The Terrapins (2-6) had a number of players banged up during the first seven games and last week gave them a chance to heal and gird themselves for the stretch run.

"I really didn't do too much," defensive lineman Travis Ivey. "I just tried to relax. I just tried to slow down a little bit and enjoy the time off."

Maryland coach Ralph Friedgen probably would have enjoyed the time off more if his team had a better record. The Terrapins enter Saturday's game at North Carolina State (3-5) having lost three in a row. Maryland is just 1-3 in the Atlantic Coast Conference and needs to win its last four games just to become bowl-eligible.

That would require Maryland to win twice on the road -- at N.C. State and at Florida State. But the Terrapins haven't won on the road yet this year. Such a run would also mean a victory at home over No. 22 Virginia Tech, which has been ranked as high as No. 4 this season.

That's a daunting prospect for a team that ranks either last or next-to-last in the conference in scoring offense, scoring defense and turnover margin.

"I'm trying to think of anything I can do to get better," Friedgen said yesterday. "We need to get back on track. (Winning) would do a lot of things. That's the major goal right now.'

Friedgen hasn't given up on trying to salvage the season with a late run. In recent weeks, he has hinted that he might consider playing younger players with greater frequency down the stretch to start building for next year. He has used freshmen like running back Caleb Porzel and safety Eric Franklin in recent weeks, but their opportunities came as the result of injuries, rather than Friedgen's desire to look toward next season. In all, seven true freshmen have played at some point this season.

One position where Freidgen might want to get a look at a younger player is quarterback, where sophomore Jamarr Robinson backs up senior starter Chris Turner. Turner will remain entrenched at the position unless an injury takes him out of the lineup, but Friedgen would like to give Robinson some additional snaps to prepare him for next year. Robinson, however, has failed to play consistently in practice, making Friedgen wary of giving him any more than a cameo role in the offense.

"We'd like to get a look at that, we really would," Friedgen said. "But we'd also like to win the football game."

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