The Baltimore Sun from Baltimore, Maryland • Page D1

Sports THE BALTIMORE SUN CLASSIFIEDS Loyola tops Morgan Greyhounds subdue visiting Bears, 78-66, have won past five games in series PG 4 Woods ticketed Golfer pays $164; investigation ends PG 6 Maryland announced Tuesday that it is bringing back football coach Ralph Friedgen for his 10th season at his alma mater. expected to win football games and graduate student he said. BARBARA HADDOCK SUN PHOTO COLLEGE PARK Maryland football coach Ralph Friedgen survived a threat to his job and now faces the formidable task of turning a 2-10 team into a Top 25 program and deciding whether to leave his staff intact for next season. There was more relief than joy as Friedgen, 62, described receiving a phone call at 9a.m. Tuesday from athletic director Debbie Yow, with whom he met Sunday and Monday to discuss his future as the coach and how to move forward.

said to me, you ready to move And I said, I said Friedgen, who arrived at the Gossett Football Team House on Tuesday to begin calling recruits to inform them he is staying. Yow, who was in Indiana with the basketball team, said she met with Friedgen for 3 1 2 during the course of two days. She described the meetings as in- tenseand fairly And Yow said Friedgen assured the university and fans of his commitment to make Maryland a Top25 team again. Her decision to retain Friedgen capped a disastrous season in which the Terps became the first Maryland football team to lose 10 games while ticket and luxury suite sales slumped. contract, which will pay him $4 million over the next two years, became a hot topic around College Park after Yow said she would evaluate him once the season concluded.

Some university system officials said buying him out with public or private dollars as the school faced academic cuts and furloughs was too sensitive in this economy. Some fans said achange was needed, although top officials in the Terrapin Club and Maryland Gridiron Network backed him. Yow said passion to improve the football program played a part in deciding to keep him as head coach and that the economy also had a role. She added that injuries and the youth figured into its record this year. think a winning record in the regular season would be reasonable at this Yow said of her expectations for next year.

we need to hit the budget number that ends up being verything considered, it cannot be ahuge surprise that Ralph Friedgen is still the football coach at the University of Maryland, but this situation have contained more intrigue if athletic director DebbieYow had knocked the windows out of his SUV with a5-iron or gate-crashed a White House dinner. Friedgen is coming back because that is the most logical scenario at this time for all concerned, and when I say all concerned, talking about all the people who were telling Yow that paying somebody $4 million to do nothing the next couple of years while paying a new coach that much again or more going to fly very high in the current economic climate. Imean, who weigh in on this decision? When job security started to become areal issue this year, you had to figure there would be some back-and-forth between Fridge and Yow and some grumbling from the well- heeled alumni who support the athletic programs, but I remember the last time the football coach at a major college was essentially pardoned by the governor. When Gov. Martin put it on the street that he want to see any state money go to a buyout of Friedgen, it seemed pretty obvious which way this thing was going to go.

Suddenly, everybody had an opinion. Maryland Senate President Thomas V. Mike Miller, a Maryland grad and big- time Terps booster, publicly criticized recruiting during the past half-decade, and Tom McMillen acknowledged that the university Board of Regents might have a problem with a multimillion-dollar Friedgen buyout. Terps fans were torn. The nonscientific Internet poll run by The Baltimore Sun the past few days outcome was easy to figure: return game set up by common sense Peter Schmuck PETER.SCHMUCK By Jeff Barker and Don Markus JEFF.BARKER@BALTSUN.COM, DON.MARKUS@BALTSUN.COM See SCHMUCK, page5 See FRIEDGEN, page5 always going to do what I have to do to make the program Ralph Friedgen Maryland football coach back back After 2-10 season, Maryland retains Friedgen as coach BLOOMINGTON, IND.

Maryland coach Gary Williams call Tuesday game here at Assembly Hall a must-win for the Terrapins, but he certainly want to look back on the Big Challenge meeting with the Hoosiers the same way he did on last trip to the Maui Invitational. With a strong finish that quieted a raucous and sometimes expletive-chantingcrowd, Williams and the Terps have to do that. Desperate for a confidence-builder after falling out of the Top 25 with back-to-back losses in Hawaii, Maryland turned its first true road game of the 2009-10 season into an 80-68 victory. Trailing by as many as seven points in the first half, the Terps took the lead by halftime and control in the last 8 1 2 minutes with a game-ending 26-14 run. came back from Hawaii, we just made our made our minds up that got to win each game we step on the court.

We got to win each game as a team; no one individually on this team going to beat a good team like Indiana by sophomore guard Sean Mosley (St. Frances) said. Maryland (5-2) responded with its most balanced effort COLLEGE BASKETBALL MARYLAND 80, INDIANA 68 Maryland guard Greivis Vasquez drives against Maurice Creek. Vasquez scored a game-high 23 points. DARRON PHOTO Terps get in gear, pull away By Don Markus DON.MARKUS@BALTSUN.COM CLASSIC MARYLAND VS.

NO. 3 VILLANOVA Sunday, TV: MASN Radio: 105.7FM, 1300AM See TERPS, page4 When Paul Kruger arrived as the second-round pick from Utah, Terrell Suggs was clearly the leading man, a Pro Bowl linebacker who would sign a $63 million contract making him one of the highest-paid defensive players in NFL history. But Kruger was the diligent understudy despite being inactive for seven of the first 11 games, learning his lines in case he was needed. Radio sports-talk callers and the Internet blogs and message boards clamored for Kruger to make an appearance, especially when Suggs was injured two weeks ago. Kruger stepped into the spotlight Sunday night at Bank Stadium.

He picked off a pass from Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Dennis Dixon and ran it back 26yards, leading to Billy 29-yard field goal and a 2017 Ravens win in overtime against their AFC rivals. Even standing at center stage, Kruger downplayed his rave reviews. was a designed Kruger said of his pick. were coming from the other side. I was the dropper the passing just happened to be at the right place at the right time.

My teammates did a great job getting there. It was a great call, obviously. So it was a number of But teammates seemed to feel he was far too modest in describing his interception, as well as the role he has played in filling in lately for Suggs. was just an unbelievable linebacker Jarret Johnson said. an easy catch.

To get out and make a catch like that shows unbelievable Said middle linebacker Ray Lewis: just get any better than that. You have a young man who is just patiently waiting his turn. Can you replace a Terrell Suggs? No, unless replacing him Linebacker Paul interception set up the decisive field goal in the 20-17 overtime win Sunday over the Steelers. KENNETH K. SUN PHOTO In snaring ball, Kruger seizes moment By Kevin Cowherd KEVIN.COWHERD@BALTSUN.COM RAVENS TV: ESPN, Ch.13 Radio: 97.9 FM, 1090 AM Line: Packers by 3 See KRUGER, page3.