Maryland football: Lofty point spread posted for Terps' Big Ten home-opener against Indiana

Maryland football was expected to be a big betting favorite against Indiana at home, and Sunday’s opening lines confirmed that.

The Terps are a 14.5-point favorite over the Hoosiers, according to FanDuel Sportsbook. The scoring total is set at 50.5 and Maryland is a -720 money line favorite.

Maryland is 4-0 overall and 2-2 against the spread – as a favorite in each game – through its first four games. The Terps have covered the spread in each of their last two games, beating Michigan State 31-9 on the road as a seven-point favorite and beating Virginia 42-14 at home as a 16.5-point favorite.

Maryland head coach Mike Locksley expressed his satisfaction with the student section thus far and hopes for a great environment at home against the Hoosiers.

“We're back in ‘The Shell’ next week against Indiana,” Locksley said postgame Saturday. “I hope our fans show up for these kids. They've earned the right to have you guys there to support them and our student section has done their part. Now everybody's got a part to do in there. And I know we're excited with the opportunity to go 5-0 at home in the shell and the players are excited about that as well.”

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Indiana, which was expected to be one of the Big Ten’s worst teams in 2023, is 2-2 through four games. The Hoosiers are 2-2 after escaping Akron 29-27 in quadruple overtime at home in week four. Indiana is 3-1 against the spread, covering big spreads in losses against Ohio State and Louisville and a win against FCS Indiana State.

Tom Allen’s Hoosiers are led by redshirt freshman quarterback Tayven Jackson, the younger brother of former Indiana basketball All-American Trayce Jackson-Davis. Jackson has completed 62.8% of his passes for 749 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions this season. Indiana has the third-worst total offense and the second-worst rushing offense in the Big Ten. Maryland ranks seventh in both total defense and rushing defense.

Though the Terps are 4-0, Locksley knows they have yet to tap their full potential.

“The best part about this is that locker room is still disappointed a little bit that we didn't finish the way we like to, and there's some things that we can get cleaned up,” Locksley said. “And as I've said before, it's always great to clean it up after a win. Got to give credit to the players in terms of how they responded and did the things necessary.”

Kickoff is set for 3:30 p.m. Saturday on Big Ten Network.