Maryland football quarterback Kasim Hill suffered a torn left ACL in Saturday’s loss to Indiana, ending his redshirt freshman season and starting another lengthy recovery process a little over a year after a torn right ACL ended his true freshman season.
Midway through the second quarter of the 34-32 defeat to the Hoosiers, Hill scrambled to his left and was spun to the ground by an Indiana defender, twisting Hill’s left knee. Interim head coach Matt Canada confirmed the injury was a torn ACL at his media availability Tuesday.
“No words to say to make it any better,” Canada said. “Great kid. Kid that worked so hard and battled his way back. And he will again.”
Hill was clearly in immediate pain, and while he walked off under his own power, he was visibly frustrated and returned from the locker room in street clothes.
Last year, Hill tore his right ACL on a scramble against UCF in week 3. Hill had taken over for quarterback Tyrrell Pigrome after Pigrome tore his ACL in the season opener, and down their top two quarterbacks, the Terps struggled the rest of the year, finishing the season 4-8.
Hill has still worn a brace on his right knee this year, and hasn’t seemed as comfortable running as the four-star recruit did when he entered College Park.
“He’ll be back and he’ll be stronger,” Canada said. “And he’ll have two really, really strong knees.”
Hill won the starting job this season, led Maryland past Texas once again and brought the team to the brink of bowl eligibility, though the loss to Indiana has the team stuck at five wins. Pigrome, who nearly led a comeback against the Hoosiers, is in line to start for the final two games against Ohio State and Penn State.
Hill started the season strong against the Longhorns, completing 17-of-29 passes for 222 yards and a touchdown. He accumulated a career-high 265 yards and three touchdowns against Illinois.
But at other points, he has struggled to throw downfield. In a 35-14 loss to Temple, Hill threw for 56 yards. He managed five completions against Michigan, 47 yards against Iowa and was 4-for-12 with an interception against Indiana before his injury.
Pigrome has largely featured as a rushing threat this year, subbing into games to give defenses a different look. He hadn’t completed more than three passes in a game until his 10-for-13, 146-yard performance against Indiana.
