Duke @ Maryland preview

Duke at Maryland

Last Meeting ( Oct 24, 2009 ) Maryland 13, Duke 17

Maryland's big-play offense has to be eagerly awaiting the arrival of Duke for its ACC opener on Saturday.

The Terrapins, who had four scoring plays of more than 50 yards a week ago, will test a Duke defense that has allowed 44.5 points a game.

Duke (1-3, 0-1 ACC) has lost three in a row, stumbling badly last week in a 35-21 loss to Army in which the Blue Devils committed five turnovers that led to 28 points.

Maryland (3-1) rebounded from a loss to West Virginia by drubbing Florida International University 42-28 last week.

Duke's offense relies on the arm of Sean Renfree, who is averaging 278.2 passing yards a game and has completed 93 of 150 with nine touchdowns. But he has thrown seven interceptions, including three against Army, which picked off two of his first five attempts.

Renfree’s top receiver is Conner Vernon, who has 28 catches for 449 yards and three touchdowns. He leads ACC receivers in yards per game (112.2) and catches per game (7.0).

Still, Duke's running game has improved dramatically from last year when it averaged just 63.5 yards a game. The Blue Devils are averaging 144.5 yards on the ground through four games, getting 4.3 yards a carry. Desmond Scott has 277 yards on 42 carries.

Maryland freshman quarterback Danny O'Brien completed 18 of 27 for 250 yards and two touchdowns without an interception in his first career start last week. He was subbing for injured Jamarr Robinson, who could return from a shoulder injury this week. O'Brien was named ACC rookie of the week. Torrey Smith had a 68-yard touchdown catch and leads the ACC with five touchdown receptions.

The game sets up an intriguing red zone matchup. Maryland has allowed 377.8 yards a game but ranks 40th nationally in scoring defense, allowing just 19.0 points per game. The Terps have the best red zone defense in the ACC, stopping their opponents from scoring on eight of 18 trips inside the 20.

Duke's offense has been exceptional in the red zone, scoring on all 13 of its visits inside the 20, including nine touchdowns.

Duke and Maryland are at opposite extremes in turnover differential. The Terrapins are 10th in the nation with plus-1.5 a game, while the Blue Devils are tied for 100th with minus-1.0.

The Terrapins have come out ahead in takeaways in all four games and haven't given up a point after any of their four turnovers. Meanwhile, they've scored 31 points off opponents' turnovers.

Maryland's Tony Logan leads the nation with an average of 25.2 yards per punt return, thanks largely to his 85-yard touchdown against FIU. He also had returns of 68 yards against Morgan State and 57 yards against Navy.

Duke beat visiting Maryland 17-13 last year, but the Terps lead the series 30-19 and have won nine of the last 11 meetings.