Alex Palczewski immediately knew something wasn't right. As an offensive lineman, he constantly faces the physical demands of the position, but this time was different.

On Nov. 14, 2020, midway through Illinois' win over Rutgers, Palczewski felt a pop in his knee and immediately received treatment on the field. Despite needing assistance getting to the sideline, he pleaded with the team's medical staff to let him get back on the field.

He did everything they asked of him. He sprinted 50 yards, down and back, eager to demonstrate that he was good to go. It was after he finished his required run that his knee buckled, and he slowly recognized the reality of the situation: He had torn his ACL.

Already playing through a torn Lisfranc, Palczewski underwent three intensive surgeries over a six-month span that sidelined him from the sport he grew up around. In a time of need, he turned to his family, who continues to be his backbone and inspiration.

"My dad helped grant me perspective," Palczewski said. "I was sitting there frustrated after the second surgery. I was six weeks post-op my ACL, I was on a scooter, and I couldn't put weight on my left foot for six weeks. I just thought, 'What has happening to me?' I called my dad, kind of complained and cried a little bit. He told me, 'Listen, at least you're alive. There's people that are going out in the world who are battling through sickness, illness, through terrible diseases.' At least I get to wake up every morning, breathe air, and just enjoy life.

"It pissed me off. It made me mad in the moment, but it kind of granted me perspective that like, 'Alright, I get to feel this pain.' I know, it sounds weird, but I get to feel this pain. This pain is what makes him feel alive, and I knew the only thing that can stop me was myself."

Prior to suffering the season-ending knee in 2020, Palczewski recorded 40 straight starts and was a staple of the Illinois offensive line room. He was a team captain in 2020 and earned two-time All-Big Ten honors in his sophomore and junior seasons.

He first entered the starting lineup as a freshman, a role he did not expect to take on so early on in his college career. He credits former teammates Nick Allegretti, Christian DiLauro, and Mike Dudek for helping him getting acclimated at Illinois. A wide-eyed first-year lineman, Palczewski says Allegretti told him he needed to not always play with a smile on his face and instead be tougher.

"I had no idea how all this stuff worked," Palczewski said. "The only thing that I knew I was gonna do was work as hard as I could. That was my biggest thing that my coaches taught me, that my dad taught me. No matter what happens, just work as hard as you can, practice as hard as you can, lift, everything. I knew whatever was gonna come out of it was gonna come out of it."

His surgeries, rehab, and recovery coincided with a change at the helm of the program, a time of uncertainty inside the walls of Smith Center. When the rest of the Illini returned from a road game against Northwestern, Palczewski reconvened with the group for a team meeting and could sense an unfamiliar uneasiness.

"I was able to crutch up," Palczewski said. "I couldn't move my leg at all, but I was just happy to be back in the building and see all the coaches and the team. It was just weird because I remember when I got there, everyone was kind of wide-eyed, like something was going on. Obviously, Coach (Lovie) Smith told us that he had been fired. It was a weird situation. Luckily, the training staff stayed, so I was able to keep continuity with that, but it was definitely weird. I had coaches that had never seen me play before fully healthy. It was just something that I had to fight through, but I just knew that I had to work as hard as I could and just control what I can control."

Palczewski used the winter and spring of 2021 to gradually return to 100%. After completing his third surgery in May, he was fully cleared to start running in the middle of June, and he was able to get healthy enough to participate in fall camp and ultimately start Illinois' 2021 season opener.

He started all 12 games during his fifth season, playing at both guard and tackle. He earned All-Big Ten honors for the third time in his career, one year removed from three surgeries.

When the opportunity came to return for a sixth season, Palczewski knew he could not say no. 

"The biggest thing that I thought about when I was coming back was just being able to have a full offseason," Palczewski said. "After the 2019 season, I had shoulder surgery, and then obviously COVID hit and everyone went through that. Throughout all of 2021, I was rehabbing and I couldn't really train the way I wanted to, so being able to have a full offseason where I wasn't injured or coming off something was a big thing."

He has taken full advantage of the additional year in college, putting together his best season yet. Palczewski started all 12 regular-season games, served as a team captain for the second time, guided the Illini to their best regular-season finish in 15 years, and earned All-Big Ten Second-Team honors for the first time in his career. He is also a key piece of an Illinois offensive line that was named a Joe Moore Award semifinalist.

Palczewski holds the program record and the all-time Big Ten record in career starts with 64, and he could tie an FBS starts record if he starts the Illini's bowl game. He will be just the second ever bowl captain in Illinois football history, joining College Football Hall of Famer Moe Gardner. 

The 2022 season is guaranteed to be his last time donning the Orange and Blue, but he is appreciative of his six years in Champaign. Heading to Illinois as a three-star prospect from Mount Prospect, Palczewski will leave the Illini with his name etched in the record books. He has achieved his goal of leaving the program better than he found it, albeit a couple seasons later than he anticipated.

"I want my legacy to be that anyone can be great," Palczewski said. "I wasn't recruited almost at all out of high school, and I wasn't expecting anything. Just being able to work your tail off and just truly become the best version of yourself, it's extraordinary about what it can do to you. 

"I've seen a lot of people come through this building, different types of people, but the common denominator between everyone who's ever been successful – not even in football, but just in life – is just being the best versions of themselves and just knowing that if you truly want to be great at something, the formula is simple: You just have to work hard and truly love it. That's the legacy I want to have."