TEXAS VS. MARYLAND
Series history: Texas leads 3-0. Key players: UT — LB Malik Jefferson, QB Shane Buechele, OT Connor Williams; Maryland — RB Ty Johnson, WR D.J. Moore, DL Jesse Aniebonam WHO HAS THE EDGE
Offense – Texas. New coach Tom Herman has some returning playmakers to work with in Buechele and receivers Armanti Foreman and Dorian Leonard. Running back is a question mark. Will Kyle Porter and Chris Warren step up? But the Horns have several experienced offensive linemen returning, including Williams, a consensus All-American, from a unit that averaged nearly 500 yards per game.
Defense – Texas. The Longhorns defense wasn’t exactly dominating in 2016, surrendering 448.3 yards and 31.5 points per game, but with 10 starters returning, there is reason for optimism. Jefferson supplied 5.5 sacks last season. Aniebonam (nine sacks, 14 tackles for loss) was a force for the Terrapins, but they still gave up 214.8 rushing yards per game.
Special teams – Texas. Punter Michael Dickson was the Longhorns’ first Ray Guy Award finalist after averaging a school-record 47.4 yards per punt. The ’Horns also return kicker Mitchell Becker (27 touchbacks on 71 kickoffs). Terps punter Wade Lees averaged a paltry 39.8 yards per punt in 2016.
Notable: The Terps are scoreless against Texas in their three meetings. The Longhorns won 42-0 in 1978, 26-0 in 1959 and 34-0 in 1960. Maryland indefinitely suspended DBs Markquese Bell and Alex Woods for code of conduct violations.
About Texas: National pundits are high on the Horns, who enter the season No. 23 in the AP and coaches’ polls despite three straight losing seasons, including 5-7 marks the past two years. The opener gives them a chance to start on the right foot. About Maryland: Johnson and returning RB Lorenzo Harrison are explosive backs, averaging 8.2 yards per carry as a tandem But they were feast or famine, along with the rest of the Terps offense, which fared well against lesser defenses but struggled against the better ones. They finished 6-7 after a loss to Boston College in the Quick Lane Bowl.