Barkley's Legend Born as Pryor Stumbles

COLUMBUS, Ohio -- So what if he was surrounded by 106,000 loons, all standing and shaking and shrieking in the fabled Horseshoe, all sensing a merciful end to Ohio State's humiliating big-game-loss stigma? So what if the forbidding first few notes of the White Stripes screamer, "Seven Nation Army,'' kept pounding through the speakers like a throbbing headache? So what if USC was stuck at its 5-yard line, looking at second-and-19 and a five-point deficit with six minutes left?

And so what if Matt Barkley's throwing shoulder was aching, a victim of a throwdown by defensive tackle Nathan Williams? Somehow, none of these issues gave Barkley any reason for pause Saturday night. He wears No. 7, like another California-bred quarterback who once forged a legend deep in his own territory in a hostile environment. Just as John Elway told his mates that they had their opponents right where they wanted them, Barkley had calming words for the Trojans when all seemed lost. The difference between the two?

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Oh, he turned 19 the other day, when his parents drove up from Orange County and presented their son with a sandwich on his birthday.

"I was telling the guys, 'Let's be ourselves and get the job done. We didn't come all this way to lose,' '' said Barkley, the true freshman who views football as fun, not life and death. "I was saying, 'We just gotta have the mindset that we're Trojans and this is who we are all about.' ''

Fourteen plays and millions of skipped heartbeats later, Barkley had written his first special chapter in a career certain to include many such moments on a couple of levels. You cringed when someone called him the next Joe Montana? Never have I seen a quarterback so young, in a game with Bowl Championship Series implications, carve out an epic 86-yard rally in an enemy setting. He made huge third-down throws for big yardage. He plunged into the line, once on fourth down. He was smart enough to get out of the way when Joe McKnight, the gifted running back, was running and catching. Anyone who thought Barkley would act like a teenager, succumb to Buckeye mania and throw an interception was sadly mistaken. What he did was show America that the hype and fuss, part of being the latest USC quarterback in the Hollywood assembly line, isn't the least bit overdone.

"I'm truly living the dream. There's nothing more I could ask for than to come back and win like this,'' he said after the 18-15 victory. "It doesn't matter where we are in the score. We found a way. When we punched it in, it was good to hear the silence. We practice the two-minute drill all the time, and that last drive solidifies what Trojan football is about. We just had to have the mindset that it was now or never. I had 100 percent faith in our line and our receivers and coaching staff. That last drive, I was just stoked.''

The ridiculous noise didn't bother him? "I don't get nervous about this stuff,'' he said. "I've got my guys around me. I loved the stadium. It was awesome, and their fans rocked all night. It was the loudest crowd by far that I've ever been around. It was a little hard to hear at times, and it was definitely a hostile environment where I couldn't hear myself, but I don't think it affected how we played.''

It didn't because Barkley, leading by example, wouldn't let the pressure bother him. His numbers weren't overwhelming -- 15 of 31, 195 yards and an ugly interception -- but it's easy to examine his poise, arm strength and toughness and project a long, successful, prolific career. "He's not 19. He's our quarterback,'' said coach Pete Carroll, he of the Barkley man-crush. "I'm not worried about how old he is. Numbers mean nothing. He's as calm as can be and he's having fun. And he's not arrogant or cocky in the least. He's just a complete ballplayer.''

"He's not an 18-year-old kid anymore,'' McKnight said. "He's gonna take us all the way to the promised land. He came into the huddle with the same composure he had the whole game. He was calm. He made plays."

"It was huge," linebacker Chris Galippo said. "Inspiring."

The same can't be necessarily said for Terrelle Pryor, his counterpart in this defining early moment in their quarterbacking careers. While Barkley is mature beyond his years, Pryor makes skittish mistakes on and off the field, as seen last week with his unfortunate comments supporting Michael Vick.

"Not everybody is the perfect person in the world. Everyone does -- kills people, murders people, steals from you, steals from me. I just feel that people need to give him a chance,'' Pryor said. This time, he didn't wear a Vick tribute on his eye-black message, preferring for an Ohio State emblem under each eye. But he still was a maddening study in inconsistency.

When Pryor is running in the open field, he can be unstoppable. He also led Ohio State to an early lead by hitting several long-range passes. But he'll also do dumb things such as throw a regrettable early interception, which led to USC's first touchdown, and make careless mistakes with the ball. He may have thrown for 177 yards and run for 36, but the Buckeyes had only 10 first downs and struggled with offensive continuity. While Barkley was maintaining his poise, Pryor took a costly sack that pushed Ohio State out of field-goal range. Then, after USC took the lead with just over a minute left, Pryor was sacked for an 18-yard loss that grew uglier when he was flagged for intentional grounding. Breathtaking as his skills are, Pryor never gives Ohio State fans a sense of comfort. Because he is so inconsistent, they have no idea what to expect.

Except a big mouth.
"We should have beat them," Pryor said. "Point blank, we should have beat them."

No, the right team won, as it always does. USC now owns seven straight victories over the Buckeyes, who have lost their last six games against top-5 teams under the gradually embattled Jim Tressel. If Ohio State was impressive in exuding emotion and focus, I never had any sense that Pryor could point his team to a promised land. "They all hurt,'' Tressel said, "but this one hurts the most because it's right now.''

And because his defense couldn't hold a lead. "It's very frustrating, but we knew eventually they'd make plays," linebacker Brian Rolle said. "The last drive was heartbreaking. Definitely, you go back and you think about, and you think about how close you came to winning."

Nothing is big about the Big Ten these days, with the possible exception of Penn State and Michigan, which apparently returned to respectability with a thrilling win over Notre Dame and clock-mismanaging buffoon Charlie Weis. Frankly, it's hard to watch this conference and take it seriously when Florida and Texas are markedly better and the Big Ten can't win a big game.

Those two teams will play for a national championship if they win out. If not? Don't be shocked if the Trojans, assuming they don't have one of their Pac-10 slip-ups, show up in the BCS title game. In that case, Matt Barkley and his golden hair will be a national phenomenon.

"I was made to do this,'' he said. "I love this.''

The feeling, so far, is mutual.