The Penn State versus Maryland football game this past Saturday created a lot of frustration in the hearts of many Penn State fans. This frustration was partially due to the horrible display of play calling exhibited by the Nittany Lions, but mostly because of the terrible lack of sportsmanship displayed by the players and coaching staff of the Terrapins. I personally didn’t even know about the pregame troubles until after the game when I checked Twitter and saw the countless Vines of the fight that occurred before team introductions, as well as the Penn State’s captains being denied a handshake by their counterparts following the coin flip. I mean, come on Maryland. You’re almost as bad as Rutgers.

The main contextual factors that contributed to the rhetoric inherent in Maryland’s pregame actions were the rumors that Penn State players had been heard saying that Maryland didn’t belong in the Big Ten. Whether or not these rumors are true remains uncertain, however this didn’t stop Maryland’s players from feeling that they needed to prove something coming into Saturday’s game. Prior to team introductions, Maryland players seized the kairos of the game and initiated a “scuffle” between the two teams. The Maryland captains compounded this when they refused to shake hands with the Penn State captains and just kind of stood there like a bunch of idiots. This show of blatant disrespect helped set the bitter tone that, following the game and media reaction, has now come to define Maryland’s ethos in their new “rivalry” (Notice the series record).

Another rhetorical factor seen last Saturday at Beaver Stadium was the ridiculously quick flip-flop of stance by Maryland coach, Randy Edsall. When prompted for an interview by a television reporter, Edsall stated that the pregame acts were not preplanned by the coaching staff and then went on to state “Let the rivalry begin.” I don’t know who Edsall thinks he’s fooling by changing his position on the actions of his players from “I apologize” to a statement foreshadowing future hostility, but it sounds like his apology was just a show of political correctness. It will probably never be known whether or not Maryland’s actions before the game were the result of directives given by the coaching staff, however due to Edsall’s lack of a solid position, one can’t help but think that it may at the very least have been possible.