Perry Hills knows that the person who will start Saturday's season opener against Howard at Maryland Stadium is pretty much the same one who started last season's opener against Richmond.
Hills also knows he is not the same quarterback.
The months he has spent with new Maryland coach DJ Durkin and offensive coordinator Walt Bell have given the redshirt senior a renewed confidence that was lost somewhere along the bumpy road he had traveled with Randy Edsall and Mike Locksley.
The sessions back home in Pittsburgh the past two summers to work with Tony Colaizzi, his former high school quarterbacks coach at Central Catholic, and former NFL quarterback Gus Frerotte, have sharpened some of his weaknesses: his footwork, decision-making and athleticism.