Maryland drubs East Carolina before record crowd

The re-branded 2010 Military Bowl presented by Northrop Grumman kicked off on Dec. 29 in front of a bowl-record 38,794 fans at RFK Stadium. The East Carolina Pirates (6-6) and Maryland Terrapins (8-4) squared off in the third-annual bowl, which celebrated its newfound charitable partnership with the USO.

Maryland, spurred by the momentum of a seven-win improvement over the 2009 season, got off to a quick start with a 45-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Danny O’Brien to Kevin Dorsey. After a missed extra point, the teams traded field goals, making it a 9-3 lead for the Terps. Maryland put some more distance between them as D.J. Adams ran in for a 1-yard touchdown just before the half.

Leading 16-3 to start the second half, Maryland added two more 1-yard scoring runs from Adams, with ECU quarterback Dominique Davis completing a 20-yard touchdown pass to Lance Lewis in between. The Pirates added a field goal before Terrapin running back Da’Rel Scott burst for a 61-yard touchdown run to put Maryland ahead 37-13 heading into the fourth quarter.

But Scott wasn’t done. He opened the fourth quarter with a 91-yard touchdown charge — a bowl record — to give the Terps a 44-13 lead. Later, Adams padded the lead with a 4-yard touchdown run. ECU backup quarterback Brad Wornick completed a 14-yard touchdown pass to Justin Jones, but Maryland’s 51-20 lead was too much to overcome.

The win marked Maryland coach Ralph Friedgen’s coaching finale, giving him his fourth-straight bowl win and fifth overall — a Terrapin record. Scott was named MVP on the strength of his two bowl records. In addition to his record-breaking score, Scott rushed for a bowl-best 200 yards.

Bowl Tidbits

• The game marked the first meeting between Maryland and ECU
• Maryland’s 51 points is a bowl record.
• The bowl marked ECU’s unprecedented fifth straight bowl appearance
• ACC Coach of the Year Ralph Friedgen helped Maryland turn around a 2-10 season from 2009, but was not retained for the final year of his contract. The Military Bowl win was Friedgen’s last as a head coach.
• It was Maryland and Friedgen’s fourth-straight bowl win, and Friedgen’s fifth overall (school record).
• The attendance of 38,794 is a bowl record.
• Da’Rel Scott owns two bowl records — one for his 91-yard touchdown run in the fourth quarter and another for his 200 total rushing yards.

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