A group of Maryland defenders gather together to bring down a WVU RB during UMD’s 40-37 loss against WVU on September 13, 2014.
Devising a game plan to slow Tevin Coleman seems like a dreadful duty, and Terrapins football defensive coordinator Brian Stewart has reason to be especially frustrated while taking a stab at it this week.
Coleman, Indiana’s star running back, is one of the most talented ball carriers in the country. The 6-foot-1, 210-pound junior ranks third in the NCAA with 569 rushing yards this season on 66 carries, and he has six touchdowns through three games. He’s big, fast and shifty, and he’s averaging 8.6 yards per carry.
The dude is good. Really, really good.
Stewart’s defense, meanwhile, has weathered mighty struggles recently while dealing with a rash of injuries, and a middling Syracuse offense gained 370 yards on the ground this past Saturday in a 34-20 Terps win.
So when the Terps travel to Indiana on Saturday for their Big Ten opener, Coleman — who spearheads a three-pronged rushing attack — figures to cause legions of problems for an ailing defense and headaches for a veteran coaching staff.
“[Coleman] is very good,” coach Randy Edsall said. “He can catch the ball and he runs the ball very well. He’s a very good player. If you look at the stats that he has, they speak for themselves.”
The Terps will look to counter Coleman and the Hoosiers’ running game with a front seven that’s still a bit in flux. Edsall announced this past weekend that defensive end Quinton Jefferson will have season-ending knee surgery Friday, and that’s sent co-starter at nose guard Keith Bowers over to the left end spot.
Not to mention, the linebacking corps has looked different each game. Outside linebacker Matt Robinson missed this past weekend’s win against the Orange with a shoulder injury, and backup Cavon Walker underwent season-ending surgery the week before, forcing redshirt freshman Jalen Brooks into a starting role.
Inside linebacker Cole Farrand’s also been hampered by injuries, which has allowed Alex Twine an opportunity to start. Senior linebackers Yannik Cudjoe-Virgil and L.A. Goree have also missed games this season.
All of these issues have led to consecutive uneven defensive performances from the Terps, and the injuries are particularly worrisome as the Terps prepare to face off with Coleman, who has a tendency to evade tacklers.
“He’s a big back, but he also has that speed that wows you,” Goree said. “With that combination, it’s somebody you have to tackle full speed and you have to run through, or else you’re going to miss the tackle.”
Added Stewart: “I’d like for us to just stay in our gap and have good gap integrity and to tackle the guy with the ball.”
But it won’t be easy for the Terps to bring down Coleman with backups and nicked-up starters on the field.
Not only that, but Indiana is the type of team that will exploit lack of depth on opposing defenses. The Hoosiers like to play fast, and their no-huddle offense has helped them run 82.7 plays per game this season, about 14 more than the Terps run on average.
A team that’s already reached deep into its bench might have trouble rotating enough defenders into the game Saturday to keep everyone fresh.
“One of the things we are going to have to do is control the run and make sure that we get lined up and be able to execute at a very quick pace,” Edsall said. “They get up, make a call, snap the ball and go.”
And once they snap the ball, the Hoosiers usually hand it off. Coleman is the workhorse, no doubt, but Indiana also leans on running backs D’Angelo Roberts and Devine Redding to change the pace and take the load off its star junior.
When the Hoosiers went on the road to upset No. 18 Missouri last week, Coleman had 132 yards on 19 carries, Roberts rushed the ball 15 times for 65 yards and Redding added 10 carries for 49 yards. As a team, Indiana ranks ninth in the country with 310.3 rushing yards per game.
The Terps defense gives up 199.2 yards per contest on the ground, a mark which is the 99 worst out of 125 teams.
So Saturday’s game boils down to the Terps’ paltry run defense trying not to totally collapse against Indiana’s stout tailbacks. It’s possible the Terps stiffen and buck the trend that seems likely to define this game.
Regardless, Stewart probably isn’t having too leisurely of a week. And the Terps defense likely won’t have a relaxing Saturday afternoon.
