COLLEGE PARK — The calendar turning over to October this week also marks a new leaf in Maryland's season. The Terps will host Michigan in their Big Ten Conference opener at what's expected to be a sold-out Byrd Stadium on Saturday night.
The Terps emerged from nonconference play 2-2 with a range of experiences, from the highs of two impressive wins to the lows of a fourth-quarter collapse and a noncompetitive blowout. So now Maryland turns to what's expected to be a grueling Big Ten schedule.
"We take notice of it," outside linebacker Jefferson Ashiru said. "It's our first conference game. It's our conference opener. We're going to come out with excitement. We're going to turn that crank up just a little more every week, especially since it's our first conference game against Michigan."
Maryland's first Big Ten task is not easy. After many questions about what Michigan would look like this season after Jim Harbaugh took over as coach over the winter, the Wolverines are starting to round into form. After dropping its season opener to an impressive Utah team by seven points, Michigan has won its past three games by a combined 94-14, including a 31-0 pasting of then-No. 22 BYU this past weekend.
So with a capacity crowd expected and a "blackout" marketed — the Terps are unveiling new all-black, hand-painted helmets — for the game, which will be televised on the Big Ten Network, the tenor of the season changes.
"It's a little bit different because now you're in a conference, and all the games before counted, but now you're in conference play," coach Randy Edsall said Tuesday. "So what you want to do is be the best you can be in your conference and that starts with a really tough Michigan this week that we have to prepare and deal with."
Maryland regrouped after last weekend's 45-6 loss at West Virginia and expects another tough matchup with Michigan, which entered the Associated Press poll for the first time since late 2013 at No. 22. And the Terps are counting on the first four games to help them through the Big Ten schedule, which also includes matchups at No. 1 Ohio State and No. 2 Michigan State.
Maryland has seen what works, and the Terps have seen what can happen if things go wrong. So they're building forward with hopes of avoiding the same pitfalls that pockmarked the early part of their schedule.
"We experienced winning, and we experienced losing, too," Ashiru said. "We don't want to experience too much losing, know what I'm saying? That's experience in itself right there."
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