Penny's game growing by leaps and bounds
Tailback has gained 380 rushing yards in last two Idaho games
MOSCOW - A nifty hurdle move in the second quarter was just a small sample of what Elijhaa Penny's added to his repertoire since he came to Idaho as a big, bulky downhill runner specializing mostly in the shorter stuff.
A more appropriate illustration of Penny's progress would be the career-high rushing totals he posted in recent games against Louisiana-Monroe and New Mexico State.
Penny's first PR came two weeks ago against the Warhawks when he hit 188 yards on the ground on 36 carries - also a career-best.
Saturday against the Aggies, Penny did one better, accumulating 192 yards on 35 carries. He'd tack on three receptions and 58 yards receiving. Penny's final line: 250 all-purpose yards and three touchdowns.
Which should've been sweeter than it actually was.
"It's really sad for a guy like Penny to walk off that field without a win," Idaho coach Paul Petrino said Tuesday. "He rushes for that many yards, runs for two touchdowns, he catches a touchdown. He left everything he had out on that field."
The Vandals dropped a 55-48 overtime heartbreaker to NMSU, dipping to 3-5 overall and 2-3 in Sun Belt Conference play.
Penny said he hopes to eclipse the 200-yard barrier when the Vandals visit South Alabama on Saturday (noon PST, ESPN3).
But the generic rushing numbers - yards per game, yards per carry, etc. - aren't the ones that are most impressive to UI coaches when it comes to their feature back.
They spend considerable time focusing on "bull yards," or yards after contact.
"He's been breaking a ton of tackles, really running through guys," running backs coach Jason Shumaker said. "We emphasize bull yards and he's had over 100 yards of bull yards each of the past two weeks."
Penny is up to 814 yards this season - a massive leap from the 589 he compiled in 2014, considering Idaho still has four games remaining.
"Just watching the film from this year and last year, I've watched several things," Penny said. "My knee drive is better, my speed is better, I'm getting to the line of speed faster. So it's just putting the defense in a bad situation to tackle me."
Especially if he can add hurdling to the regular routine.
It was second-and-10 from the NMSU 45-yard line when Penny hit the left sideline and ate up 10 yards before leaping over NMSU defensive back Lewis Hill for a 20-yard pickup.
"When I got here, I did it in fall camp and I kind of hurt myself and coach Shumaker kind of told me, 'All right just stop doing it,' " Penny said. "So I stopped, but Saturday I was feeling good. My mom was like, 'That's what you do, do it more often do what you do.' "
