One Great Hit

Here's a clip from the Jan. 1, 1990, Outback Bowl between Ohio State and Auburn. We all know what happens when the Buckeyes play SEC teams in January, but that doesn't make this clip any less cool to watch.

OSU led, 14-3, but this Zack Dumas hit on Auburn's Stacy Danley woke up the Tigers, who rallied for a 31-14 victory. But it's still important for you to watch this video if you plan to have a good weekend:

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Report: USC's Barkley Named Starting QB

By JOHN P. WISE
One Great Season

NEW YORK -- USC's highly touted freshman quarterback Matt Barkley should place a phone call -- or a Facebook friend request -- to his Ohio State counterpart, Terrelle Pryor.

YOUR THOUGHTS: Can Freshman Barkley Win in Columbus?

His first question might be, "As a true freshman, how do you handle a high-profile game with national championship implications in a hostile environment?"

Barkley Thursday was named the starting quarterback for Southern Cal, which plays Ohio State on Sept. 12 in Columbus. ESPN's Shelley Smith reported that it's not yet clear whether coach Pete Carroll's decision applies only to USC's season opener vs. San Jose State, or if the depth chart was filled out in pen to signify a more permanent ruling today.

Either way, Barkley is a talented young player who just eight months ago was roaming his high school hallways. But in 16 days, he might be asked to steer USC, always with national championship aspirations, to a victory in front of 110,000 scarlet-sweatered Buckeye backers at Ohio Stadium.

Ohio State is led by Pryor, who as a true freshman saw significant playing time at quarterback when the Bucks got blasted out of Los Angeles Coliseum last September, 35-3. With that embarrassing defeat still likely fresh in his head and a clear-cut role as team leader, Pryor will have to come up big no matter who starts where for USC. The Trojans are always dangerous on offense, nasty on defense and very well coached.

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Freshman QB Barkley Could Start at USC

By JOHN P. WISE
One Great Season

EDISON, N.J. -- Last year, Ohio State's Terrelle Pryor was under the microscope when his Buckeyes played at USC early in the season. The highly heralded freshman didn't get the start, but leading up to the game, it was expected that he would definitely get some reps. He ended up getting most of them in lieu of an ineffective Todd Boeckman.

And now, it's Matt Barkley's turn to get thrown to the wolves.

This year's top freshman quarterback could very well shake hands with a national audience for the first time when his USC Trojans return the trip to Columbus, and hopefully for Buckeyes fans, the Ohio Stadium crowd will be just as unwelcoming as the packed house in Los Angeles Coliseum was last September.

Though Pryor never really seemed rattled in last year's meeting, Ohio State was embarrassed, 35-3. And now that the word out of Southern Cal's camp has Barkley as the possible starter, only a few weeks separate us from finding out what kind of freshman performance he can deliver. Current No. 1 Aaron Corp missed Tuesday's workout and is scheduled for an MRI Wednesday, according to ESPN.com's Bruce Feldman. And as he sits, Barkley continues to impress in preseason drills.

USC coach Pete Carroll and quarterbacks coach Jeremy Bates are using words like "extraordinary" and "really good throws" and "confident" to describe Barkley, according to Feldman.

Similar words were used a year ago about Pryor. We'll find out who's more deserving of the praise on Sept. 12.

Good News

Just got my first credential approval this morning. I will be on the sideline for the Southern California at Ohio State game on Sat., Sept. 12.

Are Pryor, Ohio State Really That Surprising?

By JOHN P. WISE
One Great Season

NEW YORK -- It's amazing what we like to describe as "controversial."

Is it a surprise pick that Big Ten writers picked Ohio State to win the league? And that those same writers gave preseason offensive player of the year honors to OSU quarterback Terrelle Pryor? Both are slight surprises I think, but hardly controversial, as some bloggers are suggesting today.

+ YOUR THOUGHTS: Surprised at preseason picks?
+ ALSO: Big Ten Preview

Pryor had a good freshman season. He'll be a better passer in 2009 and will likely transition well from coddled young star to offensive leader. The athletic tools are already in place, and he showed good poise as a rookie last year. That trend will continue and he'll be the best player on what many think will be the best team in the league. It's not any crazier than a wideout from the fourth- or fifth-best team in the league (Arrelious Benn, Illinois) or a decent quarterback who lacks superstar potential -- Penn State's Darryl Clark -- being named.

I laugh when rich, old, white men in suits like to say their sport is for the fans. We all know it's really for the networks, but what are for the fans are silly preseason teams. They mean nothing. What means far more is what happens in the postseason, and I'm pretty sure if you check Google, you just be able to find, oh, maybe one or two or a million online jabs at the Big Ten's postseason track record in recent years.

For each team, a college season often shakes out as a reflection of how well your quarterback plays and how well your team performs on the road. If the slight advantage in the first category goes to Ohio State over Penn State, I think the same-sized cushion goes to the Nittany Lions in the second category, and for just one reason: Ohio State plays at Penn State in November.

We saw it in 2005 when the evenly matched Nittany Lions and Buckeyes played a tough game that Penn State won largely because of its home-field advantage. Both teams finished 7-1 in the conference, but PSU got the league's BCS bid and defeated Florida State in the Orange Bowl. I think Penn State wins the league because Ohio State has to visit Happy Valley this year. It's as simple as that.