At times Saturday night, the Terrapin defense let Florida State and quarterback Xavier Lee march down the field, gaining big chunks of yards each play. But when a big play needed to be made, on defense and on special teams, sophomore defensive end Jeremy Navarre delivered.

“Navarre, he must have ate his Wheaties this morning, ’cause he had a heck of a game,” senior cornerback Josh Wilson said after the game.

A disruptive force on the line, Navarre evaded or broke blocks, getting into the backfield by any means necessary. After a relatively quiet seven games, the sophomore made a major impact in the Terps’ win Saturday night, supplying big-play ability on a night with plenty of plays to be made. In two of the game’s defining moments, Navarre took control.

The Seminoles’ lasting impression of Navarre will undoubtedly be the blocked kick at the end of the game, when he reached up to knock down what would have been a game-tying field goal. Navarre isn’t a player who yearns for the attention, saying if he wouldn’t have blocked it, someone else would have.

“We just friggin’ pushed them back, got our hands up, and luckily it hit my hand,” he said.

Coach Ralph Friedgen said Sunday that Gary Cismesia’s kick wasn’t low, crediting Navarre for elevating his arms – on a night Navarre elevated his game.

But even though the blocked kick is the snapshot image of Navarre’s night, Wilson said it was an earlier play by Navarre that set the tone for the game. On Florida State’s first possession of the second half, coach Bobby Bowden called a timeout to consider what to do on 4th-and-1 from the 50-yard line.

Both the Seminole punt team and offense huddled on the field during the timeout, but Navarre said he and his teammates had a feeling Florida State was going for it.

“It’s Florida State. They’re big guys and they’re not gonna back down like that,” Navarre said.

Sure enough, the offense returned to the field, and the Terps faced a crucial situation holding onto a 20-14 lead. Lee handed the ball to fullback Joe Surratt, but Navarre met the short-yardage specialist in the backfield and drove him to the ground with the help of a couple teammates.

“That fourth down stop with him, man, that was one of the plays of the game,” Wilson said. “I mean, they had inches to go and [Navarre] caught him in the backfield and got us off the field. That was almost like a turnover for us.”

The force with which Navarre drilled Surratt may have came out of frustration, as the sophomore said he had been waiting for this game all season. In his first seven games, Navarre recorded only four solo tackles and one sack. His statistics were comparable to last season, but the sophomore hadn’t taken over a game – that is, until Saturday.

Against Florida State, Navarre chalked up five tackles (2.5 tackles for loss), a sack and a forced fumble. On a defense with a handful of stars, Navarre shone brightest not only when the lights were on, but when the pressure was on, too.

Contact reporter Stephen Whyno at whynodbk@gmail.com.