COLLEGE PARK, Md. (AP) — For all of Nebraska’s problems against a fiesty Maryland team, Cornhuskers coach Matt Rhule could take one big positive from another tight victory.
“Our guys are very, very comfortable in the fourth quarter,” he said. “These are all the questions you guys have asked me about — how are we going to get over this thing? — and I said, ‘We’re going to inoculate them by doing it all the time, teach it at a high level.’ I thought we did it pretty well there.”
Dylan Raiola threw a 3-yard touchdown pass to Dane Key with 1:08 remaining, and Nebraska edged Maryland 34-31 on Saturday. Raiola threw for 260 yards, four touchdowns and three interceptions in a wild game in which the Cornhuskers squandered a 10-point lead. But after going 10-35 in its last 45 one-score games entering this season, Nebraska is 2-1 in those situations this year.
“It’s two straight close wins,” said Rhule, whose team closed strong to beat Michigan State by 11 last weekend. “There was a time we were talking about bowl droughts and didn’t win any close games. Well, we’re figuring a lot of that stuff out.”
The Terrapins (4-2, 1-2) led 31-24 in the fourth quarter before Emmett Johnson’s 50-yard run gave Nebraska the ball at the Maryland 10. The shifty running back didn’t get the ball again on that drive, and a delay of game penalty on fourth down forced the Cornhuskers (5-1, 2-1) to settle for a field goal and a four-point deficit.
Nebraska then got the ball back, and Raiola guided his team 81 yards in seven plays for the go-ahead TD. Maryland then drove back near midfield, but freshman Malik Washington was called for a disputed intentional grounding penalty that knocked the Terps back 14 yards.
“Nobody’s going to give us anything,” Terps coach Michael Locksley said. “Anything we get we’re going to take or earn.”
Washington had a receiver open to the left on that play and perhaps would have seen him if he’d had more time. He eventually threw incomplete on fourth-and-4 from the Nebraska 49 to end Maryland’s chances.
Johnson ran for 176 yards for Nebraska.
“It was a relentless game,” he said. “I’m really glad we went through this game, as well, because I know we’re really battle tested as a team and as a program. Going through those relentless games is what we need.”
Dontay Joyner scored on a 67-yard interception return in the third quarter for Maryland, which lost a second straight heartbreaker at home after blowing a 20-point lead against Washington the previous weekend.
Nebraska opened the scoring on a 64-yard catch-and-run by Nyziah Hunter. An offensive pass interference penalty wiped out a touchdown later in the first quarter, and the Cornhuskers settled for a field goal. Then, Nolan Ray ran for a 28-yard touchdown for Maryland, and the Terps cashed in on Raiola’s first interception when Washington found Leon Haughton Jr. for a 21-yard TD.
An 85-yard kick return by Kenneth Williams set up Raiola’s 7-yard touchdown pass to Luke Lindenmeyer, and his 12-yard TD throw to Hunter made it 24-14.
But Raiola was picked off again toward the end of the half, and Maryland managed a field goal before halftime. The Terps took the opening drive of the third and tied the game on a 1-yard scoring run by DeJuan Williams. The interception return by Joyner gave Maryland the lead.
The takeaway
Nebraska: It was a sloppy performance by the Cornhuskers, but their fans will take the win after seeing this type of game go against Nebraska so often in recent years.
Maryland: Washington continues to show promise, and although the Terps came up short again, this loss wasn’t nearly the collapse their previous defeat was.
Quick work
Nebraska’s first three touchdown drives took a total of six plays.
Up next
Nebraska plays at Minnesota on Friday night. Maryland is at UCLA on Saturday.
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By NOAH TRISTER
AP Sports Writer
