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RALEIGH, North Carolina (Ticker) -- Maryland came too far to be denied. Shaun Hill tossed an eight-yard touchdown pass to Guilian Gary with 41 seconds remaining as the ninth-ranked Terrapins likely secured a berth in the Orange Bowl with a 23-19 Atlantic Coast Conference victory over North Carolina State. Maryland (10-1, 7-1 ACC) also locked up its first conference title since 1985 and reached 10 wins for only the fifth time in school history. It last won 10 games in 1976. The Terrapins ended Florida State's stranglehold on the ACC title. The Seminoles, who handed Maryland its only loss, had won the ACC crown every year since entering the conference in 1992. Maryland's hopes appeared to be dashed minutes earlier when Rich Parson fumbled into the end zone on what appeared to be a sure touchdown. Parson caught a pass from Hill over the middle on a crossing pattern, but cornerback Lamont Reid did not give up on the play, catching up to Parson at the 1. The receiver fumbled as he was tackled to the ground and the ball rolled into the end zone, resulting in a touchback with 2 1/2 minutes left. But Maryland forced North Carolina State to punt and Hill calmly marched the Terrapins 61 yards in 10 plays, completing five passes during the drive. Hill, who completed 27-of-41 passes for 296 yards with two touchdowns and an interception, sustained the possession with an eight-yard completion to Bruce Perry on 4th-and-5 from the Maryland 45. With the Terrapins facing 2nd-and-8 from the 21, Hill found Gary for 13 yards. On the next play, Hill scrambled to his right and hit Gary in the corner of the end zone. Perry, who caught two passes on the winning drive, rushed for 91 yards on 21 carries. North Carolina State drove into Maryland territory on its final possession, but safety Tony Jackson sealed the victory with an interception. Maryland students celebrated by throwing oranges on the field. After being held to four field goals, the Wolfpack (6-4, 4-4) took a 19-16 lead on Philip Rivers' one-yard TD pass to Cotra Jackson with 3:59 remaining in the contest. The Wolfpack rushed for just 38 yards, but Rivers completed 27-of-43 passes for 275 yards. North Carolina State was trying for its second straight upset. Last week, it defeated Florida State to become the first road team to win an ACC game in Tallahassee. With all the hoopla on the Maryland campus, Friedgen expressed concern earlier in the week about his team celebrating too soon. Maryland came out flat and trailed, 9-3, at the intermission before the second half featured five lead changes. The Terrains gained their first lead, 10-9, on Hill's five-yard TD strike to Gary with 8:51 left in the third. Adam Kiker's fourth field goal -- a 27-yarder -- gave the Wolfpack a 12-10 lead with 3:45 left in the third quarter. Maryland drove 70 yards on 10 plays earlier in the final period to take a 16-12 lead on Hill's six-yard TD run with 9:32 to play.
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