University of Maryland quarterback Sam Hollenbach proved last year that he could successfully compete at an elite level in college football. He showed that when he connected with Drew Weatherly on an 11-yard touchdown pass with 61 seconds left to cap an 82-yard drive in a 23-20 come-from-behind win over Navy in the 2005 season opener.
But Hollenbach also showed he could be inconsistent at times. During a 28-9 loss to Virginia Tech, he completed only 14 of 30 passes for 158 yards and two interceptions. Hollenbach?s final statistics displayed that inconsistency even further. He finished 2005 by completing 192 of 315 passes for 2,539 yards, 13 touchdowns and 15 interceptions.
However, the senior enters this season having worked hard on improving the chemistry with a group of young receivers and believes he will have far fewer turnovers in 2006.
“Right now, I?m feeling comfortable with the offense and the speed of the game,” said Hollenbach, who went 7 for 8 for 87 yards and a touchdown during Saturday?s team scrimmage. “I?m looking to be smarter on the field and reduce the amount of interceptions. I had tapes made of all the interceptions and all the good passes I made last year and feel all of that bad stuff is correctable.”
Head coach Ralph Friedgen said he sees Hollenbach making progress on the field but added he still has more work to do to become one of the top quarterbacks in the Atlantic Coast Conference.
“I?d still like to see Sam be more consistent throwing the deep ball,” Friedgen said. “We?ve had some guys open and he missed them. When you get them like that, you?ve got to pull the trigger. He?s still not where I want him to be there. I think he?s throwing the short stuff very well and the intermediate stuff very well.”
