TERRELLE PRYOR...COME ON DOWN

For those members of the 2008 Nittany Lion squad that made the last trip out to Columbus in 2006, there will be a lot to remind them of that disappointing afternoon.

The Horseshoe is still there. Those inbred classy fans with the squirrel food Buckeyes around their necks are still there. Jim Tressel and his knitted vest is still there. Lee Corso and his mascot head is still there. But one important thing isn't still there...

An experienced quarterback.

Two years ago, Heisman Trophy winner, Troy Smith, was under center for Ohio State and even though he didn't have a great day, his escape from Tim Shaw and subsequent touchdown pass to Brian Robiskie saved the day and preserved an undefeated regular season for the Bucks.

This season, Buckeye starter Terrelle Pryor has done a fantastic job trying to live up to the unimaginable hype he was saddled with after high school. Since taking over for incumbent All Big Ten quarterback Todd Boeckman, Pryor has led Ohio State to five straight wins and put them back in the top ten.

His numbers may not be sterling, but they're not bad either. He's completed over 65% of his passes and accounted for 11 total touchdowns while only throwing two interceptions. He famously told his coach to bench him if he couldn't move his team down the field last weekend and then shredded the Michigan State defense to the tune of 94 yards on 12 carries.

Most of the freshman's damage has been done via his legs. Pryor has gained nearly as many yards rushing (548) as passing (653), and only averages 11.25 passing attempts per game.

There are some that feel Pryor has has already shown he can win the big game and handle the pressure that comes with being the Buckeye signal-caller. They point to his last minute touchdown drive on the road against Wisconsin and his efficient game in East Lansing against an, at the time, top-20 Spartan team. But something is coming on Saturday that he hasn't seen yet.

Tom Bradley and the Penn State Defense.

The Lions are tops in the conference and eighth in the country in total defense and only five teams in the nation have given up fewer points per game than Penn State. That alone would be foreboding enough for the Buckeyes this weekend, but compound the talent of the Lions' defense with a freshman quarterback on the other side of the ball, and you could have real trouble.

Bradley took over as head of the defense in 2000 and since then has had the chance to gameplan against seven freshman quarterbacks. Take a look how he's done...

YEAR	QUARTERBACK	COMP-ATT-YDS	TD-INT	RUSH ATT-YDS	RESULT
2007	Ryan Mallett	16-29-170	0-1	5-7	L 9-14
2007	Jimmy Clausen	17-32-144	0-1	10- -25	W 31-10
2006	Juice Williams	13-33-156	0-2	19-5	W 26-12
2005	Curtis Painter	6-17-60	0-0	4-29	W 33-15
2004	Kyle Israel	6-19-52	0-1	4-5	W 48-10
2003	Antwan Smith	3-9-52	0-0	6- -11	W 32-10
2000	Jeff Smoker	13-25-183	1-0	7- -40	W 42-23
-----	-----	74-164-817	1-5	55- -30	6-1

Bradley's defenses have chewed up and spit out freshman quarterbacks the way Ohio State fans eat mayonnaise. Last week, Penn State showed a more athletic look at linebacker with Navarro Bowman, Michael Mauti and Bani Gbadyu behind the dominant D-Line. Teams had been running away from The New Prince of Darkness (TNPD), but where will they run to now?

If Penn State can shut down the running of Beanie Wells and Pryor and force the young freshman to throw, it will be very tough to beat Penn State. Unlike other years when Penn State has brought good defenses out to Columbus, this year's team has an offense that will put pressure on the Buckeyes to score and take chances with the football.

For a time, Penn State fans were hoping to see Pryor in blue and white; now, I think they'll settle for black and blue.