When the Indiana football team was in the midst of spring practice, head coach Tom Allen was asked about quarterback Michael Penix Jr. and how his rehab from a torn ACL was going.
Allen didn't hold back, saying he expected Penix, who tore his ACL for the second time in last season's win against Maryland.
“He's done a tremendous job of following everything we've asked him to do from a medical perspective.” Allen acknowledged. “I've been meeting with him, meeting with the staff and just different things to just get him mentally growing and developing as a leader, growing and developing in his understanding of defenses and all of the different things he has to do to run the offense.”
Penix did not throw to his teammates or guide the offense at spring practice, but Allen did want his quarterback to continue to grow.
"I just want him to take another step in his growth and the holistic part of how he has to approach the game and be able to get where he needs to be. We expect him to be ready to play to start the season.”
If recent videos are any indication, Penix has not only gotten to where he needs to be, he will, indeed, be ready for the Sept. 4 season opening clash at Iowa.
Over the last two weeks, Penix has been seen on video throwing both inside Memorial Stadium and at the Manning Passing Academy.
In the video inside Memorial Stadium, Penix hits wide receiver Ty Fryfogle on a pass to the end zone and then launches a deep ball to Florida State transfer D.J. Matthews.
Over the weekend, a video emerged of Penix throwing at the Manning Passing Academy, generating a "good throw" response by former NFL quarterback Peyton Manning.
Penix enters the 2021 campaign with a 10-2 mark as a starter and was having a strong 2020 before being lost for the season.
As a starter in 2020, Penix led the Big Ten in passing yards, passing yards per game, passing touchdowns, completions, attempts and ended the season as a Second Team All-Big Ten Conference honoree despite getting injured. Penix threw for 1,645 yards and 14 touchdowns to just 4 interceptions in six games last season before his injury.
Pro Football Focus recently tagged Penix as the 5th best quarterback in the country and offered the following analysis:
"Despite playing behind one of the worst offensive lines in college football in 2020, Penix managed an 82.9 PFF grade in six starts before tearing his ACL in Week 13. Only four other FBS quarterbacks spent a higher rate of their dropbacks under pressure than Penix (41%), yet the Hoosier overcame that to put together quality play. He remained calm in collapsing pockets, converting pressure to sacks at an astronomically low rate of 7.4%, the best mark in the FBS.
None of this is surprising after what we saw from Penix back in 2019 when he posted an 84.0 PFF grade across six starts. And while his accuracy wasn't quite as consistent as it was in 2019, he still produced plus results in that area in 2020, ranking 19th in the FBS in the percentage of accurate passes thrown 10-plus yards downfield.
Penix ended up leading all Power Five quarterbacks in big-time throw rate this past season and established himself as one of the top passers in the country before the injury. As long as he can stay healthy, the Hoosiers can be a top-10 team again in 2021."
Penix told the media earlier this year he could feel himself progressing in his rehab.
"I’ve been doing real good, progressing every week," Penix said. "I feel myself getting a lot stronger and more comfortable with my body."
That is music to Allen's ears.
"We expect him to be ready to play to start the season. We expect him to be full go to start the season," Allen said.
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