Traps come in all shapes and sizes. Just ask any hunter.
Trap games appear the same way and No. 8 WVU will be facing its third consecutive "trap" when the Mountaineers (2-0) take on border state rival Maryland (2-1) at noon Saturday at Milan Puskar Stadium.
"Yeah, (Maryland) is (a rivalry)," second-year head coach Dana Holgorsen said. "Neighboring states that go way back."
As far back as the 1919 season. A series that has seen both schools go on lengthy winning streaks as well as a pair of ties.
For now, however, the final score has been in favor of the old gold and blue. But there was a time when the Terrapins held the upper hand, winning four in a row - twice during the 2003 season - and five of six meetings from 1999-2003.
This year's meeting on Hall of Fame induction day in Morgantown finds two teams that are performing very well on one side of the football, but having its struggles on the other.
Maryland, which dropped its first game of the season last weekend (21-14) to Big East member Connecticut, has had its difficulties putting points on the scoreboard, averaging a mere 21.3 points per game. West Virginia's attack unit led by senior quarterback Geno Smith nearly equaled that output in the first quarter of its 42-12 win over No. 5 (FCS) James Madison.
The Mountaineers possess one of the most potent offensive attacks in the country, not to mention its new conference affiliate, the Big 12.
However, WVU has had trouble keeping teams off of the scoreboard and, while the problem has not resulted in a loss through the team's first two outings, it could come back to haunt the Mountaineers later in the season.
Maryland's defense has been its shining star thus far in 2012, holding teams to a mere 19 points per game while surrendering a mere 258.3 yards per game - 124.3 through the air.
The 48th meeting between the two programs represents a perfect example of the irresistible force (WVU's offense) against the immovable object (UM's defense). The one that comes out on top will win.
Making this writer just a little more concerned is the Mountaineers' impending Big 12 opener against Baylor seven days after Maryland's visit to Morgantown.
Coaches can try as hard as they can to remind their players of the pitfalls of looking past an opponent. But it happens.
Fans have already started filling up message boards with thoughts about WVU's first Big 12 game while mentions about the Terrapins are few and far between and usually revolve around how big of a margin there will be in WVU's third victory of the season.
There is nothing wrong with that approach as long as the players understand that message boards do not win football games, but execution does.
Should West Virginia continue to execute like it has on offense against Maryland and the defense continues on the path of improvement that it displayed against the Dukes, then there is no reason to fear.
Oops. There's that trap again.
Contact Jim Butta at jbutta@newsandsentinel.com
