After Maryland upended Wake Forest last month, I cobbled together an "Optimal Turner" chart to illustrate how much better Chris Turner plays against ranked teams than unranked opponents.

He still hasn't tossed an interception against a ranked team in his career, which remains pretty amazing.

The Terps also haven't lost to a ranked opponent when he plays.

For the purposes of wins and losses, Turner gets credited in this chart with the Rutgers game last year. That, of course, was the outing that thrust him into the lineup --- and, aside from a tumultuous fortnight in August, he hasn't relinquished his spot since.

Turner wasn't at his best in the middle of yesterday's game, at one point throwing six straight incompletions. But his three third-down strikes on the winning drive made a significant difference --- and kept him and the Terps perfect against ranked teams since late last September.

--- Patrick Stevens

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