Washington Huskies beat Maryland after improbable fourth-quarter comeback
By Andy YamashitaSeattle Times staff reporter
COLLEGE PARK, Md. — Jedd Fisch didn’t know what he’d find when he walked into his locker room trailing Maryland by 13 points at halftime.
The UW coach knew what he wanted to see from his team. After preaching resiliency and process for the past 10 months, Fisch said he hoped he was entering a locker room that was still confident. That still had some belief despite a poor first-half performance. A group that trusted it was capable of a comeback, despite going six quarters without a touchdown and was 2 for 17 on third downs dating to its loss a week ago against No. 1 Ohio State.
Fisch found exactly what he was hoping for and so much more. Because in the visiting locker room tucked among the rolling green hills of Maryland’s brick-clad campus, Fisch discovered a team that simply didn’t know they were supposed to be beaten.
“This team is young,” Fisch said. “And young guys that don’t experience some of these things before just feel like, ‘Hey, we’re going to go out and win.’ And that’s pretty awesome.”
A ferocious fourth-quarter comeback propelled UW to a 24-20 win against previously unbeaten Maryland on Saturday in front of an announced crowd of 46,185 fans at SECU Stadium. UW reeled off 24 unanswered points to secure its first Big Ten win of 2025, and the program’s first conference road win since joining the Big Ten in 2024.
The Huskies (4-1, 1-1 Big Ten), who trailed 20-0 with four minutes remaining in the third quarter, overcame a deficit of 20 points or more for just the seventh time in program history. It’s the first time UW has achieved the feat since Nov. 28, 2020, when it beat Utah 24-21 despite trailing 21-0, and the first time UW has done it on the road since Oct. 9, 1993 when it beat California 24-23 in Berkeley, Calif., after falling behind 20-0 and 23-3.
“You don’t know how your team’s ever going to respond down 20-0,” Fisch said. “You can’t replicate that. You can’t emulate that. You can’t talk in training camp about what if we’re down 20-0, now let’s go practice. So you have to just see what it’s going to look like. I just saw a team that was very confident.”
For nearly 45 minutes UW’s confidence seemed vastly unearned. The Huskies, and particularly their offense, struggled mightily starting with their first drive. Sophomore quarterback Demond Williams Jr., who finished the game 28-for-41 passing for 275 yards and two touchdowns, threw his first interception of the season during the sixth play of the game after an apparent miscommunication with junior wide receiver Denzel Boston.
Williams’ pass sailed straight into the arms of Maryland safety Jalen Huskey, who returned it 32 yards to UW’s 28-yard line. A personal foul on Williams meant the Terrapins (4-1, 1-1) started their first drive on the 14-yard line, though the Husky defense forced the Terps to settle for a 26-yard field goal by kicker Sean O’Haire.
UW’s offense continued to struggle fruitlessly for the rest of the half. A holding penalty on fifth-year left tackle Maximus McCree — starting his first game of the season in place of injured sixth-year offensive lineman Carver Willis — stalled out its second drive, and an illegal-snap penalty called against junior center Landen Hatchett quashed UW’s third drive.
Even when the Huskies weren’t sustaining self-inflicted wounds, the Terps’ defense frustrated them. UW went 1 for 6 on third downs during the first half after being held to 1 for 11 on third down against Ohio State. It averaged 2.5 yards per rush and went 1 for 3 on fourth down.
Fisch said Maryland used elements of Ohio State’s approach, trying to scheme Boston out of the game. The 6-foot-4, 205-pound receiver, who had three catches for 26 yards against the Buckeyes, registered one catch for 6 yards during the first half against the Terps.
“They gave us some looks we weren’t really prepared for,” said Williams, who noted Maryland’s deployment of cloud coverage, in particular, was impactful early and limited UW’s ability to find Boston for explosive plays down the field.
But the Husky offense gained traction during the third quarter. They gained 105 yards total after only registering 103 during the entire first half and crucially went 2 for 3 on third down, though UW still trailed 20-3 at the end of the quarter. Fisch and Williams said they tried to take advantage of the shorter passes underneath Maryland’s coverage, involving freshman receivers Dezmen Roebuck and Raiden Vines-Bright, along with sophomore tight end Decker DeGraaf, helped draw coverage away from Boston.
Their efforts culminated in an offensive eruption during the fourth quarter. Williams was 10-for-13 passing during the final 15 minutes for 132 yards passing — he had 143 yards passing through the first three quarters combined. The 5-11, 190-pound quarterback threw a 3-yard touchdown to Boston with 14:23 remaining, then connected on a 34-yard touchdown pass to Roebuck, who finished with four catches for 61 yards receiving, to make it 20-17.
“Just taking what the defense is giving us,” Williams said. “Letting my guys run after catch and just getting them the ball in space.”
UW also benefited from penalties committed by the Maryland defense. Freshman edge rusher Sidney Stewart, who entered Saturday ranked seventh nationally with four sacks, was ejected with 10 seconds remaining in the first half after being called for targeting. Boston’s touchdown was set up by an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty against Maryland defensive back Dontay Joyner.
Williams punctuated UW’s fourth-quarter performance with an 80-yard, 11-play drive that included 17-yard and 26-yard completions to Boston, who ended the game with six catches for 71 yards receiving, and was capped by a 1-yard touchdown plunge by senior running back Jonah Coleman, who added 57 yards rushing and 135 all-purpose yards, with 3:21 remaining. It was UW’s first lead of the game, and the first time Maryland has trailed during 2025.
“Our guys just kept believing,” Fisch said. “Kept competing.”
Andy Yamashita: ayamashita@seattletimes .com. Andy Yamashita is a sports reporter at The Seattle Times, primarily covering Washington Huskies football.