Ohio State's Jim Tressel painted a good news-bad news scenario this week regarding his special teams. The bad news? Senior placekicker Aaron Pettrey has been lost for the remainder of the season with a knee injury. The good news? Tressel noted that the Buckeyes are "senior citizen friendly.''

Pettrey's replacement will likely be Devin Barclay, a 5-foot-11, 195-pound junior from Annapolis, Md. Barclay is the oldest player on the roster. He's 26. In this context, he's not unlike Ryan Pretorius who handled the placekicking duties a few years ago for the Buckeyes. Pretorius was 27 when he arrived on the Ohio State campus.

Barclay is a former professional soccer player. He signed his first contract when he was 17. (Pretorius, incidently, was a former professional rugby player.) After Pettrey was injured in the first half of last Saturday's game against New Mexico State, Barclay took center stage to mixed reviews. He made one field goal (from 29 yards) while missing two attempts (from 36 and 47 yards).

Tressel pointed out that the Buckeyes will have competition for Pettrey's job between Barclay and Ben Buchanan, a redshirt freshman, who was ill last week. Obviously, it won't be easy to replace Pettrey who converted on 13 of 19 field goals, including 4-of-4 between 40 and 49 yards. Pettrey was also good from 50 and 52.

While everybody is focusing on the Quarterback Dual in Happy Valley: Terrelle Pryor, the Pennsylvania native, who's playing for Ohio State, and Daryll Clark, the Ohio native, who's playing for Penn State, what if the game comes down to a dual between the kickers, Devin Barclay and Collin Wagner? Seriously.

Wouldn't it be something if Saturday's showdown between the Buckeyes and the Nittany Lions was decided by a field goal? Made or missed. Penn State's Collin Wagner waited three years in the shadows of Kevin Kelly to get his opportunity to show what he can do. Wagner has made 10-of-14 field goals. But he's only 1-of-4 beyond 40. His long is 47.

Taking his Licks

It's no secret that Pryor is far more dangerous as a runner than a thrower. Through nine games, he's the seventh leading rusher in the Big Ten with 110 carries for 554 yards. That's more than any of Ohio State's tailbacks. But there is a risk to exposing a quarterback to extra contact. Tressel admitted Tuesday that Pryor is pretty banged up.

"He has ice bags everywhere,'' Tressel said. "Even when you don't design things for him to get banged around, he likes to make plays and he attracts a crowd. Do we send him down to break up the wedge on the kickoff? No. But when there's a play that unfolds, we don't tell him to run the other direction. It's a physical game, it's a physical league and there's more physical to come.''

Is there any chance that the pounding has taken such a toll that Pryor will not be at full speed for the Nittany Lions? "I would expect him not to be debilitated,'' Tressel said. "Adrenaline is an amazing thing, even when you're feeling a little bit sore. All of a sudden the blood starts flowing and the lights are turned on and it's time to go.''

JoePa Said It

When Penn State coach Joe Paterno was asked to compare his coaching style with Tressel's, he got a little bit cranky during his weekly presser with the local beat writers in State College.

"My coaching style with Jim Tressel's?'' he posed incredulously. "Come on. Jim has done a heck of a job everywhere he's been. No, I'm not going to compare myself (to Tressel). Heck, I'll compare your writing with somebody else's writing, if you want me to do that.''

Cliche of the Week

Tressel on his late season success: "I know when I worked for Earle Bruce at Ohio State, he always used to say, 'September was for pretenders and November is for contenders.' You always have a goal of being a contender and you hope to end the month of November with a chance left at your goals.''

No love for Rich Rod

Green Bay Packers defensive back Charles Woodson has been known to speak his mind. So when he showed up Tuesday in Ann Arbor, he was a natural target for a Detroit media corps looking for a different story angle on Rich Rodriguez and the slumping Wolverines, who have dropped four straight Big Ten games. Woodson, of course, obliged. After all, it is alma mater.

"Well, I'm not excited about it, I'm not excited about losing,'' Woodson told the Detroit News. "It started out on fire (a 4-0 start) and looked good for a short period. But it's hard to watch a place you love and played (at) and to see your team struggling like that is hard.''

Memo to Charles: Your pro team ain't doing so hot, either.

Woodson acknowledged that he was getting a lot of heat about Michigan's plight from some of his Green Bay teammates, most notably Brandon Underwood. "I never thought for a day in my life I'd be taking flak from a guy who went to Cincinnati,'' Woodson said.

Worse yet, Underwood started out his college football career at Ohio State before transferring to Cincinnati.

Did he really say that?

Michigan State's Mark Dantonio on his 4-5 team: "I don't think we're going to win the Big Ten championship this year.''

Thanks for the heads-up.

Saturday's games

Penn State 21, Ohio State 14

Iowa 3, Northwestern 2 (Why not? They've won every other way.)

Michigan 40, Purdue 28

Bail Bonds 3, Minnesota 0

Michigan State 20, Western Michigan 7

Big Ten game officials 0, Big Ten replay officials 0

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