Terrelle Pryor: The Big Ten’s Best Clutch QB.
It seems like every website is doing a Top XX players to look out for in 2009 these days, and one recurring theme I’ve noticed is that Terrelle Pryor gets ranked generously high on all them. It’s undoubtedly annoying, considering how shaky of a passer he was last season and has yet to prove himself as a true dual-threat QB but it’s to be expected given TP’s potential to explode onto the scene any minute now, much like the #1-ranked recruit in the nation that he was last year.
Scout.com however, has taken the TP hype-fest to a whole new level. Observe:
9. QB Terrelle Pryor, Soph., Ohio State
The super-recruit who kept Michigan, Penn State, and Ohio State fans waiting on the edge of their seats was the team’s best quarterback from the moment he arrived on campus, but the coaching staff still went with Todd Boeckman early on and gave Pryor a few drives here and there to throw defenses a curve ball. He completed 7-of-9 passes against USC, and ran for 40 yards, and he threw four touchdown passes in a win over Troy, but his era truly arrived late in an early October game against Wisconsin. He only ran for 20 yards on the day and he completed 13-of-19 passes for 144 yards with an interception, but when he had to, he came up with a tremendous late scoring drive for the 20-17 win. This offseason, the 6-6, 235-pound sophomore with elite speed busted his tail to become a better quarterback, and worked his arm to the point of exhaustion with throw after throw after throw to improve his accuracy. While he still needs technique work, and he’s still going to rely on his legs more often than not, he should be a far more confident passer and he should do far more for the offense.
Alright that wasn’t the disturbing part but wait for it…
66. QB Daryll Clark, Sr., Penn State
With a sixth year of eligibility, Clark is back after an MVP-caliber season (even though Iowa’s Shonn Greene was the Big Ten Player of the Year) completing 60% of his throws for 2,592 yards with 19 touchdowns and just six interceptions. He also ran for 282 yards and ten touchdowns. At 6-2 and 233 pounds, he’s a thick, tough, strong player with excellent mobility and a great command of the offense. With so many new pieces to the Penn State offensive puzzle, he’ll have to be even steadier this season. With his experience, he appears ready to make everyone around him better. The one question mark is his ability in the clutch. While he helped lead the way to an Alamo Bowl win over Texas A&M two years ago, he threw a key late interception against Iowa that ended up leading to the Hawkeye’s game-winning drive, and it was Pat Devlin who led the way to the win at Ohio State with the key late drive (after Clark got knocked out of the game). And then there was the Rose Bowl, when he was fantastic in the second half against USC after he struggled and the team was getting blown out in the first half. That’s not to say he can’t be the main man when needed, but unlike last year, he’ll have to carry the team through adversity.
So if ‘leading the way’ involves continually handing the ball off to your tailbacks and then punching it in all by yourself at the 1-yard line as a result of their hard work, then perhaps they have a point. They also make a good point about Clark’s interception problem, because anyone who’s worthy of a Top 10 player ranking should never find himself in such a predicament…But who the hell’s listening? Let’s watch a highlight clip of the Big Ten’s best clutch QB, shall we?
