big time' national programs, deserves more ink, when

VT is ranked #1 in ANY SPORT at ANY TIME.

Tech = no national championships. Ever.

UM is arguably a better overall academic university than VT, and definitely has a better engineering school than VT (which VT is primarily known for).

UM has 20 national championships. That is 20 more national championships than VT.

UM has more national championships, and conference championships, in football than VT does.

Just saying. Yes lately the scales have been tipped in favor of VT for W's and L's. There is no disputing this. However, it's not like our athletic programs are dog chow, either.

^^ thus, I feel any and all coverage of Maryland sports is completely warranted, considering the number of Maryland alums in the greater Washington DC area (which includes NoVa).

Terpalum93, is UM an official thing. Is it wrong to say or type UMD like it is to say Va Tech? I've always thought Miami or Michigan before Maryland.
Roger, I agree "that the coverage of UMD on the local radio, print media, and TV exceeds the level of interest that there really is in that school's athletic programs." It was the presentation of your arguments and a couple somewhat reckless statements that I didn't agree with.
I commented on this in some other comment section a while ago, but years ago local media was all about Georgetown when it came to basketball. I don't even remember the college football season. Then there was a little excitement from the DC area. When Maryland began having a lot of success, the media hitched their ride to the Terps. I'm not sure what interest it serves, but coverage of the Commonwealth and other "locals" has always been lacking. It was laughable that some outlets followed Mason just waiting for their next run.

The On the Air feature of the Post Sports section is appalling, omissions and mistakes are too numerous to mention.

terpie -- while no one trusts the rankings as anything more than they are, UM(D) is ranked higher amongst national research universities, and national publics than Tech

Sitruc - No idea if UM is official. Went to Maryland for by bachelor's, and UM is shorter than UMD. One of my law school pals went to Ann Arbor -- don't know if I add the "d" when I correspond with him retarding UMaryland, and surely don't type "UMI" when I'm writing him about UMichigan.

Clemson fans know exactly how you guys feel. We have had our guts ripped by ACC foes so many times. It is so nice to be on the other side. Maryland had us beat. The big guys were killing us when the ball got down to them. Our guys showed a lot of heart, they never quit. Maryland gave a little bit of an opening and we were able to take advantage. I couldn't be more proud of our guys. They closed the deal on a really good ball club that was playing really well for most of the game.

Thanks for the rankings clarifications, terpie and terpalum. My Maryland CS degree looks better and better. I always thought VT was a higher rated school. I now have more ammo when I hang out with my VT friends. :-)

that was epic wtf... If only Dave Neal made his 3 ball...

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