Indiana Will Not Let Anyone Near QB Michael Penix During Spring Practice

With spring football about to kick off in full force, Indiana is going out of its way to protect All-Big Ten quarterback Michael Penix.

And why not? The Hoosiers are coming off a banner year, even though Penix suffered a knee injury in November that kept him out for the rest of the season. So now, Penix, his teammates and the coaching staff are taking every possible precaution as he continues to heal. That includes making sure everyone else stays away from Penix during practice.

According to Indiana head coach Tom Allen, Penix “will definitely not be taking any reps with anybody around him. (He is) going to throw some footballs around, and things like that.”

“He's done a tremendous job of following everything we've asked him to do from a medical perspective," Allen told the media. “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.”

"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," Allen said of Penix. "We expect him to be ready to play to start the season.”

Indiana finished 6-2 overall and a surprising 6-1 in the Big Ten.

The Hoosiers are scheduled to open the 2021 season on Sept. 4 at Iowa. The home opener is seven days later, against Idaho, and Hoosier fans are already optimistic about the team as a whole and about Penix.

"I'm very optimistic about his availability," Allen said. "We're expecting him to be full bore when the season starts.”