The Huskies hit the road this week to face Maryland (4-0, 1-0) in their first matchup as conference opponents. After a tough loss at home against Ohio State last week, UW looks to get the offense back on track after getting shut out of the end zone. That might be easier said than done against a Terrapin defense that has had a resurgent, and quite dominant start to the season.
The Scheme & Personnel
Maryland’s defense this season has revolved around a fierce pass rush and an opportunistic secondary. Led by true freshman EDGE Sidney Stewart, the Terrapins have racked up 16 sacks on the season, tied for 1st nationally on a per game basis. Stewart accounts for four sacks himself, fellow true freshman Zahir Mathis has chipped in an additional 2.5, and DT Dillan Fontus adds another two to round out their top three pass rushers. That much pressure from the defensive front has created opportunities for the secondary to make plays on the ball.
The Terrapins have had seven different players snag an interception this season for a total of eight, which is tied for 2nd nationally. All those turnovers have helped keep the defense off the field, resulting in a scoring defense that ranks 7th in the country. Those turnovers, sacks, and impact defensive plays have been the key for Maryland as neither their run defense (92 yards/game, #25 nationally) nor pass defense (208 yards/game, #66 nationally) have been as elite as their overall scoring stats. This also has to be taken in context as Maryland’s four games have been against G5 Florida Atlantic, G5 Northern Illinois, FCS Towson, and an imploding Wisconsin. This isn’t to minimize the threat that Maryland’s defense poses to UW’s offense, but it’s rather important to understand that six of Maryland’s eight interceptions were against Florida Atlantic. Plus, once the talent level stepped up against Wisconsin, their defense was held to just one sack and four TFLs.
Keys to the Game
For UW’s offense, the keys to the game will be staying ahead of the sticks and getting the run game re-established. An interesting stat that I found was that Maryland hasn’t played from behind at any point this season. A defense playing with a lead can gear up against the pass, and their havoc-based style of defense can create a positive feedback loop via sacks and turnovers. Break that cycle by staying ahead of the sticks, gaining an early lead, and/or forcing the defense to stay balanced against the run and pass, and you can force them to play a style of defense that their youth-heavy line up isn’t best equipped for.
Obviously Jonah Coleman and Demond Williams are known quantities in the run game, and I suspect that their numbers will get called early and often. However, the biggest question when it comes to executing the somewhat obvious game plan is Carver Willis’ availability. After going down with a lower body injury last week, it appears that he is doubtful against Maryland. Willis had been grading as one of the top OTs in the country by PFF, so losing him will be a big hit to the offense. If he’s out, it is expected that Maximus McCree, a one-time Terrapin himself, will fill in at LT. McCree flashed in his limited appearances last season, but it’s tough to imagine him replacing Willis without some level of drop off in play. If Maryland begins to target McCree in the pass rush, it could be a long afternoon.
One last thought to consider. Ohio State was by far the most successful in stopping UW’s offense this season. Obviously they are also the most talented defense we’ve played, but it was also telling that they went with a very conservative game plan on defense despite all that talent. They played conservative contain, spied Demond, funneled option runs inside, and played a ton of zone coverage. Conservative play isn’t really Maryland’s M.O., and its often difficult to get young defensive linemen to play as disciplined in their rush and contain as OSU did last week. Keep an eye out for how their defense tries to stop Demond’s dual-threat abilities. Will they try to copy OSU’s game plan? Or will they play their style of defense?