Ahead of Ohio State vs. Maryland, here's what we know about the 'Terrapins' team name
Ohio State football's history with Maryland has been a bit one-sided.
Since Maryland joined the Big Ten in 2014, the football team has not beaten the Buckeyes, losing each of its eight meetings in Columbus or College Park.
Saturday afternoon, Maryland will try and end that streak with a team that has won seven-straight games dating back to the 2022 season with a win against Rutgers immediately following a loss to the Buckeyes Nov. 19.
But, ahead of Maryland's return to Ohio, what is a Terrapin?
Here's what we know about Maryland's team name.
Why is Maryland called the 'Terrapins'?
According to the school, former football coach Dr. H. Curley Byrd recommended that the diamondback terrapin be named as the school's athletic team name. The diamondback terrapin is Maryland's state reptile.
A terrapin is a turtle native to Chesapeake Bay. The University of Maryland has two terrapin bronze statues on its campus: one overlooking the McKeldin Mall by the McKeldin Library, and the other placed outside of the Football Complex locker room by SECU Stadium.
Maryland also has a mascot named "Testudo": a diamondback terrapin whose name origin is "mysterious" but likely comes from the scientific classification for turtle: "testudines."
Per Maryland Athletics, the "derivation of the word testudo itself comes from the Latin word for a protective shelter used for Roman soldiers’ heads, similar to a tortoise shell."
Ohio State will kick off against the Terrapins Saturday at noon on FOX.
Get more Ohio State football news by listening to our podcasts
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: What we know about 'Terrapins' ahead of OSU vs. Maryland
