GAME NOTES: A top-25 battle in the Big Ten takes place in Happy Valley this weekend, as the 11th-ranked Penn State Nittany Lions take on the 15th-ranked Ohio State Buckeyes.

Both teams are a game behind Iowa in the conference standings, so a loss here would all but eliminate either team from contending for the Big Ten crown. This series couldn't be any tighter, with each team winning 12 of the 24 all- time meetings. The home team has won 12 of the last 16 meetings, although Penn State posted a 13-6 victory in Columbus a year ago.

Ohio State comes into this game having won back-to-back games, including a 45-0 shutout of New Mexico State last weekend. The shutout was the third of the season for OSU.

The Nittany Lions have won five straight games since their only loss of the season against Iowa (21-10). Last week, the team used a late offensive eruption to post a 34-13 victory at Northwestern.

After a slow start to the season, sophomore signal-caller Terrelle Pryor has strung together a couple of solid performances and is starting to look like the player that keeps defensive coordinators up at night.

He is obviously a concern for Joe Paterno.

"I think they've done some things a little differently in the offense to take advantage of his tremendous ability. He started a little bit slow, to be frank with you, but the last few games he's been very, very overpowering, really. He's running well, he's throwing the ball well deep. I think he's improved. He has improved, but he was pretty darn good as a freshman and he's better as a sophomore and will continue to get better."

While his passing numbers are still mediocre at best (54.6 percent completion rate, 13 TDs and nine INTs), Pryor is still one of the top duel-threats in the nation. The athletic signal-caller is the team's leading rusher at the moment, having amassed 554 yards (6.0 ypc), while scoring six of the team's 15 rushing TDs.

Junior Brandon Saine (5.0 ypc, one TD) and sophomore Dan Herron (5.0 ypc, six TDs) add to a ground attack that is netting 186.6 ypg.

When Pryor does look downfield in the vertical game, it is usually in the direction of wideouts DeVier Posey (43 receptions, 595 yards, six TDs) and Dane Sanzenbacher (23 receptions, 460 yards, six TDs).

One area of concern for OSU will be the change in placekicking duties, as the team lost Aaron Pettrey last week to a knee injury. He will be replaced by junior Devin Barclay or perhaps freshman Ben Buchanan.

The Ohio State defense has had its ups and downs this season, but the numbers are still impressive, limiting foes to just 260.0 yards of total offense, including just 86.4 on the ground. Big plays are the name of the game in Columbus, with OSU registering 24 takeaways and 25 sacks thus far.

Middle linebacker Brian Rolle currently leads the team in tackles (68), with 4.0 TFLs and one fumble recovery. He is being pressed hard by fellow LB Ross Homan (66 tackles), who has two sacks, two interceptions and two fumble recoveries to his credit. Rush ends Thaddeus Gibson (9.5 TFLs, 4.0 sacks) and Nathan Williams (8.0 TFLs, 3.5 sacs) are the players to keep an eye on up front, while strong safety Kurt Coleman (53 tackles, three INTs) commands the same attention in the secondary.

The Nittany Lions have really elevated their game during their current win streak and a lot of it has to do with the play of quarterback Darryl Clark. The senior signal-caller has nine TD passes and five rushing scores, with only one interception over that span. One of the top rated passers in the nation, Clark has an efficiency rating of 149.3, good for 14th nationally and first in the Big Ten. He has completed 63.1 percent of his passes, for 2,158 yards, with 18 TDs, adding another five on the ground.

Jim Tressel is fully aware that Clark is peaking at the right time.

"Offensively they have the blessing of having a very veteran quarterback who you've seen grow as each year's gone on, I think this might be Daryll's sixth year because I think he spent a year at prep school and then redshirted and so forth. He's a good player. He's a physical player. Hasn't run as much this year. I would expect him to run a little bit more in this game because they're going to do whatever it takes to do in this battle, but he's making great decisions. He leads our conference in passing efficiency and he's very much in command."

Despite new faces on the outside, Clark has confidence in his receivers, as Derek Moye (39 receptions, for 648 yards and five TDs), Graham Zug (29 receptions, for 344 yards, five TDs) and Chaz Powell (25 receptions, for 352 yards, three TDs) have all been reliable.

Balance is the key however and Penn State still relies heavily on its ground assault (182.0 ypg). Talented tailback Evan Royster (859 yards, five TDs) leads the way in that area, averaging nearly six yards per carry (5.9).

Consistency is the key year-in and year-out on the defensive side of the football for Penn State and 2009 is no different. One of the better stop units in the country this season, PSU ranks first in the nation in scoring defense (9.3 ppg) and fifth in total defense (254.8 ypg). Once again, the defense is led by the play of its linebackers and few units are getting it done like LBs Josh Hull (82 tackles, two sacks, two INTs), Navorro Bowman (53 tackles, 9.0 TFLs, one INT, two fumble recoveries) and Sean Lee (49 tackles, 8.0 TFLs, 2.0 sacks).

The Nittany Lions have feasted on opposing QBs this year with 32 sacks in the first nine games. Leading the charge in that regard are tackle Jared Odrick (33 tackles, 10.0 TFLs, 6.0 sacks) and end Jack Crawford (28 tackles, team- high 13.0 TFLs, 5.5 sacks).

The Buckeyes have been very successful in the Big Ten over the last four years, having won four conference crowns, while racking up at least 10 wins each season and playing in two national title games.

The key to this game however, will be the defensive pressure put on Pryor. If the Nittany Lions can get to OSU's signal-caller early and often, big plays will be there later in the game. Look for Clark to continue his strong play and lead Penn State to a rousing victory in front of 100,000+ fans.

Sports Network Predicted Outcome: Penn State 24, Ohio State 20