8/8/2019 Crystal Clear - Ohio State Game Day Magazine - Terrelle

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Third-year starting quarterback Terrelle Pryorhas experienced the highs and lows ofcollege football and now he enters the2010 season totally focused on leadingthis team and being the best he can be.

by Adam Widman, Ohio State Athletics Communications

It seems like yesterday Terrelle Pryor was a 19-year-old

reshman starting his frst game with the weight o Buckeye

Nation on his shoulders.

Football and recruiting experts marveled at the unique blend

o size, speed and athleticism he showcased at Jeannette

High School in Pennsylvania that made him the nations

No. 1 recruit.

Four games into his reshman year, he was handed the

keys to the oense earlier than expected. He put on

a show in his frst career start with our touchdown

passes in the 28-10 win over the Troy Trojans. His

rookie season would be highlighted by a game-winning

12-play, 80-yard scoring drive at Wisconsins raucous

Camp Randall Stadium, which he capped o with an

11-yard touchdown run.

With the help o experienced veterans on both sides o the ball,

Pryor would go 8-1 as the starter and earn Big Ten Freshman o

the Year honors. Then last season, he led the Buckeyes to an 11-2

record, culminating with his dazzling perormance in the Rose Bowl.

Now in 2010, with 16 starters returning and Pryor an early candidate orthe Heisman Trophy, the sky is the limit once again or the Scarlet and Gray.

8/8/2019 Crystal Clear - Ohio State Game Day Magazine - Terrelle

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Since his arrival, Pryor has endured his share o highs and lows

with the spotlight locked in on him every step o the way. From

his tremendous starting debut and the game-winning drive in

Madison, to his ourth-quarter umble against Penn State and

the upset loss at Purdue last season, to his MVP perormance

in the Rose Bowl, he has been hyped, analyzed and scrutinized

as much as i not more than any other player at Ohio State.

Terrelles had an interesting career in that his reshman

year he was thrust in there a little bit more than any o us

had planned, himsel included, Coach Jim Tressel said. He

was thrust in with a veteran team, trying to ind his way,

his identity and his acceptance. By the end o the year he

really progressed.

And then his sophomore year, all o a sudden it was a

brand new huddle and he was supposedly the veteran and

the guy that was going to lead that group. And I thought

he had to igure out the dierence between what he had

experienced beore and what he was experiencing in his

sophomore year. He learned a great deal last season

and I thought it really started to crystallize in his mindduring bowl practice.

Last year, right when it looked like he had hit rock bottom

ater the loss at Purdue, Pryor and the Buckeyes reeled

o six straight wins to end the season, winning a ith

consecutive Big Ten title in the process and culminating

with the Rose Bowl victory.

(These irst two years) have been kind o a rollercoaster,

Pryor said. But like Coach Tressel says, youre going

to have your bumps. And on your worst days, you have

to learn to keep them at a minimum. So individuallyand as a team, weve had our down alls. But at the

same time weve had a lot o success and hopeully

theres a lot more ahead.

Like all great athletes, Pryor has used those ups and

downs to his advantage, learning rom his mistakes

and growing as a player and a leader.

Ive beneited a lot going through what I have, he

said. The interceptions, the umbles, the tough losses,

things like that. When I came in as a reshman, it was more

like I was just playing and having un. Now Im older and more

mature. I know I have to be ocused and lead my teammates.

During his irst two seasons, Pryor admitted his mindset and work

ethic may not have always been where it needed to be consistently.

That all changed this oseason.

Ive been much more mature and ocused, participating in outreach

programs and really concentrating on my training, Pryor said. We

compete like crazy. Guys are always out ater the workouts, doing extra

liting and running and just getting their technique down. Working on

their hands, guys catching 500 balls a week. You want to make the

play or the guy next to you.

Coach Tressel has noticed the change as well.

Hes really ocused on becoming the best he can be, he said. And

now he has a new team that hes, without question, looked to or

leadership. And I thought his summer was good as well. I eel good

about where he is right now. Hes always thinking about ootball.

It all starts tonight or Pryor and the 2010 Buckeyes.

THE WHOLE NINE YARDS

Terrelle Pryor enters the 2010 campaign with 4,815 yards of

total offense, good for 11th-place on Ohio States all-time

career list. Heres more yardage totals for current Buckeyes:

CAREER RUSHING ......YARDS ATT. AVG. TDS

Terrelle Pryor .................... 1,410 301 4.7 13

Brandon Saine .................. 1,071 231 4.6 7

Boom Herron .................... 1,039 242 4.3 13

CAREER RECEIVING ...YARDS REC. AVG. TDS

DeVier Posey .......................945 71 13.3 9

Dane Sanzenbacher............. 931 69 13.5 8

Brandon Saine .....................421 32 13.2 3

ALL-PURPOSE .............YARDS RUSH REC. RET

Brandon Saine .................. 1,776 1,071 421 284

Terrelle Pryor .................... 1,415 1,410 5 0

Boom Herron .................... 1,251 1,039 95 117

He lea rned a g

rea t

deal last season a

ndI

thought itreally st

arted

tocrystallizeinhis

mind

during bowl

practice.