Terps QB Perry Hills named ACC Rookie of the Week

After his three-touchdown performance in a 36-27 win against Temple, Maryland true freshman quarterback Perry Hills was tabbed the ACC Rookie of the Week, the league announced Monday.

A week after the Terps' defensive struggle against William & Mary, a Hills-led offense managed to score in every quarter Saturday. Hills was at his best in the second quarter, where he scored all three of his touchdowns in leading the team to 23 points. Hills hit tight end Matt Furstenburg on a 22-yard pass for his first collegiate touchdown, and then connected with wide-out Marcus Leak for a 32-yard strike. He capped off the quarter with an 11-yard touchdown run on third-and-goal after a low snap. Hills finished 11 of 21 for 190 yards on the afternoon, with 15 yards on the ground.

Overall, the freshman orchestrated six scoring drives Saturday, but none more crucial then the final one. After a Temple score in the fourth quarter cut Maryland’s lead to two, Hills led an 11-play, 75-yard drive, which ended with a Justus Pickett touchdown run and included a 38-yard Hills pass to fellow freshman Stefon Diggs on third-and-11 that helped seal Maryland’s second win of the year.

Hills is the first Terps true freshman to start at quarterback since Latrez Harrison in 1999. Maryland went 5-6 that season. Hills, a Pittsburgh native, took over the starting job after junior starter C.J. Brown was lost for the year due to a knee injury in fall camp.