Kick

The start of Atlantic Coast Conference play had seemed so long in coming for Maryland and its excitable freshmen. But when the anticipation ended and the first game finally arrived on Saturday -- in front of the high-octane sellout crowd for which the Terps players and coaches had been hoping -- it all seemed worth the wait. In a game that felt unmistakably different from Maryland's previous 13 contests this season, the Terps -- and freshmen Jake Layman and Seth Allen, in particular -- upped their energy level and passed their first ACC test in striking fashion, dismantling Virginia Tech, 94-71.

Justin Tucker's legs shook underneath him, and for a moment, he thought he might actually be nervous about kicking a field goal. Then he realized, as he later told his father, that the movement didn't result from any internal tension but from 88,645 Texas A&M fans literally shaking the ground as they clamored for Tucker, the kicker from archrival Texas, to miss a decisive 40-yarder. With that, Tucker knew he was exactly where he had always wanted to be, lining up to boot the biggest kick of his life at the center of a boiling football caldron, also known as Kyle Field.

Good morning and welcome to an extra robust Friday online trends report. So did you see that awesome Meteor Shower ? No, I didn't either, but thanks to Internet our ignorance and laziness will not be punished because the photos are plentiful and popular. Thanks Internet! The political soap opera Scandal continues to prove extremely popular with Baltimore audiences after another eventful show. SPOILERS BELOW PEOPLE! Meanwhile, Susan Rice  will not be leading the State Department anytime soon, The Air Foamposite One 'Stealth' (a sneaker, a not military drone)

Havre de Grace rang in the Christmas season Friday night during its First Fridays and annual Christmas parade and tree-lighting downtown. It kicked off a weekend of holiday activities in Havre de Grace. Santa arrived at the end of the parade and helped light the city's Christmas tree. Candlelight tour From 4 to 8 p.m. Sunday, the public can tour Havre de Grace homes, churches and businesses decorated for the holidays on the popular Candlelight Tour. The tour starts at the Susquehanna Museum at the Lock House at 817 Conesteo St. Tickets are $15 per person and before Sunday can be purchased at the Lock House Museum, from Lock House board members, the Havre de Grace Visitors Center, the Decoy Museum, Java by the Bay in Havre de Grace, the Leisure Travel Office at Aberdeen Proving Ground, the Johnson Family Pharmacy in Aberdeen and Preston's Stationery in Bel Air. And don't forget, on Saturday from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. and on Sunday from noon to 8 p.m. the Lock House Ladies will hold their annual Christmas Boutique at the museum.

After a long drive from Arizona, prosecutors say, Dmytro Holovko pulled up to a meeting spot on Liberty Road and unloaded hundreds of pounds of marijuana - another successful shipment for a drug ring accused of using Baltimore as a hub in a distribution network that brought in $1 million a month. Holovko, a 54-year-old Czech national, stands accused of being a courier for the violent organization, in a case that brought a consul from the Czech Embassy to a federal courtroom in Baltimore on Tuesday amid complaints about the defendant's court-appointed lawyer.

Shoppers who lined up at Sears on Thanksgiving and braved Walmart before dawn on Black Friday might want a change of pace, city officials are hoping. With the Miracle on Main Streets campaign, the city hopes to encourage holiday shopping in Baltimore's historic neighborhoods, at small shops lining the business districts. The campaign's motto: "Do it all without the mall. " Participating neighborhoods, all part of the city's Main Streets program, include Belair-Edison, Brooklyn, East Monument Street, Federal Hill, Fell's Point, Hamilton-Lauraville, Highlandtown, Pennsylvania Avenue, Pigtown and Waverly.

When Ray Rice caught the ball and looked upfield, his challenge - and the Ravens' chances of pulling out a victory over the San Diego Chargers - seemed pretty close to hopeless. There were defenders rushing toward Rice and about 20 yards that he still needed to cover if he was going to get a first down. Running down the sideline, Rice made two defenders miss and then outran a couple of more as he cut across the field. He contemplated taking it all the way to the opposite sideline before ultimately deciding to keep inching forward.

If you can't wait for basketball season and would like to see some top girls hoops action, the Interscholastic Athletic Association of Maryland and the Washington Catholic Athletic Conference offer an early-season treat with their second annual IAAM-WCAC Basketball Challenge Dec. 1 and 2 at St. Vincent Pallotti. Here's the schedule: Saturday, Dec. 1 Seton Keough vs. Elizabeth Seton, 1:30 St. Mary's-Ryken vs. John Carroll, 3:30 Mercy vs. St. Mary's, 5:30 Sunday, Dec. 2 St. Frances vs. Archbishop Carroll, noon Roland Park vs. St. John's-DC, 2 Pallotti vs. Bishop McNamara, 4 Admission is $8 with ages 65 and older $3. Children under 10 are free.

— UMBC had to believe it had the defending NCAA champions right where they wanted them. After 110 minutes of scoreless soccer, the Retrievers and North Carolina were headed to penalty kicks to decide who would advance from their second-round match in the NCAA Men's Soccer Championship on Sunday at Fetzer Field. After all, UMBC (11-4-7) had prevailed over New Hampshire in the America East tournament final and Old Dominion in the first round of the NCAAs on penalty kicks. "Definitely," team captain and senior forward Milo Kapor said.

When the Oakland Raiders used the seventh overall pick in the 2009 draft to select Darrius Heyward-Bey, the McDonogh graduate and Maryland product was the first wide receiver taken off the board. That honor raised the bar for Heyward-Bey, who is trying to assert himself as the Raiders' top wideout. NFL Network analyst and former kick returner Bucky Brooks thinks there is still room and time for Heyward-Bey to develop into that role. Here is what Brooks had to say about Heyward-Bey.