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By Sept. 4, Michael Penix will be ready to shed his blue jersey, toss it in a dumpster and light it on fire.
The star quarterback should be ready to play football again, mentally prepared for his Indiana Hoosiers to take on the Iowa Hawkeyes in the opener, and physically— it is hoped — as well. Like the rest of Indiana’s quarterbacks during training camp, Penix is wearing a blue jersey, signifying that he’s off-limits to contact, although his seems a deeper shade.
With good reason. The starting QB is coming off his second ACL injury in three seasons at Indiana, but needs to stay healthy in 2021 if the Hoosiers are to have any chance to meet their lofty expectations.
And so it’s a balancing act for coach Tom Allen and Co. during training camp: Help Penix to shake off the rust from his earlier-than-desired end to last season and get him prepared to resume his activities as QB1, while also keeping him upright and injury-free.
And so Penix wears the blue.
“We’re not going to touch Michael,” 2nd-year offensive coordinator Nick Sheridan told media as Indiana opened its camp the first week of August. “So if we feel like a drill is going to put him in (harm’s) way, we’ll be smart about that. Obviously, the medical staff … and Coach Allen, they decide that, based on what the team needs. There are going to be periods when we are going to have to tackle, and if it’s one when Michael doesn’t need to be in, we’ll be smart about that.”
It’s a must. Although Indiana has other quarterback options — backup Jack Tuttle has experience, after starting the final 2 games last season, and Dexter Williams II has unproven talent — none can lead the Hoosiers to where they want to go. Where is that? An East Division title and Big Ten Championship, then into the postseason.
A healthy Penix is the only chance. Before the injury last season, the 6-foot-3 junior was leading the Big Ten in passing yards per game, at 312.2, and touchdowns (14). His ability to drive the ball down the field might be his biggest strength, as his lefty arm completed 4 passes of more than 60 yards and 11 of at least 30.
It was an impressive display, especially considering Penix was in his first season as the full-time starter. But that all came crashing down on a rather routine play vs. the Terps, when Penix scrambled along the right sideline, developed a limp and went to the IU bench. He was out for the season with a torn ACL.
Since then, Penix has kept a positive attitude while rehabbing.
“I just trust that everything is going to be OK in the end,” he said. “I have a great support system, this whole team. They all picked me up in the end in those hard times. They kept me level-headed and positive. We have great trainers here who are helping me out, they give me a lot of confidence every day. It helps me know I can come back from anything.”
Even though his 3 seasons at Indiana have ended the same — it was a clavicle injury in 2019 — Penix seems undeterred. The outlook serves him well as he looks to make yet another comeback. This offseason, the Tampa native has tried to put on as much bulk as possible, bringing his weight up to nearly 220 pounds. He hopes that will help him ward off any more injury.
And while he had to sit last season, then into winter conditioning, he tried to do as much work mentally as possible. That meant conversations with Sheridan, watching more film and seeing things through Indiana’s other quarterbacks.
“As far as mentally, just making sure I stay sharp, stay with my film study,” he said. “This offseason, I couldn’t do as much as I wanted to with the injury, so I took as many mental reps as possible. … It was making sure everybody stayed sound.”
Now, it’s important to get as much physically done as possible during training camp. It’s critical Indiana get off to a quick start this season, with a trip to Iowa in Week 1, then a visit from Cincinnati in Week 3 following the home opener vs. Idaho. Penix has to get back in a rhythm with his wide receivers, like Ty Fryfogle, which was a huge reason why IU got off to such a hot start to last season.
IU’s offensive staff is going to have to find a familiar flow too, choosing when to try to protect Penix and when to let him loose.
“The nature of the position, whether you’re scrambling off a pass or it’s a designed quarterback run, you’re going to get tackled,” Sheridan said. “It’s part of football. In our offense, we’re not trying to run the quarterback between the tackles and try to run over a 240-pound linebacker. We recruit tailbacks to do that. But there are certain times and situations, where the quarterback run element is an advantage for you. You just have to be mindful of how you want to incorporate that and pick your spots. I think it is challenging for a quarterback to run the ball in between the tackles, then get up and rip a dig route on third down; it’s not easy to do.
“You’re always trying to keep the quarterback healthy and limit the hits they get, but also recognize it’s a contact sport and they’re going to get hit. They’re going to have to avoid the rush and make plays with their legs and try to protect themselves as best they can.”
Kyle Charters, a familiar face at Gold & Black, covers Purdue, Indiana and college basketball for Saturday Tradition.