Perry Hills was the starting quarterback for Maryland more often than not in 2015. He had an up-and-down season, as he started the first two games and then didn’t start again until Week 6.

In his first game back, at No. 1-ranked Ohio State, Hills only went 10-of-27 through the air while throwing two interceptions to his lone touchdown pass. But where Hills shined, was on the ground.

Hills ran the ball 25 times against the Buckeyes in an eventual 21-point defeat, but he garnered 170 yards (the most ever by a Maryland quarterback in a single game) and two touchdowns. The very next week, against Penn State, he ran for 124 yards.

The week after, at Iowa, he ran for 104. Hills’ passing numbers were outclassed by his rushing total multiple times, which led to him seeking help.

According to umterps.com, Hills found help from a former professional signal caller, Gus Frerotte.

“Gus and I started working together during winter break,” said Hills, in the article. “Everything we were working on had a direct influence on what I would work on when I got back to school.”

Hills and the Terrapins got themselves a new offensive coordinator in Walt Bell over the off-season, who came over from Arkansas State. Bell likes to run a spread-style offense.

“With our new offense I have to get the ball out quicker than before,” Hills said. “Gus and I worked on getting the ball straight up to my ear to avoid extra time and movement.”

Hills talked about what he and Frerotte worked on the most.

“A lot of our running schemes for quarterbacks in the new offense are similar to the past in that the concepts are the same, but it’s a little different footwork,” he said. “We did a lot of footwork. He brought a lot of things to my attention that I wouldn’t ordinarily think about. Once he did, I realized it all made a lot of sense.”

With the attention to detail, came that extra bit of confidence.

“When I got back to school I realized I was much more confident in myself as a player,” Hills said. “I knew I was ready for this season and ready to take the next step in my game.”

Hills and the Terrapins begin their 2016 season at 11 p.m. CST on Sept. 3 against Howard at home.

The entire article from umterps.com can be read here.