Washington QB Michael Penix Jr.: Tom Allen will ‘do great things’ at Penn State as defensive coordinator

HOUSTON — Michael Penix Jr. had Rome Odunze’s attention before the quarterback stepped onto Washington’s campus in 2022.

To be fair, that two-point conversion scamper he used to help Indiana beat then-No. 8 Penn State in 2020 took the college football world by storm. First, Penix punched in the game-tying touchdown with 22 seconds left in regulation, then, in overtime, tucked the two-point conversion attempt and ran toward the end zone, glancing the ball off the left front pylon as he was being shoved out of bounds by safety Jaquan Brisker.

Despite the 34-13 loss in the College Football Playoff title game, the future for Penix is bright — he’s projected by some as a top-10 pick in April’s NFL draft. And wherever he lands, he’ll bring with him perseverance forged under the direction of former Hoosiers head coach Tom Allen.

“I feel like he cares about his players. He cares about the person more than the player,” Penix said Saturday at the pregame media day. “I feel like he’s a guy that will definitely do great things at Penn State. He’s going to bring great leadership. He’s going to bring great energy, intensity each and every day.”

Good to know about Allen, the new Penn State defensive coordinator who was Indiana’s coach from 2016 to 2023. What will he bring to a unit that was the No. 2 total defense in the country (behind Big Ten foe and national champ Michigan) and the top rushing defense in 2023?

» READ MORE: Penn State officially hires former Indiana coach Tom Allen as defensive coordinator

“He was always the same guy every day and always had that same energy, same spark, trying to help the team be better in any way that he could,” Penix said of Allen, who was hired after Manny Diaz left for Duke’s head coaching job. “I feel like they’re definitely getting a good coach.”

That two-point conversion helped put Penix on the map, but it’s what happened after that viral play against the Nittany Lions that really stuck with Odunze, the Huskies’ star receiver who caught five passes for a game-high 87 yards on Monday. He said Penix, a Heisman Trophy finalist this season, opened up to the Huskies about his injury history during chapel one day.

The Florida native Penix suffered significant injuries in each of his four seasons at Indiana — season-ending ACL injuries in 2018 (against Penn State) and 2020 and shoulder injuries that cut his 2019 and 2021 campaigns short.

He eventually continued his journey west and linked up with Kalen DeBoer, who was the Hoosiers’ offensive coordinator in 2019. DeBoer knew Penix was someone “you could build a team around,” in terms of on-field skill and who he is as a person.

“I knew he was a guy that could come in here and do exactly what he’s doing. And I don’t say that arrogantly; that’s all on Michael,” DeBoer said. “That’s a human compliment to just everything that he stands for and what his ability level is when it comes to processing defenses, getting the ball where it needs to be and leading a football team. …

“It’s just really cool to see his growth and see him come so far and just take over this program. I think even just managing a fan base and working with them and embracing a fan base, probably the best way to say it. I’m just really proud of how he’s handled all of it, and his story is special. And it’s because he’s a special guy.”

» READ MORE: Washington got ‘put through the wringer’ in the Pac-12. Monday’s CFP championship vs. Michigan is a peek into the future.

Penix’s love for his teammates is evident — just look at the jacket he wore to the Heisman Trophy ceremony — and that admiration goes both ways.

“Oh, he means everything,” Odunze said. “I mean, he came to this program a little bit broken, you could say, after being through so many injuries and struggling in his college football career but before that being a Heisman candidate and being up there with some of the bigger names and falling to where he’s been and he came here and he had the mindset to just improve, improve, improve, and he brought all of us along with him.

“We wouldn’t have had the success we’ve had without him, and his spirit, his on-the-field plays, his off-the-field camaraderie, it’s really something special and something to behold. So for me for this program, I think we’re all just super grateful that he chose us.”

The duo struggled to establish a rhythm on Monday as Penix was picked off twice while throwing for 255 yards on 27-of-51 passing with one touchdown. He took his lumps on the field, but he was determined to finish the game, even as Michigan pulled away.

But that resilience forged while he was wearing Hoosiers cream and crimson rubbed off on his teammates, too.

“He was doing amazing things, and then he had a bunch of injuries that kind of put a halt on his career, so he had to have the wherewithal to go through those moments and then persevere,” Odunze said. “He brought that mindset straight to us. … We had been a program that wasn’t [living] up to expectations so he fit right in and with his mindset and his culture and the way he [led] us, we just followed his lead and ran with it.”