Penn State linebacker Michael Mauti says he'll be ready to play in August

For the second time in his career at Penn State, Michael Mauti is hurting as he watches spring practice from the sideline.

The pain is not coming from the torn ACL in his left knee, which he said is coming along fine and should be repaired in time for the start of preseason camp in August, but rather from his not being able to join his teammates for contact on the practice field.

"I don't really like watching from the sidelines," Mauti said.

But the senior linebacker, an all-American candidate at his position if he's healthy, is fully involved in every workout and drill as he learns the new schemes being installed by defensive coordinator Ted Roof, who was brought in by first-year head coach Bill O'Brien.

"I'm just sitting back watching film and learning the defense, just as these guys are," Mauti said. "I can help out there a little bit more with another set of eyes. I'm exchanging signals with Coach Roof. That gives me a bird's-eye view picking up the defense a little bit quicker. That's going to help me, come August."

After suffering his injury against Eastern Michigan in the fourth game of the 2011 season, the 6-foot-2, 240-pound Mauti provided so much help to then-defensive coordinator Tom Bradley the rest of the year that he dubbed himself "Coach Mauti."

He's trying to provide similar assistance with the new defense this time around.

"It does help, because you learn the concepts and schemes a little bit more," he said. "You understand the whys in what we're doing. So that definitely helps a little bit, kind of slows things down. You get a little bit more savvy with formations and things like that. So it helps."

As for his knee, Mauti has remained patient, although he admitted that if the April 21 Blue-White Game were an actual regular-season game, "I'd be playing in it."

He said this injury has been easier to deal with than the last torn ACL, in his right knee, which he suffered during preseason camp in 2009.

"You don't know what you're capable of until you're put in certain situations when dealing with adversity," he said. "I know what to expect this time. I know where I should be at what times as far as how my progression is going. Right now, I'm feeling pretty good.

"I'm better prepared than where I was at this time the last time. So I'm trying to focus on the process. It's just a long process, a tedious process. But I'm feeling good right now about it."

Mauti described Penn State's new unit as a "mulitply aggressive defense . . . flying around showing a lot of different looks." But he said the fundamentals of the defense differ little from Bradley's long-established scheme.

"We're all excited about it, and we're really looking forward to getting out there flying around and making some plays," he said. "Penn State's always been a really good defense. We fly to the ball and tackle well, and those things aren't going to change. We're not talking about apples and oranges here."

Mauti will watch the Blue-White Game from the sideline, but he hopes to be in the middle of things for summer conditioning and then be ready to occupy one of the outside linebacking spots for the start of preseason camp.

"The good news is, I've got four more months to prepare and get myself back to 100 percent where I'd have no reservation, no restrictions whatsoever," Mauti said.