At stages in quarterback Perry Hills’ Maryland football career, he had doubts.
Would he be able to push through the rehabilitation of the torn ACL he suffered at the end of his true freshman season, the effects of which lingered through his redshirt sophomore campaign? Was the constant shuffle at quarterback and the inconsistency of the team’s performance worth it?
Then Hills would think about the NFL player he looks up to most: Tom Brady. Brady wasn’t an entrenched starter as a player at Michigan, but he went on to become an NFL star. Hills decided to tough it out in College Park.
Now Hills doesn’t have many qualms about his role at Maryland. As a redshirt senior slated to start against Howard this Saturday in Maryland Stadium — the first game in what will likely be Hills’ final season of football — the Pittsburgh native wants to translate the new coaching staff’s belief and guidance into success on the field.
“Losing, to me, is the worst feeling on this earth,” Hills said. “It’s like literally taking your heart and getting it crushed. You just try to do everything possible to stay away from that feeling.”
When offensive coordinator Walt Bell arrived in College Park, he had some doubts, too. In fact, he said the sight of the Terps’ first practice made him want to hop on a plane and fly back to Jonesboro, Arkansas, where he coached at Arkansas State the past two seasons.
Once Hills started to complete some passes, though, Bell settled in. So did the quarterback.
Hills’ first deep ball this spring came as somewhat of a surprise to Bell. After all, he threw 13 interceptions last season as the Terps’ quarterbacks combined to lead the country in that statistic. The second long completion brought some cheers and pats on Hills’ back. After a few days of similar results, Bell saw increased confidence from Hills.
The feeling continued through the summer.
Before voluntary practices each Saturday, Hills sent out text messages to make sure his receivers attended. He wanted to practice extra routes after the team’s weight lifting and led dynamic stretching. Hills hardly left the team’s facility, pestering Bell with questions.
“He completely gets that moderation is for cowards,” Bell said. “He and I are on the same page. Anything in life that is worth doing is definitely worth overdoing.”
That explains why Hills can’t temper his competitive edge.
He wants to win everything. He’ll be the last player holding a wall-sit, Bell said, joking Hills would go seven hours if that’s what it took to win. When Hills was a true freshmen, he tried to beat everyone in sprints and worked in hopes of one day topping the speedy wide receivers. Off the field, he claims no one can beat him in Call of Duty.
“I’m going to compete to be the most competitive,” Hills said.
Hills admits he experienced some rough patches during last year’s 3-9 campaign. Coach Randy Edsall was fired midseason, and the quarterback rotation was in flux.
“Just pure mental toughness and fortitude, he can get to a very dark place and survive there for a very long time,” Bell said. “Mentally, he’s as strong a human being as I’ve ever seen.”
Some days, Hills had trouble getting out of bed, as he took a beating as the team’s top passer and second-leading rusher. But the pounding style also helped Hills discover some momentum.
He rushed for 170 yards and two touchdowns against Ohio State in October. The following contest, he netted another 124 yards on the ground to go with 225 passing yards against Penn State.
Part of this success stemmed from Hills’ mentality. For example, he reasoned that if he faced a third-and-1 situation and went out of bounds short of a conversion, he might lose his teammates’ respect.
Hills didn’t want to leave any room for doubt.
“You try to lower your shoulder and run over a linebacker,” Hills said. “Fire them up and get the team rolling.”
