By JOHN P. WISE
One Great Season
COLUMBUS, Ohio -- Matt Barkley is and will continue to be a phenomenal quarterback. No one disputes that.
But is it possible that the local media are making far too big a deal about the fact that he's a freshman?
I think the answer to that question is a resounding yes. Everybody seems to think all Ohio State has to do is blitz him and hit him and confuse him early, and then 105,000 screaming red sweaters in Ohio Stadium Saturday night will handle the rest.
It will be nowhere near that easy.
The early chapters of the Gospel according to Matthew will be written with a steady hand, one that will be able to give the ball to any of the 459 star runners in the backfield. Many of them are blessed with that coveted speed you hear about in the SEC. If Barkley has to throw, he has one of the finest lines in the country protecting him. And then the targets he'll be throwing to are dangerous athletes as well.
USC Coach Pete Carroll says age is just a number, and what people are forgetting is that Barkley doesn't just possess the raw tools needed to be a great quarterback. He also has those intangibles like poise, confidence and a surprising ability to lead and command a huddle at such an early age.
If Ohio State can rattle Barkley -- a tall order indeed -- it won't be because he's a freshman, it will simply be because Ohio State is good enough to rattle a quarterback of any age or talent level. But time will tell if the Buckeyes defense is good enough to penetrate that great USC line.
In the video below, OSU cornerback Andre Amos clearly demonstrates that he's had some media training, offering a short chuckle off the top, then giving a fair but hardly meaty soundbite about going up against USC's prized freshman.