Anthony McFarland has a chance to burst onto the scene with Maryland football

It’s Running Backs week here at Testudo Times as we continue our journey through Maryland football’s roster position by position. The most intriguing back on the roster hasn’t played a single down yet.

Anthony McFarland, RB, No. 5

Height: 5’8
Weight: 208 lbs.
Year: Redshirt freshman
Hometown: Hyattsville, Maryland
High School: DeMatha

The background

McFarland was the Terps’ highest-rated commit in the Class of 2017. He was the late pickup of the class, choosing Maryland over Miami and Alabama after taking fans on a wild Snapchat journey just a few days before National Signing Day.

He missed his senior season at DeMatha with a lower leg injury and subsequently sat out his first year at Maryland. But prior to his injury, McFarland was one of the most explosive athletes in the country at any position.

The hype surrounding McFarland is based on high school tape.

McFarland’s junior season tape, though short, shows him running around, over, through and past would be defenders. His speed is nearly unmatched, as his pass-catching ability is evident. It’s easy to see why he was such a coveted recruit coming out of high school.

via Hudl

There was a thought he could come in and make an immediate impact as a freshman, and he likely would have if he’d been healthy enough. Instead, he took a year to get his body right, and now, he says he’s in the best shape of his life.

He’s a perfect fit for a Matt Canada offense.

As has been well-documented on this site and others, through extensive pre-snap movement, Canada makes great use of athletes in his offensive scheme. With somebody like McFarland who is a weapon in both the running and passing games, Canada must be salivating. Canada will be able to use McFarland much like he used Quadree Henderson at Pitt. Both are speedy and extremely dangerous in the open field.

Of course, we don’t know exactly what the offense will look or what each player’s role will be, but there are a ton of ways to use McFarland, and none of them seem wrong.