INDIANAPOLIS -- Penn State quarterback Christian Hackenberg was a busy man at the NFL scouting combine.

Hackenberg met with the AFC South champion Texans for a formal interview.

Hackenberg has been repeatedly linked to the Texans after getting his Nittany Lions career off to a promising start as a freshman playing for future Texans coach Bill O'Brien.

Hackenberg also met with every NFL team either formally or informally during the combine, which is held at Lucas Oil Stadium.

"I think it would be a great opportunity," Hackenberg said when asked about the possibility of playing for O'Brien again. "But at the end of the day, I'm here just trying to be the best prospect I can be and impress as many football teams as I can."

Hackenberg didn't have a particularly crisp throwing session, sailing some throws and appearing to press, but the 6-4, 228-pounder did test well with a 4.78 time in the 40-yard dash and a 31-inch vertical leap.

Hackenberg passed for 2,995 yards as a freshman to establish a school record, but his production took a dip over the last two seasons under new Penn State coach James Franklin.

Hackenberg had 15 touchdowns and 12 interceptions in 2014 as he was sacked 44 times.

He was voted a team captain each of the past two seasons, setting school records with 8,457 career passing yards and 48 touchdowns, 693 completions and nine 300-yard passing games.

Last season, Hackenberg completed only 53.5 percent of his throws for 2,525 yards, 16 touchdowns and six interceptions and left a bowl game loss to Georgia due to a right shoulder sprain before declaring early for the draft.

Hackenberg went 21-17 as a starter.

The curiosity surrounding Hackenberg is whether he can recapture his freshman form. Hackenberg has been training with former NFL quarterback Jordan Palmer.

"Coming in, I had an accelerated learning curve," Hackenberg said. "I didn't get to early-enroll. Had a great bunch of guys around him. Guys who had been in the system. They definitely helped bring me along. It was a great experience overall for me.

"The system fit great and I had a great opportunity to come in and play and throw to a guy like Allen Robinson. I had a lot of people around me who made it a good transition for me and allowed me to grow and own the offense."

aaron.wilson@chron.com

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