COLLEGE PARK -- The evidence can surface, like dusted fingerprints, in ways that are easily seen by the most untrained of eyes. A precisely run pass route and catch, an interception, a well-timed hit. But it's the subtle clues that most often buoy a head coach.

A sack is avoided, resulting in a long gain, because a freshman picks up the blitz and makes a crucial block that gives his quarterback time to release the ball and find an open receiver.

Emerald Bowl Maryland vs. Oregon State, San Francisco, next Friday, 8:30 p.m., ESPN, 105.7 FM, 1300 AM Line: Oregon State by 5