The final meeting between Maryland and Virginia as ACC football foes is set for this Saturday at 3:30 p.m. The Cavaliers lost in their first road game of the season at Pittsburgh, but they’ve had some success recently in College Park. What will the Hoos see from the Terps? The Wednesday Watch List takes a look at some potential wrinkles and key areas for this week’s contest.

Diamond/Inverted Wishbone Formation

Like many read option offenses, Maryland has added the diamond backfield look to its arsenal. The concept is often called an inverted wishbone. The Terrapins scored their first touchdown of the game against West Virginia out of the formation. In this case, the call was for a fake power run between the tackles with a play action pass. The eventual target for the touchdown was the lead blocker, who ran straight upfield from his fullback spot to the left of the quarterback (he’s actually a tight end), faked a block, and then slipped behind the defense. Watch it here at approximately the 22-second mark:

There are all kinds of things that can be done out of the Diamond formation, though. This article shows a few things Oklahoma has used in the past for example.

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