The question didn’t draw even a hint of hesitation or regret on the face of Mike Riley.

The Oregon State football coach had smiled enthusiastically while discussing his team’s 6-1 season-ending run, a streak that propelled the Beavers to third place in the Pac-10 Conference and made them a candidate for the high-profile Holiday Bowl. Arizona State ended up in the San Diego game after being passed over for a Bowl Championship Series bid, but Riley never lost his grin when asked if Oregon State (8-4) was disappointed to have landed in today’s Emerald Bowl.

“San Francisco is one of the great cities in the world and I’m excited the kids get a chance to be here,” Riley said. “And really, they could put us in any bowl and we’d be happy. It’s one more game for me to coach and one more time the kids get to play together.”

The Beavers’ opponent is a Maryland team that needed a win in its final game of the season just to become bowl-eligible. The Terrapins (6-6) responded with perhaps their best performance of the season in a 37-0 win at North Carolina State. A victory today and an above-.500 record would represent a major accomplishment for a team ravaged by injuries this season. Just three offensive players have started all 12 games for Maryland, but the Terps still managed to beat both No. 8 Boston College and No. 10 Rutgers to become one of just four teams in the nation to defeat two top-10 teams this year.

This story continues below
Advertisement

“There’s no question 7-6 would look a lot better than 6-7 for me, especially considering all the adversity we’ve gone through,” Maryland coach Ralph Friedgen said. “I’d really like to see our players get this game.”

The Terps feature a pair of physical running backs in Keon Lattimore (789 rushing yards, 13 touchdowns) and Lance Ball (763, 12), but Maryland’s success could come down to quarterback Chris Turner’s ability to move the ball through the air. The Oregon State defense, led by linebacker Derrick Doggett, enters the Emerald Bowl allowing an average of 75.0 yards per game on the ground, the second-lowest total in the nation.

Offensively, the Beavers will continue with Lyle Moevao at quarterback after the sophomore led the team to a 3-0 record in relief of injured starter Sean Canfield, who also could see action today. The biggest was a 38-31 overtime victory at rival Oregon in the annual Cival War finale. Running back Yvenson Bernard missed that game with a knee injury, but is expected to start against Maryland. The senior rushed for 1,037 yards and 12 touchdowns this season behind a strong offensive line featuring NFL prospects Kyle DeVan at center and Roy Schuening at right tackle.

melliser@examiner.com