Penn State vs. Ohio State: Will a Win Mean More to Tom Bradley or Luke Fickell?

There are a lot of different storylines surrounding this weekend’s Big Ten battle between Penn State and Ohio State, but one of the most interesting things to watch will be the coaching matchup between Ohio State’s Luke Fickell and Penn State’s Tom Bradley.

Much has already been made about how both of these two coaches were unexpectedly handed their positions amid scandal, even though you can’t compare what happened at Ohio State to the horrific sex abuse scandal that rocked Penn State.

The difference is, Fickell has had a whole offseason to prepare for his role as head coach, while Bradley has just suddenly been thrust into the position in the middle of the season.

Fickell’s 10 games of head coaching experience could prove to be a major advantage for Ohio State on Saturday, as Bradley is still trying to learn all the nuances of controlling the sideline and doing all the things a head coach has to do.

He’s had some practice and experience, since Joe Paterno has been up in the booth a lot in the last few years. However, it’s still different for Bradley, because he’s the one that now has to do all the press conferences and the one who has to handle all of the head coach’s normal responsibilities.

It’s a tough spot for any coach to get thrown into and succeed, but Bradley’s handled it about as well as you could possibly hope.

Yes, Penn State came up short against Nebraska last week, but the encouraging sign was that the Nittany Lions fought their way back in the second half. It goes to show you that the Penn State coaching staff made the proper halftime adjustments and that the players still have some fight left in them.

The loss may have dropped the Nittany Lions to 8-2 and 5-1 in the conference, but they still sit atop the leaders division.

The question is, can they hang on to that position for the next two weeks?

Ohio State also has its eye on a division crown and a trip to Indianapolis for the Big Ten title game. What's more, the Buckeyes will likely be playing hungry this week, after inexcusably getting picked off by Purdue in overtime last Saturday.

Fickell will be able to use that loss to motivate his team, but it will be interesting to see which coach ends up having their team better prepared for the crucial contest.

Bradley and Fickell are both friends. During his press conference on Tuesday, Bradley even said they had talked earlier in the week. Their discussion included a few topics, ranging from player security to a possible pregame meeting between the two teams as we saw last weekend.

You have to figure that Fickell’s experience will be a big benefit for Ohio State, but you can’t underestimate Bradley, who has really handled himself well so far.

He has the unenviable task of trying to replace his friend and long-time colleague, Joe Paterno, and lead a team during a crisis that’s engulfed the entire campus. Meanwhile, he knows full well that he likely won’t be retained after the season ends.

Luke Fickell, whose future is also up in the air, could really use a win on Saturday to help solidify his job security. However, given the circumstances and all that’s gone on in the last few days, there’s no doubt that a win would mean more to Bradley and the entire Penn State community right now.