Penn State defender PJ Mustipher meets with the media to discuss his progress back from injury

Penn State defensive tackle PJ Mustipher spoke with the media for roughly ten minutes on Tuesday evening. He gave an update on how training camp went for him personally and on a defensive-wide basis. In addition, the fifth-year defensive tackle discussed how he fared at camp after his significant knee injury last fall and how much he’ll play against Purdue next Thursday.

PJ Mustipher details his experience during Penn State training camp

The senior defensive tackle injured his leg on Oct. 9, in a loss to Iowa that changed Penn State’s season trajectory for the worse. Since then, Mustipher has rehabbed and worked to get back to this point. He described that journey to reporters at Big Ten Media Day but reiterated the process on Tuesday.

“I always thought I was a tough person mentally, but I don’t know, man. I went to some places, and you get to really see who you are. But at the end of the day, I’m better from that. I’m definitely more mentally tough than I was before, so I can appreciate that from the injury.”

Will he be ready to face Purdue?

There’s clearly a difference between passing a conditioning test at the start of camp and playing competitive football for Penn State. So how did the adjustment back to live contact and intense practices go for Mustipher?

“The first couple of days I was out there, I was getting back comfortable, getting my wind back. Because, you know, the conditioning test isn’t the same as football conditioning. I feel great. I felt like I had a really good camp, one of my better camps. But at the end of the day, I’m taking it day by day. The goal is to be ready for Sept. 1. It’s coming up. So, I got to continue to get better. And if I do that, everything else will take care of itself,” he said Tuesday.

Penn State defensive tackle PJ Mustipher on his journey back to football: BWI Daily

Penn State faces Purdue on Sept. 1 forthet eam’s third-straight Big Ten road opener to start the season. The Nittany Lions are coming off of a 7-6 season that started 5-0 before the ill-fated Iowa game that cost Mustipher his season. He updates the media on whether or not he’ll be full-go for the game next week and gives an idea of just how aggressive the defensive line will be in Manny Diaz’s new scheme.

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