NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) - Billy Edwards Jr. ran for a touchdown and threw for a score as Maryland routed Auburn 31-13 Saturday at the Music City Bowl and the Terrapins won a program-record third straight bowl.
Maryland (8-5) hadn't even played three consecutive bowls since 2006-08, and the Terrapins with coach Michael Locksley added this victory to their win over Virginia Tech at the Pinstripe Bowl and last year's Duke's Mayo Bowl win over North Carolina State.
The Terrapins hadn't played a Southeastern Conference team in a bowl since routing Tennessee 30-3 in the 2002 Peach Bowl. This game essentially was over before the end of the first quarter, even without Taulia Tagovailoa, the Big Ten's passing leader this season opting out for the NFL draft.
Auburn (6-7) ended coach Hugh Freeze's first season back in the SEC losing three straight. The Tigers also lost a fourth straight bowl and their first in three appearances in this bowl, now sponsored by TransPerfect.
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Maryland dominated from the opening snap, taking a 21-0 lead as the Terrapins outgained Auburn 226-13 within the first 12 minutes. The Terrapins also forced four turnovers, keyed by Glendon Miller's 44-yard pick-6.
Edwards showed off his legs that helped him run for six touchdowns in spot duty during the regular season when Tagovailoa started. Edwards dumped a short pass off to Roman Hemby, and the running back ran for 61 yards. Edwards capped the opening drive with a 2-yard TD run.
The Terrapins got lucky when Octavian Smith Jr. fumbled after a reception with Auburn missing chances to recover the ball before Maryland right tackle Gottlieb Ayedze recovered. Edwards ran for 17 yards on the next play, and he threw a 5-yard TD pass to Preston Howard for a 14-0 lead.
Locksley alternated quarterbacks as promised, and Cameron Edge keyed a 76-yard drive with a 57-yard pass to Kaden Prather before hitting Dylan Wade with a 3-yard TD toss for the 21-0 lead with 3:24 left in the first quarter.
Auburn avoided the shutout late in the first half. Payton Thorne capped a 14-play drive with a 3-yard TD pass to Brandon Frazier with 2:34 left.
True freshman Hank Brown, in his collegiate debut, did his best to make it interesting late. He set up Jeremiah Cobb's 1-yard run in the fourth with a 53-yard pass to Caleb Burton as the Tigers added a late score. Another late drive ended on a turnover on downs at the Maryland 15.
THE TAKEAWAY
Auburn: Freeze had a lot of key Tigers missing, including center Avery Jones, defensive tackle Marcus Harris, cornerbacks Nehemiah Pritchett and DJ James and safety Jaylin Simpson. Harris and Simpson both were AP All-SEC picks, with Simpson leading Auburn with four interceptions, while Harris had a team-high seven sacks. Simpson, Harris, Pritchett and James all plan to enter the NFL draft.
The Tigers also lost four wide receivers to the transfer portal, the biggest Ja'Varrius Johnson.
Maryland: Locksley got a good look at his options to replace Tagovailoa for 2024. The Terps had been averaging 41.5 points per game against non-conference opponents, trailing only Ohio State, Oklahoma, Alabama and LSU. They now have scored 30 or more in 13 of 15 non-conference games under Locksley.
UP NEXT
At least Freeze has the seventh-ranked recruiting class for 2024 as of now and time to prep for Auburn's next game. The Tigers open the season Aug. 31, hosting Alabama A&M.
Maryland opens the 2024 season hosting UConn on Aug. 31.
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AP college football: https://apnews.com/hub/college-football and https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-football-poll
TERESA M. WALKER
Sportswriter covering NFL, NHL, NBA, all of TN
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