Friedgen hedges on QB

Maryland coach Ralph Friedgen won’t name a starting quarterback against Clemson on Saturday until game time, saying the competition between Joel Statham and Jordan Steffy has become too close.

Steffy might gain his first start after relieving Statham in the third quarter of two straight losses. The Terrapins (3-3, 1-2 ACC) have gained fewer than 100 yards in each of their last two games while scoring a total of 10 points, the worst consecutive games over Friedgen’s four seasons.

“I think the competition is getting closer,” Friedgen said yesterday. “I’m still not convinced who the starter will be.”

Maryland must beat Clemson (2-4, 1-3) to retain any realistic chance of a bowl bid because the next three games are against ranked opponents. Friedgen might keep Statham as the starter because of his road experience. Clemson’s Death Valley seats 81,474. However, Steffy’s mobility might prove more useful.

“If I thought [Steffy] could handle it and we could win the game, I would do it in a heartbeat,” Friedgen said of the freshman. “He’s getting close.”

The delayed decision forces both players to be competitive in practice while splitting snaps with the starting offense. Coaches urged Statham to become more aggressive during drills the last two weeks. Statham and Steffy are barred from speaking to the media this week.

“It is a matter of urgency,” Friedgen said. “You have five games left, hopefully six [with a bowl]. Every rep is important. Every drill is important. Everyone is evaluated.”

There won’t be widespread changes on offense. Friedgen backtracked on his postgame comments — claiming his players lacked passion — and said breakdowns were caused by poor fundamentals.

“If I was convinced [the answer was] changing people, I would change people, but I don’t see that right now,” he said.

Friedgen has tried to balance both passers’ needs in recent weeks. He didn’t want to bench Statham for fear the sophomore would lose confidence, but the coach also didn’t want to rush Steffy into the lineup.

“We’re not playing with a lot of confidence right now,” Friedgen said. “It’s amazing what three weeks can do. We had almost 700 yards offense against Duke [on Sept. 25].”

Statham hasn’t thrown an interception in the last two games after having seven in the first four. He didn’t fumble in the 13-3 loss to N.C. State on Saturday after committing 10 in five games. Friedgen worries Statham is tempering his aggressiveness to avoid turnovers.

“I thought I might have done that to him,” Friedgen said, “because I’ve reiterated to him many times what an interception does to me, and if he has any pity on his coach he’ll try not to throw those. I think there’s a fine line with being aggressive and trying to be too perfect. I think there’s a little bit of that [imbalance] in Joel.”

The offensive downfall hasn’t created a locker room riff with the defense. Several defensive players said they don’t worry over who is the starting quarterback and haven’t lost confidence in the offense.

“I don’t see any panic,” safety Ray Custis said, “but I definitely see a desire to get better. A lot of people are discouraged. We all have to learn to persevere. I see the offense doing that right now.”

Note — Offensive tackle Stephon Heyer (sprained knee) is doubtful against Clemson. Defensive end Shawne Merriman (sprained ankle) and running backs Sam Maldonado (bruised shoulder) and Josh Allen (hip pointer) are probable.