LANDOVER, Md. _ A Maryland football season that seemed to take forever to begin _ after the offensive lineman Jordan McNair's death in June and third-year coach DJ Durkin being placed on administrative leave in August amid allegations of a "toxic" culture surrounding the team _ opened with a game that seemed to take forever to end.
Saturday's game began with a moment of silence to remember McNair, who died of heatstroke at age 19, from the announced crowd of 47,641 _ as well as the Terps honoring him by lining up against No. 23 Texas with only 10 men on their first snap. It was later delayed by nearly 90 minutes in the fourth quarter by lightning that cleared the stands at FedEx Field.
When it finally ended, more than five hours after it began, the Terps hung on for an emotional 34-29 victory over the Longhorns to give interim coach Matt Canada a win in his head coaching debut, thus sweeping the home-and-home series a year after beating them in Austin.
Freshman Jeshaun Jones led Maryland by factoring in on three touchdowns _ one rushing, one receiving and one passing. With the offense unable to give Maryland some breathing room, it was left to the often-maligned defense to secure the game. The Terps (1-0) forced turnovers on Texas' last three possessions _ the last an interception by junior nickel back Antoine Brooks with a little over a minute left _ to secure the win.
Leading 31-29 after the weather delay, the Terps had a chance to make it a two-possession game. After forcing the Longhorns to punt, Maryland used two 15-yard penalties on Texas, a 35-yard pass from redshirt freshman quarterback Kasim Hill to senior receiver Jahrvis Davenport and an 11-yard run by senior Ty Johnson to get to the 2-yard line.
But the drive stalled after both Hill and Johnson were stuffed, and a catch in the corner of the end zone by sophomore tight end Noah Barnes was ruled out of bounds. Maryland had to settle for an 18-yard field goal by freshman Joseph Petrino for a five-point lead. Grad transfer Tre Watson then intercepted a pass from Texas quarterback Sam Ehlinger on the next possession.
The Terps couldn't take advantage of the game's first turnover as the offense went three-and-out. Or the second, when Texas running back Tre Watson's fumble came out before he hit the ground. Again, the Terps went three-and-out, and gave the Longhorns the ball back with 2:43 left.
This time, Brandon Jones returned the punt to the Texas 33 _ with punter Wade Lees helping to make the tackle _ and giving the Longhorns one last hope. But Ehlinger's overthrown pass was pulled down by a flying Brooks with 1:04 left.
However, perhaps the biggest takeaway from the game for Maryland was Jones.
Maryland was trying to figure out how to replace DJ Moore going into the 2018 season. It wasn't just Moore's ability as a pass catcher, but his versatility running and on occasion throwing the ball that made the now Carolina Panthers rookie a special player in College Park.
The Terps might have found Moore's successor pretty quickly.
Jones, who was a three-star recruit out of high school in Fort Myers, Fla., and the last player signed to the 2018 class, accounted for all three Maryland touchdowns in the first half. One was a 28-yard run, the next a 65-yard catch and the third a 20-yard pass to Taivon Jacobs.
The three scores came on the only three touches the 6-foot-2, 190-pound Jones had in the half _ the first three of his college career _ and helped give the Terps a 24-7 lead over the Longhorns. The big lead didn't hold up, as Texas cut its halftime deficit to 24-22.
After the Longhorns took their first lead of the game on a 2-yard run by junior tailback Kyle Porter late in the third quarter, Maryland went back in front on a 17-yard run by sophomore tailback Tayon Fleet-Davis early in the fourth quarter.
The game was then delayed and the crowd was cleared from the stands because of dangerous lightning in the area. The game was delayed at 3:13 p.m. and resumed at 4:40.
Jones became the third player to run, catch and throw a touchdown in the same game in the past six years, following Mississippi State quarterback Dak Prescott in 2014 and TCU quarterback Kenny Hill last season.
After the defense had limited Texas for most of the first quarter _ with the only big play coming on a terrific diving 39-yard catch by redshirt junior Devin Duverney in the end zone _ Maryland seemed to tire in the second quarter.
The Longhorns quickly scored on a six-play, 69-yard drive to cut their deficit to 24-14. A fumble near the goal line by junior Jake Funk resulted in a safety and Texas took advantage of a free kick by Lees that sailed out of bounds.
Starting from their own 50, the Longhorns needed only five plays for Ehlinger to hook up with junior wide receiver Collin Johnson on a 22-yard touchdown with 17 seconds left in the first half.
But Maryland held off the Longhorns to honor their late teammate.
