Controversy follows Buckeyes QB Pryor

COLUMBUS, Ohio - Quarterback Terrelle Pryor, the face of OhioState's football program, has been the talk of the town since theBuckeyes' last game.

That's not necessarily a good thing.

With a date against Arkansas coming up Tuesday in the Sugar Bowl,Pryor is looking forward to getting back in his element and puttinga number of issues away from the field behind him.

The latest problem cropped up last week, when Pryor and fourteammates were suspended for the first five games of next season.Already a lighting rod for controversy, Pryor was in most of theheadlines when it was determined the players had sold rings,uniforms and awards for cash and had received discounts on tattoosfrom a local parlor over the past two years.

"I'm deeply sorry about the young, selfish mistakes I made a fewyears ago," the quarterback said, when the five players held a briefnews conference in which they declined to answer questions. "Ididn't mean to hurt nobody at all and I didn't mean to bringanything down or embarrassment to our university, because this isthe greatest university in the nation."

Ohio State's investigation determined Pryor sold his 2008 Big Tenchampionship ring, a 2009 Fiesta Bowl sportsmanship award and atradition-rich gold-pants trinket given to all Buckeyes players ifthey beat rival Michigan. Pryor must give to charity the $2,500 hereceived.

Many angry Ohio State fans have singled out Pryor in talk radiodiatribes, on the internet and in the daily newspaper's readers'forum.

The Buckeyes flew to New Orleans, site of the Sugar Bowl, onWednesday morning. As a high-profile starter, Pryor is expected tobe available at Ohio State's offensive news conference on Saturday.Then again, two years ago at the Fiesta Bowl, bowl organizers andnational media were furious that Pryor was not permitted by coachJim Tressel to talk under similar circumstances. The school willface a heavy fine if it does not produce him this time.

Pryor has done plenty of talking since the Buckeyes' last game,that's for sure.

In one comment on Twitter, he hinted of interest in playingbasketball for Ohio State's No. 2-ranked team. Then, after hereceived only honorable mention on the media's and coaches' All-BigTen teams, he Tweeted, "Damn I must be the worst QB/player. I mightquit football."

In case everyone didn't catch that hollow threat, he then reachedout to a larger audience in an interview with The Chicago Tribune inwhich he said he would "dominate" if he were in the offenses ofother comparable players. He was referring to the sets led byHeisman Trophy winner Cam Newton of Auburn and the quarterbacksselected ahead of him for all-conference.

"I'll put it like this," he told the newspaper. "You put me inany of their offenses - any of them - and I'd dominate. I'd dominatethe nation."

A teammate or two offered lukewarm support for Pryor, but thatdoesn't mean it's a unified front. It has taken some time for manyto warm to him. Defensive back Tyler Moeller said when Pryor arrivedin Columbus as the No. 1 quarterback recruit in the country out ofJeannette, Pa., he was "kind of a punk."

Not all the Buckeyes believe Pryor was overlooked on the All-BigTen awards.

"I don't think there's a feeling he got snubbed," said widereceiver Dane Sanzenbacher, the team's MVP. "There's so many goodplayers, not only in our conference but in the nation."

Controversy seems to shadow Pryor, many of them his own doing.

He wore "Vick" on an eyeblack patch in honor of Michael Vick in2009, after the Eagles quarterback had been involved in adogfighting operation. Pryor then inflamed many by saying, "Noteverybody's the perfect person in the world. I mean, everyone killspeople, murders people, steals from you, steals from me, whatever. Ithink that people need a second chance."

After Wisconsin rolled over the Buckeyes in October, handing themtheir only loss this season, Pryor petulantly said that Ohio Statecould beat the Badgers nine out of 10 times.

He also has called former Ohio State quarterback and current ESPNcollege football analyst Kirk Herbstreit "a fake Buckeye" forquestioning Pryor's emotional sideline behavior.

Tressel is always quick to defend his star, saying his quotes aresometimes taken out of context. The coach almost never finds faultwith Pryor's play or his actions, either.

Some within the team still chuckle that Tressel once offered thisbit of bombast: "There's probably not a more compassionate humanbeing in the world than Terrelle."

Tressel would not say if Pryor is one of the handful of Buckeyesjuniors who requested a draft evaluation from the NFL. Pryor hassaid he'll definitely return, but many believe he's reconsidering.Missing almost half of next season narrows the chances of impressingthe pros.

A series of what he considers slights is partly what drives atalented yet enigmatic athlete who has won games but few admirersduring his college career. Might those slights - real or perceived -provide motivation when the Buckeyes take on Arkansas?

"He's a competitive guy," Tressel said. "I don't know if I'd callit a chip on his shoulder, but he would like to be very good."