Throughout the week, Corey Dyches practiced wearing the No. 84 he’d worn throughout his Maryland career.

When the Terps tight end showed up to SECU Stadium on Saturday, his locker referred to him by that number. His family showed up to the stadium a few hours later wearing No. 84 jerseys. But when Dyches stepped onto the field, he’d dropped all the way down to the same No. 2 jersey he wore in high school.

“They [do], sadly,” Dyches said when asked if his family needs to get new clothes. “... It’ll be all right though. I told them I was gonna get them some stuff.”

Dyches looked good in the sleeker number that had been occupied by other players since his arrival to College Park. He felt good in what he called a more “flexible” offense under new coordinator Josh Gattis. And, oh boy, he played good in Maryland’s 38-6 thrashing of Towson, finishing with a career-high 108 receiving yards.

“It was just a new opportunity, and I figured I would just take it,” he said, downplaying the impact of the number switch. “I mean it doesn’t change the style of play.”

Dyches broke out in an increased role last year, leading the Big Ten in receptions, yards and touchdowns on targets 20 or more yards downfield, per Pro Football Focus.

That skill set showed on Maryland’s first drive. Dyches caught a 14-yard pass over the middle of the field, juked to ruin an incoming safety’s angle and ran 33 more yards after the catch. Quarterback Taulia Tagovailoa ran for a 23-yard touchdown two plays later.

Dyches struck again midway through the first quarter. He took a quick screen pass and turned upfield for 12 yards and a first down. He ran untouched up the spine of the Tigers’ defense a play later, with Tagovailoa finding him in stride.

Towson’s Dorian Davis met Dyches at the goal line. When the two collided, the Terps tight end staggered back slightly but stretched the ball over the line for the score.

The performance came as part of an efficient day for the Maryland offense – one that averaged 7.22 yards per play and 0.37 EPA per play in the first half, marks in the 83rd and 96th percentile among single-game performances between FBS teams per Game On Paper.

The Terps were taking on an FCS team in the Tigers, but the numbers and the offensive talent they represented remain impressive. Tagovailoa finished 22-of-33 for 260 yards, adding another 28 yards and a score on the ground. He found seven receivers in just under three quarters before resting in favor of backup Billy Edwards Jr.

Those numbers could’ve been even better — Tai Felton dropped what looked like a sure 74-yard touchdown on Maryland’s second drive — the only possession that ended with a punt with Tagovailoa at quarterback. Kaden Prather did the same on a would-be chunk gain late in the first half.

Prather atoned for the mistake on the same drive, a 15-play, 91-yard saga on which the Terps chewed up nearly four minutes of game clock. They closed it with a flourish. Tagovailoa floated a pass down the right sideline for Prather, who used his 6-foot-4 frame to outjump the defender and secure his first touchdown as a Terp.

“If you let that one little drop get to you, then you’re weak-minded,” Prather said. “... [Tagovailoa] is a confident quarterback. I dropped the ball, and he came right back to me.”

Maryland leaned heavily on Tagovailoa and the pass game in the first half with 32 pass attempts compared to just 13 runs.

Towson came out in what Maryland coach Mike Locksley called a “zero rat” defense, in which the safeties played at about 10 yards of depth and the corners played off.

“It’s kind of a man coverage,” Locksley said, “and so when people play man, they get the extra guys in the box, you want to throw the ball. … Our quarterback is our strength, and I’m going to keep talking about, we have to play to our strengths.”

That ratio flipped in the second half as the Terps tried to kill clock. Eight of Roman Hemby’s 12 carries came in the third quarter. He churned out 58 total yards in the game and scored the first touchdown of his sophomore campaign.

Maryland’s defense clamped the Towson offense, holding quarterback Nathan Kent to 128 passing yards. It has been 192 minutes since the Terps last allowed a touchdown — they didn’t give any up in wins over Rutgers and N.C. State to close the 2022 campaign. It’s the first time they’ve not allowed a score in three straight games since 1976.

The new-look secondary started with Ja’Quan Sheppard and Tarheeb Still as outside corners, junior safety Glendon Miller in the slot and returning stalwarts Dante Trader Jr. and Beau Brade at safety. The unit didn’t allow a Towson player to hit 50 yards receiving.

By the time the fourth quarter started, those players, Dyches and more hung around on the sidelines — with some swapping helmets for towels — as the Terps turned to the lower ends of their depth chart with a blowout and a 1-0 start secured.