Maryland football has a chance to reset the bar for the rest of the 2024 season when they hit the road this weekend to face Indiana as BTN analysts Jake Butt and Adam Breneman recognize what’s at stake.
“I’m not sure I would’ve circled it at the preseason, but now the way Indiana is playing and with kind of the swagger Maryland is playing with, this is a game that’s got a chance to have a big impact on what the Big Ten looks like in a few weeks,” Breneman said on Wednesday.
“Indiana is playing some really good football right now. And it’s not that surprising – Cignetti told us it was going to happen. In his press conference, he said I win – google me. He’s won everywhere he’s been.”
With a chance to remain undefeated, Curt Cignetti is the only coach in program history to begin his head coaching tenure with a 4-0 record as the Hoosiers have yet to trail for even a minute this season. “The surprise team of the conference to everybody but Curt Cignetti,” Butt added.
While the Hoosiers enter the weekend with one of the nation’s top scoring defenses, Maryland’s offense poses their biggest threat of the season to-date. QB Billy Edwards Jr. ranks among the most efficient quarterbacks in the country with a 75% completion rate, slightly below Indiana QB Kurtis Rourke, while WR Tai Felton sits top ten in receptions, receiving yards, touchdowns and all-purpose yards nationally.
“Statistically that’s the best wide receiver-quarterback duo in the Big Ten. Statistically, those guys are dominating. A lot of offensive firepower,” Butt added.
And with the former Michigan tight end on the call this weekend, Butt pointed to what it could mean for the winning quarterback in this weekend’s game.
“Just quietly – those that know, know. Every year, what you can expect is an explosive offense,” Butt said about Maryland. “They’re a receiver factory. Tai Felton, yes, Kaden Prather, right there. They’re an offensive powerhouse so I just think about there’s the obvious choices of quarterbacks in our conference – Dillon Gabriel, Drew Allar, Will Rogers, Miller Moss. Guys at the top. But the quarterback that wins this, if they continue to play to their standard, because both Billy Edwards [Jr.] and Kurtis Rourke have been playing great. It’ll be impossible to ignore. It’s got huge implications for the conference. Huge implications for the confidence of one of these teams.”
Kickoff is set for noon on BTN.
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