There were a couple of developments on the quarterback front for Maryland Wednesday morning.
The one with the most immediate impact was the announcement that Perry Hills has been named the Terps’ starter at the position. Hills, a senior, had been involved in an offseason-long competition with fellow senior Caleb Rowe for the starting job.
Hills started eight games last season and ran for 535 yards, the fourth-most by a quarterback in the program’s history. He also tossed 13 interceptions; in fact, Hills and Rowe, who started the other four games, combined to toss a staggering 28 interceptions.
Of the 114 quarterbacks in passing efficiency listed on the NCAA’s stats website, Hills was 109th. The 114th? Rowe.
“After an open competition through the spring and the first two-plus weeks of training camp, we’re excited to move forward with Perry as our starting quarterback,” said first-year head coach DJ Durkin in a statement. “Perry has embraced this challenge from day one and has put in the work and shown improvement every day. He’s grasped our offense and the way we want to do things, and has shown tremendous leadership.”
In addition to the Hills news, the U of M also announced the addition of transfer Caleb Henderson. The quarterback had just confirmed via Twitter four days ago that he would be transferring from North Carolina.
A four-star member of UNC’s 2014 recruiting class, Henderson was rated as the No. 10 pro-style quarterback in the country and the No. 7 player at any position in the state of Virginia.
After redshirting as a true freshman, Henderson played in a pair of games last season. He attempted one pass, which fell incomplete.
Henderson will be forced to sit out the 2016 season. He’ll then have two years of eligibility remaining beginning in 2017.