Maryland Terrapins vs. West Virginia Mountaineers: Game Preview

After a successful trip to FedEx Field last weekend, West Virginia has now returned home to host the Maryland Terrapins on Saturday for their final game before Big 12 play commences. 

The Mountaineers have won the last six meetings between these two teams and they're heavily favored to make that seven in a row. 

The Terrapins have gotten off to a shaky 1-2 start. Judging from the way they've played in their first three games, they're not shaping up to be a truly formidable foe. 

Still, it should be interesting to see how West Virgina performs against their first BCS opponent of the season. 

Here's a look at a full preview for Saturday's showdown. 

Game Day Information

Who: Maryland at West Virginia

When: Saturday, Noon (EDT)

Where: Morgantown, West Virginia

Stadium: Milan Puskar Stadium

TV: FX

Radio: 101.9 WVAQ

Internet Stream: WVUSports.com

West Virginia Depth Chart

Offense 

QB: No. 12 Geno Smith (Sr. 6’3’’, 220)
Backup: No. 14 Paul Millard (Soph. 6’2’’, 220)

RB: No. 20 Shawne Alston (Sr. 5’11’’, 236)
Backup: No. 13 Andrew Buie (5’9’’ 188)

WR (X): No. 3 Stedman Bailey (Jr. 5’10’’, 195)
Backup: No. 19 K.J. Myers (Fr. 6’2’’, 197)

WR (Y): No. 1 Tavon Auston (Sr. 5’9’’, 171)
Backup: No. 88 Cody Clay (Fr. 6’3’’, 256)

WR (Z): No. 81 J.D. Woods (Sr. 6’1’’, 190)
Backup: No. 5 Ivan McCartney (Jr. 6’2’’, 182)

WR (H): No. 10 Jordan Thompson (Fr. 5’7’’, 164)
Backup: No. 15 Dante Campbell (Fr. 6’4’’, 213)

LT: No. 67 Quinton Spain (Soph. 6’5’’, 334)
Backup: No. 79 Nick Kindler (Jr. 6’6’’, 296)

LG: No. 77 Josh Jenkins (Sr. 6’4’’, 303)
Backup: No. 70 Brandon Jackson (Fr. 6’3’’, 328)

OC: No. 74 Joe Madsen (Sr. 6’4’’, 305)
Backup:  No. 60 John Bassler (Sr. 6’4’’, 308)

RG: No. 57 Jeff Braun (Sr. 6’5’’, 316)
Backup: No. 73 Russell Haughton-James (Fr. 6’5’’, 311)

RT: No. 76 Pat Eger (Jr. 6’6’’, 304)
Backup: No. 62 Curtis Feigt (Jr. 6’7’’, 317)



Defense

DT: No. 98 Will Clarke (Jr. 6’7’’, 271)
Backup: No. 91 J.B. Lagerman (Sr. 6’3’’, 273)

NT: No. 90 Shaq Rowell (Jr. 6’4’’, 308)
Backup: No. 95 Christian Brown (Fr. 6’3’’, 300)

DE: No. 99 Jorge Wright (Sr. 6’2’’, 291)
Backup: No. 96 Korey Harris (Fr. 6’4’’, 240)

Buck LB: No. 53 Tyler Anderson (Jr. 6’2’’, 251)
Backup: No. 4 Josh Francis (Sr. 6’0’’, 224)

Star LB: No. 28 Terence Garvin (Sr. 6’3’’, 221)
Backup: No. 37 Wes Tonkery (Soph. 6’2’’, 221)

Sam LB: No. 47 Doug Rigg (Jr. 6’1’’, 241)
Backup: No. 31 Isaiah Bruce (Fr. 6’1’’, 225)

Will LB: No. 33 Jared Barber (Soph. 6’0’’, 232)
Backup: No. 36 Shaq Petteway (Soph. 6’0’’, 227)

CB: No. 6 Pat Miller (Sr. 5’11’’, 187)
Backup: No. 22 Avery Williams (Soph. 5’11’’, 180)

CB: No. 23 Brodrick Jenkins (Jr. 5’10’’, 183)
Backup: No. 24 Cecil Level (Sr. 5’10’’, 186) 

FS: No. 8 Karl Joseph (Fr. 5’10’’, 197)
Backup: No. 34 Ishmael Banks (Soph. 6’0’’, 184)

BS: No. 25 Darwin Cook (Jr. 5’11’’, 201)
Backup: No. 9 K.J. Dillon (Fr. 6’1’’, 202)




Special Teams

PK: No. 40 Tyler Bitancurt (Sr. 6’1’’, 205)
Backup: No. 44 Corey Smith (Sr. 6’0’’, 210)

Punter: No. 44 Corey Smith (Sr. 6’0’’, 210)
Backup: No. 48 Michael Molinari (Soph. 6’2’’, 197)

PR: No. 1 Tavon Austin (Sr. 5’9’’, 171)
Backup: No. 23 Brodrick Jenkins (Jr. 5’10’’, 183)

KR: No. 1 Tavon Austin (Sr. 5’9’’, 171)
Backup: No. 3 Stedman Bailey (Jr. 5’10’’, 195)

Maryland Depth Chart

Offense

QB: No. 11 Perry Hills (Fr. 6’3’’, 205)
Backup: No. 7 Caleb Rowe (Fr. 6’2’’, 205)

TB: No. 4 Wes Brown (Fr. 6'1'', 220)
Backup: No. 44 Justus Pickett (Soph. 5’10’’, 185)

WR: No. 13 Kerry Boykins (6’0’’, 190)
Backup: No. 1 Stefon Diggs (Fr. 6’1’’, 185)

WR: No. 12 Kevin Dorsey (Sr. 6’2’’, 210)
Backup: No. 3 Nigel King (Fr. 6’3’’, 210)

WR: No. 82 Marcus Leak (Soph. 6’0’’, 205)
Backup: No. 10 Tyrek Cheeseboro (Fr. 6’0’’, 190)

TE: No. 89 Matt Furstenburg (Sr. 6’4’’, 245)
Backup: No. 34 Devonte Campbell (Sr. 6’2’’, 255)

LT: No. 74 Nick Klemm (Jr. 6’5’’, 300)
Backup: No. 77 Mike Madaras (Fr. 6’5’’, 290)

LG: No. 63 Bennett Fulper (Sr. 6’5’’,  295)
Backup: No. 64 Nick Brigham (Fr. 6’2’’, 280)

OC: No. 65 Sal Conaboy (Soph. 6’4’’, 285)
Backup: No. 50 Evan Mulrooney (Fr. 6’5’’, 285)

RG: No. 70 De’Onte Arnett (Jr. 6’4’’, 290)
Backup: No. 66 Andrew Zeller (Fr. 6’6’’, 295)

RT: No. 75 Justin Gilbert (Sr. 6’6’’, 300)
Backup: No. 55 Ryan Doyle (Fr. 6’4’’, 295)




Defense

NT: No. 97 Darius Kilgo (Soph. 6’3’’, 300)
Backup: No. 73 Alex Walker (Soph. 6’0’’, 285)

DE: No. 72 Joe Vellano (Sr. 6’2’’, 285)
Backup: No. 99 Quinton Jefferson (Fr. 6’4’’, 260)

DE: No. 96 A.J. Francis (Sr. 6’5’’, 305)
Backup: No. 95 Justin Anderson (Jr. 6’5’’, 280)

ILB: No. 47 Cole Farrand (Soph. 6’3’’, 245)
Backup: No. 53 L.A. Goree (Soph. 6’2’’, 235)

ILB: No. 9 Demetrius Hartsfield (Sr. 6’2’’, 240)
Backup: No. 58 Bradley Johnson (Jr. 6’1’’, 230)

OLB: No. 35 Alex Twine (Soph. 6’0’’, 225)
Backup: No. 37 Avery Thompson (Fr. 6’3’’, 210)

OLB: No. 52 Darin Drakeford (Sr. 6’1’’, 240)
Backup: No. 41 Marcus Whitfield (Jr. 6’3’’, 245)

CB: No. 14 Jeremiah Johnson (Soph. 6’0’’, 185)
Backup: No. 27 Alvin Hill (Fr. 5’11’’, 190)

CB: No. 25 Dexter McDougle (Jr. 5’11’’, 190)
Backup: No. 23 Makinton Dorleant (Fr. 5’11’’, 180)

SS: No. 21 Sean Davis (Fr. 6’1’’, 190)
Backup: No. 38 Clarence Claiborne (Sr. 6’0’’, 210)

FS: No. 48 Eric Franklin (Sr. 6’2’’, 215)
Backup: No. 20 Anthony Nixon (Fr. 6’1’’, 205)




Special Teams

K: No. 15 Brad Craddock (Fr. 6’1’’, 180)
Backup: No. 12 Bendan Magistro (Fr. 5’9’’, 170)

P: No. 18 Nathan Renfro (Fr. 6’1’’, 205)
Backup: No. 15 Brad Craddock (Fr. 6’1’’, 180)

PR: No. 1 Stefon Diggs (Fr. 6’1’’, 185)
Backup: No. 25 Dexter McDougle (Jr. 5’11’’, 190)

KR: No. 1 Stefon Diggs (Fr. 6’1’’, 185)
Backup: No. 45 Brandon Ross (Fr. 5’10’’, 205)

Recapping West Virginia's Last Game

West Virginia squared off with James Madison at FedEx Field last weekend and the game was about as competitive as you'd expect.

The Mountaineers easily handled the Dukes 42-12.

QB Geno Smith was once again the star of the show. He completed 34 of his 39 passes for 411 yards and five touchdowns.

Stedman Bailey caught three of those touchdowns and Tavon Austin hauled in one. 

RB Shawne Alston rumbled for 62 yards and added a score of his own .

The Mountaineers defense didn't exactly look stellar. There were plenty of missed tackles and a few noticeable blown assignments. But overall, the unit was as good as it had to be against an FCS opponent. 

Recapping Maryland's Last Game

Maryland coach Randy Edsall lost to his old team, the Connecticut Huskies, 24-21 at home last weekend. 

The Terrapins went into the fourth quarter down 17-7, but they did manage to make things interesting with two late touchdowns. However, it wasn't enough to pick up the "W."

The defense played relatively well, allowing just 223 total yards, but the offense just couldn't produce, as the unit could only compiled 205 total yards of its own. 

QB Perry Hills completed just 10 of his 24 passes for 109 yards and threw an interception. 

What This Game Means to Both Teams

This will serve as each team's tune-up before they begin conference play next weekend, so both squads will be looking to have good outings to build momentum. 

West Virginia enters the game as 27-point favorites. Obviously, not many people are expecting this one to be close. However, the Terps did play West Virginia tough last year, and they'll be looking to do the same thing once again on Saturday. 

For the Mountaineers, the key will be to keep the offense rolling and hopefully have the defense tighten up, especially since there are matchups with high-powered offenses like Baylor, Texas, Texas Tech and Kansas State all on the horizon. 

For Maryland, the coaching staff wants to see freshman quarterback Perry Hills show some signs of maturity and development, given that he didn't perform particularly well against Connecticut last week. 

Overall, this game really doesn't have a lot on the line. West Virginia will be expected to win comfortably and the outcome will have no bearing on the Big 12 conference race. 

West Virginia's Key Player: QB Geno Smith

Geno Smith has been one of the most efficient and productive quarterbacks of the first three weeks of the season. 

Smith currently has the highest accuracy percentage in the country. He's connected on 66 of his 75 passes for 734 yards and thrown nine touchdowns and no interceptions. 

The 6'3'', 214-pound senior has to be considered one of the early top contenders for the Heisman Trophy based on his play so far. 

The strong-armed signal-caller is the perfect player to lead West Virginia's Air Raid-style attack. Smith looks like he's truly developing into an elite star quarterback in 2012. 

Maryland's Key Player: LB Demetrius Hartsfield

Maryland's roster certainly isn't oozing with top-tier talent, but the Terrapins do have a standout player leading their defense. 

LB Demetrius Hartsfield is one of the most underrated defenders in the country.

He's the true heart and soul player for Maryland's defense. 

Last year, Hartsfield led the team with 108 tackles, including seven tackles for loss, and he's well on his way to piling up over 100 stops again this season. 

The 6'2'', 240-pound senior is an athletic and instinctive inside 'backer who has a nose for the football. 

Two other Maryland defenders to watch out for are DE Joe Vellano and safety Eric Franklin. 

West Virginia Will Win If.....

West Virginia will win if the Mountaineers offense keeps firing on all cylinders like it was in the first two games of the season against Marshall and James Madison. 

QB Geno Smith and his dangerous receiver duo of Tavon Austin and Stedman Bailey form one of the most explosive offensive trios in the country.

When you add in an experienced offensive line and a powerful running back like Shawne Alston to the equation, this offense has the balance and firepower it needs to embarrass any defense it goes up against. 

Receivers Kerry Boykins and Stefon Diggs are quality players, but it seems like Maryland just doesn't have the offensive playmakers it takes to hang with the Mountaineers. 

If West Virginia's defense doesn't have any major meltdowns or monumental breakdowns, and if the offense doesn't get careless with the ball, this game shouldn't be all that difficult. 

Maryland Will Win If.....

Maryland will win if West Virginia plays lackadaisical and without the proper effort, and gets careless on defense and special teams. 

If the Terrapins can get a huge day from explosive freshman receiver Stefon Diggs, and somehow slow down West Virginia's offense, they could make this one a lot more interesting than it should be. 

Prediction

Ultimately, Maryland is just too young and too inexperienced of a team to be able to handle an environment like West Virginia. 

Freshman QB Perry Hills has looked very inconsistent in his first three starts, and Milan Puskar Stadium isn't the type of place a young freshman quarterback goes to find his consistency. 

The Mountaineers have too many weapons for the Terps defense to deal with. In the end, this one shouldn't anywhere near as close as last year's 37-31 game. 

Prediction: West Virginia 38, Maryland 16