COLLEGE PARK, Md. — The Maryland Terrapins football team is grappling with a challenging two-week stretch after losing consecutive conference games at home by a combined seven points. Despite the frustration, head coach Mike Locksley remains optimistic about his team's potential.
"We play very clean in games. We don't turn the ball over," Locksley said. "What we gotta do now is figure out how to finish in the fourth quarter, and, you know, for the last two games, it's my job to figure that out, and I think we've gotten to the gist of it."
WATCH: Maryland football faces 4th quarter struggles after back-to-back losses
Saturday's 34-31 loss against the Nebraska Cornhuskers proved particularly difficult for the young team. However, Locksley draws parallels to Maryland's 2020 season, believing the current squad will grow from these recent setbacks.
"That COVID year was kind of the foundational piece which kinda got us over the hump," Locksley said. "We had some tough losses during that time, found a way to win a couple. I think the big thing for us is we just gotta endure."
Locksley emphasized the importance of perseverance during difficult times.
"Endurance is one of the hardest things to do because when everything around you tells you to stop, tells you to, it's not gonna work, it's usually right before you have the breakthrough," Locksley said.
The team has already shifted focus to their upcoming opponent, the UCLA Bruins. UCLA started the season 0-4, fired their head coach, and has since won their previous two games under interim leadership.
"Something about the pressure being off of you when you're an interim head coach, which I've done that twice now," Locksley said. "I call it playing with house money. I mean, you got zero to lose. You can go out, call flea flickers you can call double passes. You can onside kick. You're allowed, you can do whatever you need to because you got nothing to lose."
Despite UCLA's newfound momentum, Locksley remains focused on his team's preparation.
"With that being said, we gotta figure out how to go out west and get our stuff together and make the corrections we need to get us back on that side of winning," Locksley said.
The Terrapins will face UCLA Saturday at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, California. Kickoff is at 7 p.m.
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
