By: Jack Rothenberg
Walking into Yankee Stadium Wednesday afternoon, you could feel the excitement for the game to kickoff. Even prior to that point, fist bumping fellow Maryland fans and getting chirped at by Hokie fans got me amped up to watch the contest. In a famous New York venue, Terp fans couldn’t have asked for a better set up.
As I walked to my seat in the Maryland student section, I saw mostly high energy Virginia Tech fans that were obviously way too enthused for the beatdown that would ensue. When I sat down, which was one of the few times this would happen all day, I simply took in the atmosphere. While Yankee Stadium isn’t meant for football games, the field was in great condition and the stadium played the usual gameday videos for both teams on the big board for the fans which made for a phenomenal experience.
This game, unlike seemingly all others, made life for Terp fans stress free and made the trip to New York worth it. Within the first 5 minutes of gameplay sophomore defensive back Tarheeb Still sent Maryland fans and especially the student section into a frenzy. A 91 yard punt return touchdown set the tone for the day with exciting plays.
Those highlights included sophomore quarterback Taulia Tagovailoa playing one of his best games of the season. Tagovailoa threw for 265 yards and two touchdowns, all with a 83 percent completion percentage setting the stage for his junior campaign. Senior wide receiver Darryl Jones scored two touchdowns, the first two of his career, one coming on a 70 yard play. Senior wide receiver Brian Cobbs and senior tight end Chigoziem Okonkwo flashed their talents both hauling in one-handed catches that left the crowd in awe. All of these led to screaming, jumping and even falling off the bleachers in some cases.
Even though there have been plenty of doubters and unpleasant comments made about the team’s performances throughout the season, none of it seemed to matter anymore. Everyone witnessing what was happening on the field was thrilled with what they saw and how they were feeling. Overjoyed.
Maryland controlled this game from start to finish and the student section was rockin’, unlike the Virginia Tech section that was almost empty by the end of the third quarter. This was the point in the game where I felt comfortable getting up and heading to the concession stands. Here I learned that $14 is enough to get you four chicken tenders and 15 French fries.
In all, the two things that I took away from Yankee Stadium that day was that stadium food, especially in New York, is way overpriced and Terps football may shock a lot of people next season.
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