By: Jeff Rapp (AthlonSports.com) –

For a few months in the winter, Terrelle Pryor was not the big man on campus, even after leading Ohio State to a win in the Rose Bowl. That’s because Evan Turner was captivating the college basketball world with his all-around excellence and his amazing comeback from a scary back injury, so much so that he raked in all conceivable recognition as the National Player of the Year.

In the process, he also won over Pryor.

“Evan Turner is a beast, man,” the OSU quarterback said in February. “I can’t even go watch him because I miss basketball so much. That’s my favorite sport. But I have a love for football, too.”

Which is a good thing for Ohio State fans.

While the 6’6″ Pryor can’t quite measure up to the 6’7″ Turner and isn’t about to take his place on the hardwood — as much as Thad Matta might want him to — he certainly is in position to have a dream season of his own for the Buckeyes.

Pryor was considered the top recruit in the nation and one of the most coveted in years when he signed with Ohio State in 2008. Less than a year later, he was named Big Ten Freshman of the Year after unseating Todd Boeckman as OSU’s starting quarterback and leading the conference in pass efficiency.

That and his amazing athletic ability were enough for a panel of Big Ten voters to name him the conference preseason Offensive Player of the Year heading into the 2009 league campaign. His sophomore season, though, played to a lukewarm reception. Pryor managed to earn only All-Big Ten honorable mention, and he endured some very shaky moments.

He tossed interceptions in seven of OSU’s first eight games and at times was simply careless with the football. That included a dreadful afternoon in a shocking 26–18 loss at Purdue in which he committed four turnovers, was stuffed on the ground and left some wondering if he really had the goods to play quarterback at the major college level.

Even his most ardent supporter, OSU coach Jim Tressel, maintained that Pryor needed to show more consistency and tightened the reins on his star player. The Buckeyes safely maneuvered by Penn State, Iowa and Michigan in a daunting November schedule with Pryor throwing only 17 passes in each of those contests while rushing a total of 32 times.

The youngster wearing No. 2 playfully bit on a rose after the win in Ann Arbor, but in the weeks leading up to the Rose Bowl speculation grew as to how the offense could evolve with him under center.

Let’s just say the New Year brought a new perspective.

Tressel decided to attack high-powered Oregon from the outset, and Pryor looked reborn in an inspiring 26–17 win. He rifled the ball into tight spaces, hit a couple lobs over the top of the speedy Ducks defense and showed poise and touch on the move in completing 23-of-37 passes for 266 yards, setting career highs in each category. Pryor also tucked the ball 20 times and gained another 72 yards on the ground to capture game MVP honors.

It was a highly impressive afternoon in the California sun, especially considering Pryor was the second-youngest of the 10 quarterbacks to start in the BCS bowl games.

“To give him a chance to play in that BCS game and under the scrutiny, playing against a good football team and head-to-head with another good quarterback (Jeremiah Masoli), the All-Pac-10 quarterback, was big,” Tressel says.

“I buy antibiotics online no prescription think he learned a lot in that bowl preparation, and then obviously he got to experience a fun moment there at the bowl, and there is the natural maturation.

“Obviously the people outside had expectations from Day 1 and our expectations are rising. I’d like to think he’ll be much, much better come Sept. 2.”

That sentiment has been the theme of the offseason, especially after Pryor quickly recovered from arthroscopic surgery on his knee and turned in a highly productive and even more promising spring session.

Even at a muscular 233 pounds, he appears to be as nimble as…..

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