Consistently Inconsistent: Being a Maryland Sports Fan

By Eric Yde

Being a University of Maryland sports fan can be one of the craziest fan experiences one can have. One day, they look like one of the best teams in the country; the next day, they're getting blown out by a team in the cellar of the ACC. Two words effectively describe Maryland sports: consistently inconsistent.

The best example of this is the basketball team. A traditionally solid team, they have gone to the NCAA Tournament 22 times, but have been erratic over the last several years.

In 2003, the basketball Terps went 29-4, cutting down the nets for their first NCAA championship. They then fell from NCAA champion to, in 2005, missing the tournament altogether, going 19-13 and losing in the NIT. In that season, the Terps start to become inconsistent. They lost to George Washington early in the season, then beat Duke, a perennial powerhouse, twice, and finished up by losing four of their last five regular season games, three of their losses coming to unranked teams. The Terps then lost their first game of the ACC Tournament to Clemson. The next year, they had an identical record and returned to the NIT, where they lost in the first round to Manhattan. Yes, Manhattan. In 2007, Maryland suddenly became a good team again, beating Michigan State, Duke (twice), and North Carolina and finishing up 25-9. They won their first game of the tournament, against Davidson, before being knocked of in the Round of 32 by Butler. College Park was optomistic for a return to basketball glory, but their excitement was gone after the next season. The Terps went a wildly inconsistent 19-15. After beating Illinois, the Terps lost to Virginia Commonwealth, then, in back-to-back home games, lost to American and Ohio. Seven games later, the Terps stunned North Carolina at Chapel HIll, then lost to Duke at home the next game. Maryland then finished weakly, going 2-5 to end the regular season, losing in the opening round of the ACC tournament, and being eliminated in the second round of the NIT by Syracuse.

By now, Terps fans were calling long-time, sweaty coach Gary Williams to be fired, and last week, fans were almost completely fed up with the Terps after being hammered by Clemson. The Terps had beaten Michigan State and Michigan already this season, but an embarassing home loss to Morgan State demoralized the Terps and their fans. Then, on Saturday, the Terps took on #3 North Carolina at home. Honestly, I did not expect the Terps to win, let alone keep it close with UNC. The Tar Heels led by nine at the half, and, with just over 14 minutes left, was ahead of Maryland by 16. Down 10 with about four minutes left, the Terps launched a fiery comeback, and guard Grevis Vasquez hit a runner with 12 seconds left to force the game into overtime. UNC never lead in overtime, and Maryland shocked everyone with an 88-85 victory, led by Vasquez's triple-double. The crowd at Comcast Center went crazy, storming the court with the screaming players. Williams, after one game, had the support of the fans again. And Maryland looked like a stellar team. Typical Maryland Terrapins.