Cornerback Sean Davis makes a tackle during the Terps’ 50-21 win over Richmond at Byrd Stadium on Sept. 5, 2015.

Bowling Green hardly let Tennessee catch its breath in the teams’ season opener Sept. 5. So as the Terrapins football team prepared for Saturday’s game against the Falcons, it placed a heavy emphasis on conditioning.

During some plays, the coaches would wait to blow their whistles, extending the play to keep the Terps defenders running.

Bowling Green ran a blistering 85 plays last week, accounting for 557 yards despite suffering a 50-39 loss. The Terps’ new 4-3 defense had a strong debut against Richmond, but playing against the Falcons will present a new challenge.

“Everybody knows they run a high-tempo offense,” linebacker Jermaine Carter Jr. said. “You got to get up to the ball, be ready to go.”

The Terps didn’t allow Richmond to develop momentum on offense, routinely forcing three-and-outs with constant pressure and lockdown coverage in the secondary. Richmond was 2-for-12 on third-down conversions, was sacked four times and rushed for 56 yards on 27 carries.

Carter led the defense with eight tackles, one for a loss, as a first-time starter.

“I have to be at my best at all times,” Carter said. “Guys look to me to make calls.”

The Terps likely will rely on Carter for leadership again this week at middle linebacker. Bowling Green runs a spread offense, with quarterback Matt Johnson looking to keep opposing defenses out of breath and on their toes.

“We’ve got to put a lot of pressure on the receivers, we can’t just let them run down the field,” Terps defensive coordinator Keith Dudzinski said. “Need to make sure we try to get hands on them, do a good job rerouting them. Try to do some things in coverages, make the quarterback a little bit indecisive.”

The Terps struggled against spread-style offenses in 2014. During a four-game stretch against West Virginia, Syracuse, Indiana and Ohio State, the Terps allowed an average of 537 yards per contest.

But with the new scheme, the Terps are confident they have a defensive system that will lift some of the pressure from the secondary.

Dudzinski said the Terps will have to pay special attention to redshirt junior wide receiver Gehrig Deiter, who hauled in seven catches for 133 yards and a touchdown last week. But he’s not Bowling Green’s only weapon. Wide receivers Ryan Burbrink and Roger Lewis were named to Phil Steele’s First-Team Preseason All-MAC team.

“They are very fast in terms of getting to the line of scrimmage and getting plays off,” Terps coach Randy Edsall said. “Very impressive operation that they have.”

Against an opponent looking to score in a hurry, the Terps are hoping to improve on a lackluster red zone performance last week, when they recorded two touchdowns in six trips.

“We don’t want field goals, we want touchdowns,” redshirt junior quarterback Perry Hills said. “They’re such a fast-paced offense that we’re going to have to put points on the board.”

Dudzinski and the Terps have been preparing themselves for Bowling Green’s up-tempo offense by running all week. But when they line up between the hash marks, they’ll hope to keep the exercise to a minimum.

“We can’t let them run down the field without evasion,” Dudzinski said.