Penn State defensive lineman PJ Mustipher made his return to the practice field Monday after suffering a left knee injury against Iowa in October.

It’s been a long time coming. Reporters saw Mustipher going through drills Monday morning.

“The process was very difficult,” Mustipher said at B1G media days, via Lions 247. “I’m glad it’s coming to an end. I still got a lot of work to do, but for now, I’m taking it one day at a time. I know there are going to continue to be challenges, but I’m built for it. This process has built me for it. I wasn’t built for it before, but I feel great, man. I feel great. I’ve told everybody that’s asked me, I passed the conditioning test on Monday. Very excited about that. It wasn’t modified. you can write that down. So very excited, man. I’m ready to get back out there, compete with those guys and go win.”

Mustipher earned All-B1G first team honors despite only playing half the games in the 2021 season. He recorded 21 tackles, 3 for loss and 1 sack.

“He’s back and excited and ready to go,” head coach James Franklin said. “He’s in great spirits. He feels both mentally and physically 100 percent back because I think that’s a big part of this, right, as well as not just the physical aspect of it, it’s the mental aspect of it as well.”