My Two Cents: Peyton Ramsey Everything You'd Want in a Teammate
COLLEGE PARK, Md. — Here we go again.
That was my first thought when Indiana quarterback Michael Penix Jr. — the anointed star with the big arm — got hit hard near the end of the first quarter and was slow to get up. He looked hurt and, it turned out, he was .
So in trotted junior quarterback Peyton Ramsey, the guy before the guy. And, once again, he had to be the guy after the guy.
It's a unique role, being the backup quarterback, especially to someone with so much promise and panache like Penix. Sometimes, being the No. 2 means just holding a clipboard, and some people are fine with that.
Not Ramsey. For him, it's different because he's been Indiana's starting quarterback for two years, only to lose the job to Penix in fall camp.
Despite that demotion — which he admits was very hard to take — Ramsey shows up to work every day. He prepares every day like he's going to start, even though he knows he's not. Still, he does everything he needs to do to help his team win a game.
Indiana needed him Saturday, in a big way. And Ramsey delivered, playing well after Penix went down and leading Indiana to a 34-28 victory over Maryland for the Hoosiers' second consecutive Big Ten win.
"The (hardest part) is, obviously, the fact that I know I'm not going to start,'' Ramsey said when asked about what it's like to be QB2. "Some days, it's hard mentally to get yourself to go into the film room. But it's just mental, it's just discipline. You've got to do it. You never know when you're team is going to need you.
"We have great guys in this locker room who work so hard, and if I had let those guys down, it would have been miserable. That'd be hard to live with.''
Ramsey was 20 of 27 passing for 193 yards and a touchdown. In baseball parlance, he came out of the bullpen to get the win. He made some big throws, but he also made some huge plays with his legs, converting a few third downs with big runs.
It meant a lot to him. And why? Because that's just the type of kid he is. He loves his teammates, loves what this group is trying to accomplish, and he loves being a part of getting a huge win in a season that just might be changing the direction of Indiana football.
"It's hard (not starting), and that's why this is so emotional. You prepare every single week like you're going to be the guy, but you never know when you're number is going to be called,'' Ramsey said.
"It's a real credit to Coach (Kalen) DeBoer and all the offensive coaches in a week of practice in getting me ready, getting me prepared. I was really locked in to the game plan and I knew what we were doing, and where the ball was supposed to go.''
Indiana coach Tom Allen was all about throwing the credit back Ramsey's way after the game. Even though the decision to go with Penix to start the season was the right one — and still was — it was hard for Allen to pull the trigger because of the respect he has for how hard Ramsey works, and how much he cares about his teammates.
"I'm just so proud of Peyton Ramsey,'' Allen said. "What an absolutely awesome young man who was ready to play when called upon. I know this has been tough on him, but he's the ultimate team player. He proved his value to his teammates (Saturday) by preparing that way. He prepared to play the way he needed to play and executed at a high level.
"Even (Friday) night, I gave our guys a chat and that guy was so locked in to every word I said, and he may not even play a snap, you know. He was so locked into everything I said. I can tell when guys are (locked in). He's that way every day, and it never changes. He's that way in the weight room, he's that way every day at practice. It's called character. And he has it.''
Saturday was Ramsey's 26th game on the field for Indiana. He was the guy at quarterback for most of the past two seasons, which ended with 5-7 records an no bowl bids.
Penix, though, is a special talent, and even Ramsey admits that. He has a stronger arm, can get the ball downfield, and makes the Indiana offense a threat to score every time he's on he field, which they did on their first two possessions of the game, with both Penix-led drives ending with touchdowns.
But Penix also is prone to getting hurt, which is why Ramsey's role on this team is still very important. In the 19 games Indiana has played since Penix has arrived as a high-profile recruit from Tampa, Fla., he's only played in eight of them, and left three of those midstream with an injury.
Indiana needs Ramsey. Still.
After Maryland rallied to take the lead in the second quarter, Ramsey led the Hoosiers on a scoring drive just before halftime. He found Nick Westbrook in the left corner of the end zone and overthrew him a bit, but Westbrook stretched out and made a great catch to give Indiana the lead back at 24-21.
Touchdown, Indiana. Momentum, Indiana. Confidence, Indiana. In Ramsey, and in themsevles.
They were going to get this done, and Peyton Ramsey was going to lead them.
And he did. When Indiana needed a first down to keep a drive alive in the second half, Ramsey delivered. He made some good throws, and he rushed for 46 yards, none bigger than a scramble early in the fourth quarter on third-and-11. Ramsey ran for 15 yards, bulldozing over two defenders near the sticks like a 260-pound fullback to make sure he got the first down.
That's Ramsey, doing whatever it takes to help his team — his guys — win a football game.
"This is just a different group of guys,'' Ramsey said. "They all work so hard. I'll do anything for them. That play, I really try to play like that every week. I'll take one for the team. It didn't hurt as bad as it looked.''
Allen loved it. As far as he's concerned, it says everything you need to know about the tough kid from Cincinnati.
"It's savvy, it's toughness, it's grit, it's fight,'' Allen said.
"He got hit hard. No matter what, we told (third-string quarterback) Jack (Tuttle) to warm up. I wasn't sure, you know. I mean, that's the truth, I did. He's just so gritty and tough.
"That run just exemplifies who he is as a player. His ability to make those kind of plays and keep the chains moving, keep us on the field, keep us from having to give them the ball back and eat some more clock. That's a pretty good picture of who he is."
It sure is. It would have been easy for Ramsey to pack his bags and quit after getting demoted. A lot of college QBs in his position do it.
But he didn't. And why?
Because even if he's not the starting quarterback, this is still his team. For Ramsey, it really is all about the name on the front of the jersey, not the back.
He helped Indiana win a huge game Saturday. And he's going to help win some more.
That's the perfect teammate.
