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IOWA CITY – Kirk Ferentz momentarily thought about putting in a quick call to the big city this week to see if he could get a power forward to pop out to Iowa for a day.

He figured it would be the only way to properly let his defense know what it’s up against Saturday when the Iowa football team gets its first glimpse of Terrelle Pryor in a winner-take-all Big Ten showdown at Ohio Stadium.

“There’s nobody in this state, maybe not in the Midwest outside of the Chicago Bulls, who can simulate his athleticism,” the Hawkeye coach said of Ohio State’s sophomore quarterback. “It’s kind of scary how fast he is. It looks like he’s gliding but he’s really moving.”

The 6-foot-6, 235-pound Pryor was well known to football fans across the country long before he entered college.

His high school stats reflected an athlete who did what he wanted, how he wanted, where he wanted and whenever he wanted. As a senior at Jeannette, Pa., High School, Pryor rushed for 1,899 yards and passed for 1,889 for a team that went 16-0. He also scored more than 2,000 points in his high school basketball career and led his team to state titles in both sports.

He won every major national player of the year award, was No. 1 on every national recruiting list and became the focal point of a very heated, very public four-way recruiting war among Ohio State, Michigan, Penn State and Oregon.

Pryor has had his ups and downs at the college level, but he played well enough last year to be named the Big Ten freshman of the year and he was the Big Ten’s preseason offensive player of the year this fall.

It’s not out of the question that he could win the post-season award as well.

He currently is fourth in the Big Ten in passing efficiency and fifth in rushing (first among quarterbacks), and seems to smooth off a few more rough edges with each passing week.

“I like their offense with him,” Ferentz said. “He’s found a rhythm. He’s more comfortable now. He’s more experienced. He’s always been a phenomenal athlete and now he’s becoming a better quarterback.”

Ohio State coach Jim Tressel likes what he has seen although he’s not yet ready to pronounce Pryor a finished product.

“As soon as you start making a broad statement about where you are, your next day might send you in a different direction,” Tressel said. “He really has a passion to be good and he’s very coachable … I think he took a step (against Penn State). If he keeps improving, I think he can be a very good quarterback.”

The Hawkeyes figure “very good’’ is a bit of an understatement. Iowa linebacker Pat Angerer called Pryor “a stud.”

“He’s probably faster than anyone we’ll see all season,” Angerer said. “Unfortunately, he throws the ball pretty well, too.”