Maryland Attempts Fake Field Goal; No One Fooled

For a whole host of reasons (Maryland scoring two points in the first half, the first third down conversion of the game coming just before halftime, a seven-yard Temple punt in the fourth quarter, Maryland still not scoring after that, etc.), Maryland-Temple can be safely shelved among the worst, dumbest football games of all time. And still, in a sea of unrefined awfulness, this stunningly bad fake field goal stands out.

At 4th-and-3 on the Temple 16-yard line, and down 2-7, Maryland coach Mike Locksley sent out his field goal unit. But kicker Joseph Petrino faked the attempt, and Locksley had holder Mike Shinsky try running outside for a first down. Unsurprisingly, no one fell for it. (Surely, something went wrong, right? This can’t be something they practiced, can it?) Not obstructed in the least, Temple defenders Harrison Hand and Benny Walls quickly steamrolled Shinsky for a big loss, because god forbid anyone score in this dang game.

(Afterward, Locksley said Petrino had been injured on a previous field goal attempt and wasn’t able to kick. Which is fine! But then, ideally, you draw up a successful fake.)

Maryland entered the weekend ranked for the first time since 2013 and averaging 71 points per game, so it’s at least comforting to see them continuing the school’s proud tradition of deflating hopes precisely when they’re the highest.

On second thought, this may not be the worst fake field goal overseen by former Alabama offensive coordinator Mike Locksley in 2019.