The No. 11 Penn State Nittany Lions and the No. 16 Ohio State Buckeyes will meet inside Beaver Stadium on Saturday at 3:30 p.m. for the 25th time in series history. The all-time series record is tied at 12 wins apiece, making this grudge match even more important. A shot at the Big Ten title hangs in the balance for both teams; a win keeps them alive and a loss severely damages their chances.

Terrelle Pryor will make his first trip into Beaver Stadium and face a ruckus crowd. Pryor was recruited to Penn State by Joe Paterno and his coaching staff but turned his back on his instate school to go to Jim Tressel’s Ohio State program. The students haven’t forgotten.

Pryor coughed up a key fumble near the end of the matchup in Columbus last season and will be looking to defeat Penn State (8-1, 4-1) for the first time. He has thrown for 1,543 yards and 13 touchdowns, with nine interceptions this season. His legs are also dangerous, as he leads Ohio State (7-2, 4-1) in rushing with 110 attempts for 554 yards and six touchdowns.

He will face a tough Penn State defense that is near or at the top of almost every defensive statistic in the Big Ten. A line backing core of Sean Lee, Navarro Bowman and Josh Hall will try to shadow Pryor all game.

The biggest threat for Ohio State in the passing game is DeVier Posey, who has 43 receptions for 595 yards and six touchdowns. It should be tough to pass considering Penn State allows a Big Ten fewest 170.7 passing yards per game and Ohio State only averages 189.6 yards through the air.

The ground game is what Ohio State relies on. They rush for a tick over 186 yards a game. Penn State however, only allows 84.1 yards per game rushing so something will have to give.

On the other side of the ball Darryl Clark will look to stay hot. He has now thrown for 2,158 yards and 18 touchdowns, with seven interceptions. Derek Moye is his favorite target with 39 receptions for 648 yards and five touchdowns.

Evan Royster has been hitting the 100-yard mark lately and will again get the lion share of the carries with Stephfon green still questionable. He has 759 yards and a 5.9 yards per carry average this season. He will have his work cut out for him because Ohio State is second behind only Penn State in rushing defense, allowing 86 yards per game.

It should be a defensive struggle, as Penn State allows 9.3 points per game and Ohio State allows 11.7. Last year the final was 13-6 Nittany Lions and I would expect another Big Ten defensive clash on Saturday.

Turnovers will play a critical role in deciding which team walks away with the victory and the hope of still winning a Big Ten championship.