Maryland Terrapins 2017

Fridge? It's been too long - how the hell are ya?

 

Wow! Tough standard... Weren't they an undefeated #1 team in the country who had a #1 seed who lost a 4-1 lead because of a fluke a 30+ MPH wind that wind blew a couple goals in

 

Hmmm, this is interesting. Quick: how many teams do you remember who were #1 at the end of the regullar season? I sure don't and the fact is nobody really cares. It is NT's and Final Fours that are remembered. Being #1 at the end of the regular season and then losing your first NCAA Tournament game is remembered as a failure -- if it is remembered at all. Secondly, If Maryland was still in the ACC they would not have set the school record for regular season performance.

As for the Providence game, can I assume that it was 30 mph winds in front of the Maryland goal and calm conditions at the other side of the field? The Providence goalie did not have to face the same conditions? The two teams did not switch sides at halftime? All of Maryland's goals were earned and the Providence goals were flukes? It was just dumb luck that they overcame a three goal deficit?

Maryland fans sound just so entitled these days. Their team cannot fail even if their last NT was eight years ago. Sorry, but when you have a three goal lead at the 70 minute mark on your home field you are supposed to win the game regardless of who is your opposition.

But...hope springs eternal, its springtime, next season is around the corner, the KoolAid will flow, the fantasy will continte......

 

Nice try but you forgot the most obvious factor. Why do you even allow another team that much possession in your own defensive third with twenty minutes left? One would think Maryland's midfield would control the game by killing it. Windy conditions? Fine. Keep it on the ground and have it around, go forward when you can, be patient. This was just a loss of composure.

In any case, this thread is about next season. It will be an entirely different defense and goalie. One can always hope for better next time but they've got work to do.

 

I was at the Maryland vs. (divine) Providence game last season. Very odd weather conditions -- ones I really had never experienced before at a soccer game or anywhere else for that matter despite attending soccer games for over five decades, and attending outdoors for almost six decades (perhaps a global warming effect? naa, doesn't exist! ) The wind was a factor the entire game, but it became much stronger and more wild in the second half, when it was blowing like crazy, and blowing most of the time from behind the Friars as they went forward. Here are all the Providence goals:



Of course, no excuses. And I don't recall any MD coaches, players, or fans actually making any of those.

Soccer is a tough game, with so many close outcomes. That is why I always have thought winning a conference's regular season schedule, where you play every team over more games, should count for more that winning the tournament at end of the year.

Along the same lines, for example, in the UK and all other major pro leagues (except the MLS, I guess), winning the league champions is considered a bigger deal that winning the FA Cup or whatever national cup, as it is more a measure of that team as a whole given the performance over a season against every team, than winning in a tournament / playoff format against some teams picked by a draw. Of course, the NCAA obviously can only select a national championship on the field via a tournament given the 200 plus D1 teams in the NCAA field.

 

Congrats to Terps GK grad Cody on this big B1G award ... http://www.umterps.com/ViewArticle.dbml?DB_OEM_ID=29700&ATCLID=211588353

 

Sorry, I was @College Park too and I did not notice any change in conditions during the game. It certainly didn't become "much stronger". Now that Maryland is in the B1G one would think they would be used to the strong wind conditions in the Midwest. 30 mph winds? At Northwestern in Chicago they call that Wednesday. Yes the Maryland people are not making excuses, even when their fans keep trying to.

 

This is a tremendous line. Bravo.

 

Interesting article about Eryk Williamson in the campus newspaper, The Diamondback:

http://www.dbknews.com/2017/05/11/eryk-williamson-maryland-usa-soccer-concacaf/

The comments from Tab Ramos have me wondering how long he is going to be around College Park. Williamson's comments at the end are more hopeful for Maryland fans.

 

Winds gusting to 40 mph on the day of the Terps vs. Friars according to the link below.
https://www.wunderground.com/histor...statename=&reqdb.zip=&reqdb.magic=&reqdb.wmo=

And this re "Wednesday" at Northwestern:
"According to the National Climatic Data Center's list of annual average wind speeds, the windiest U.S. city is Dodge City, Kansas, with an average speed of 13.9 mph. Other windy cities include Amarillo, Texas (13.5 mph) and Rochester, Minn. (13.1 mph.). The windiest "big" cities are New York City (LaGuardia Airport) and Oklahoma City, which both have an average annual wind speed of 12.2 mph. The "windy city" of Chicago isn't as high on the list as you might think. It's average annual wind speed is 10.3 mph."

And this is a video of me at the game last year:

 

Hang tight to your wig, as was saying my beloved old grand-mother

 

Go back to the game thread, no one was making excuses. You're the only one that wants to keep restarting an argument that never existed. In fact, the discussion overall for the season was far more negative than anyone would expect for a team that was undefeated in the regular season.

 

Sure. Your colleague the meteorologist said above:
"The wind was a factor the entire game, but it became much stronger and more wild in the second half, when it was blowing like crazy, and blowing most of the time from behind the Friars as they went forward."

So we are supposed to believe that there was a significant difference in weather conditions from one half to another and it had an effect on the game. You guys keep saying nobody is making any excuses and then you make excuses. Whenever you sort it out please let the rest of us know.

 

In that same post you quote me from, I also said the following: "Of course, no excuses. And I don't recall any MD coaches, players, or fans actually making any of those."

Funny how you left that out.

I stand by my recollection of the weather and how it changed at the game. And are you claiming that the weather never changes significantly -- even from one minute to the next? Nonsense.

But I'll say it again, as I did before, just so you don't ignore it again. There are / were no excuses for Maryland's loss.

 

Oh there you go again. You still insist that the weather changed during the game and to Providence's advantage, and then you say no excuses and nobody in the Maryland crowd made any excuses blah blah blah. You can't keep having it both ways.

I also note that in your so very diligent research of the weather in College Park that day you were not able to prove there was a significant change in wind speed and wind gusts during the period the game was underway. If anyone actually cares to look at it, here is the link you posted:

https://www.wunderground.com/histor...statename=&reqdb.zip=&reqdb.magic=&reqdb.wmo=

Note that game time was 5pm. The wind was listed as from the West through the entire game and the speed variance stayed within the same parameters of 11.5 to 15.0 mph through the two hour period of 5-7pm. In other words, no significant change in the wind; Air temp from 31.2 to 27.1 degrees. No significant change in the weather albeit it generally feels colder the longer you have to stand in it.

 

Saying there was no excuse for the Terps' loss is just that - no excuse. I've said that every time I've posted on this game.

To discuss what I recall about the weather and it impact on this or any game is not to make excuses for a team winning or losing. It is to discuss what you recall about the weather, and that only -- just like someone can discuss the calls a ref makes without that also thus immediately meaning that then you are also claiming that the calls the ref made gave the game away to another team. (E.g., here is Roy Keane acknowledging Henry handed a ball before he scored a goal that contributed to Ireland not making the World Cup. But then Keane also said that was no excuse for Ireland losing this game. )

An excuse would be saying "the Terps lost this game because of the weather." I never said anything like that, and I don't believe it. The Terps lost because Providence beat them.

 

OK, here is what you did say earlier in the thread:
"The wind was a factor the entire game, but it became much stronger and more wild in the second half, when it was blowing like crazy, and blowing most of the time from behind the Friars as they went forward."

That sounds like an excuse to me, however, if you believe in your heart of hearts that it is not, then good for you. Your last sentence is spot-on right: "The Terps lost because Providence beat them." That is important to remember for those who think the only reason why Maryland ever loses is because of 1) bad luck, 2) bad officiating, 3) bad weather, 4) guys who left early for the pros, etc. etc. Guarantee you that if Williamson leaves for the pros over the summer you will hear that last one incessantly. As if Stanford, UNC, Wake, Georgetown and other schools never lose anybody to the pros either. I see where Sandon Mibut has a thread going with a running list of who is leaving early. It is starting to remind me of college basketball.

 

That's going to be such a weird flow to the season. Five home games in basically two weeks, then one in a month. Only one conference game the last couple weeks seems unusual too. I haven't looked at the football schedule recently, but I'm sure at least the early season Friday games will be nice lead-ins to a busy sports weekend on campus.

 

OK, I generally agree with this, but you simply cannot rule out another run in the tournament by Maryland. If they still have guys like Wild and Williamson in the program they have what boxing fans call "a heavy weight's chance". The overall talent isn't quite what it used to be and neither are the results but they still have guys that can change a game in a flash. They have been disappointing but are still dangerous. I agree that a lot of excuses have been made around College Park and it does get nauseating. That said, as you pointed out earlier, the crowds are still showing up and that is important.

What I am trying to track down is what has happened to the plans to refurbish and expand Ludwig Field, which badly needs the expansion. The original plan was that this was supposed to be part of the Cole Field House renovation that will also include building a sports medicine research institute. There have been a number of recent articles on the progress being made on Cole, but with no word at all about Ludwig. Knowing how tight the money is in the state budget, have they delayed it? Or is the press just not covering it? Whenever it does happen it should be a boost to the program.

 

So if the Terps don't make the College Cup this year, the (non redshirt) seniors will be the first class at Maryland not to play in a College Cup since the freshmen who arrived in 1994 (Sasho's second season at College Park).

The class that arrived in 95 made it in 98, as did the three classes that followed. The class that arrived in 99, 00 and 01 made it in 02. The Terps then made in 03, 04, 05 and 08. The class that arrived in 09 made in 12 and last year's seniors made it in 13.

(There is one senior on this roster who already made a Final Four but Jake Roshansky did it when he won a national title at Virginia in 2014.)

So, no pressure, kids.

 

Ironically enough, the team that got closest for this year's seniors (losing in penalties in the quarterfinals) was the worst team they've been on to date. Knockout tournaments can be a crazy thing.

 

They only look crazy. Stanford has been the best program in the country the past two years, has eight starters returning this year and per College Soccer News has the best recruiting class in the country, assuming you believe recruiting rankings. Somebody pointed out that Virginia is the other school that has won it twice since the last time Maryland won it. Yeah, the tournament may look crazy but quality wins out in the end.

 

While it's been almost a decade since Maryland last won a national title, the program has been to the College Cup twice since the last championship. In that time, only North Carolina (4), Virginia (3) and Akron (3) have been to the College Cup more than Maryland. So it's not like the program isn't still a strong national contender.

Here are the CC teams since Maryland's last title.

2009 - Virginia, Akron, Wake Forest, North Carolina
2010 - Akron, Louisville, Michigan, North Carolina
2011 - North Carolina, Charlotte, UCLA, Creighton
2012 - Indiana, Georgetown, Creighton, Maryland
2013 - Notre Dame, Maryland, New Mexico, Virginia
2014 - Virginia, UCLA, UMBC, Providence
2015 - Stanford, Clemson, Akron, Syracuse
2016 - Stanford, Wake Forest, North Carolina, Denver

North Carolina - 09, 10, 11, 16
Virginia - 09, 13, 14
Akron - 09, 10, 15
Stanford - 15, 16
Wake Forest - 09, 16
Creighton - 11, 12
UCLA - 11, 14
Maryland - 12, 13
-
Louisville (10), Michigan (10), Charlotte (11), Indiana (12), Georgetown (12), Notre Dame (13), New Mexico (13), UMBC (14), Providence (14), Clemson (15), Syracuse (15), Denver (16)

That said, I do think the program has been hurt by not being in the ACC any longer. Not a lot, but just enough. Only two Big Ten programs (Michigan in 10 and Indiana in 12) have made the College Cup during the span in question.

Meanwhile, the Pac-12 has had 4 CC teams, the Big East and MAC 3 and the ACC 13.

 

The move to the B1G has hurt Maryland in a number of ways. You simply cannot compare the rivalries they had in the ACC to what they have now. Plus, you can't sell the B1G to recruits they way he could sell the ACC. The competition at the top half of the league is decent but from top to bottom of the league tables it isn't even close. I will give him credit for still getting the fans to show up but it just ain't the same as before. This has hurt Maryland in other sports: lacrosse, baseball, etc and they depend on basketball for revenue to an absurd degree. But then, the move to the B1G was about football and $$$ by way of BTN television revenue, nothing more.

The fact is that college soccer is just more competitive than in the past. Back in the 80's, before Cirovski got to Maryland, the the NCAA Tournament was 16 teams, then expanded to 24. There weren't more than 7-8 teams that had a reasonable chance of winning a title. The usual suspects were UVA, Rutgers, UCLA, Indiana, sometimes UConn, sometimes other schools making a cameo appearance, but that was all. From then to now the NCAA has allowed the same 9.9 scholarships per year, however, the great American youth soccer boom has continued to grow the sport. Maybe not booming as fast as in the 80's and 90's but still growing. Plus, there are now over 200 D1 schools playing the sport. More talent spread around among more schools than ever before.

We've talked about this before: think five years ago. Were we discussing Georgetown or UMBC? Were we talking about Providence? Keith Tabatznik told me that when he coached the Hoyas he never had more than 2.5 scholarships at a time -- and he made it to the tournament fairly often. Now Weise has the full fleet of ships and look how they have done. The challenge is just getting harder and the trends are not in Maryland's direction. As long as Cirovski is there, they will get enough talent to be competitive. However, he isn't a kid any more and there are plenty of younger ambitious coaches out there building programs, or in the case of Stanford, Wake, etc. have already built. Yes, Maryland is still very good, maybe still top 10. But five years ago we were talking like Maryland is THE program in the country. Sorry, it isn't the case anymore.