It’s a beast. And the beast must be fed.

Will Pryor be great?

Can we pencil him into the 2010 Heisman Trophy race?

No doubt, Ohio State fans are thinking like that today. Penn State fans, in mourning, will soon move on. Michigan fans, in shock, might move a bit slower. Rodriguez will have some explaining to do on the banquet circuit.

But for all concerned, here’s a brief history lesson, alternating between a program-changing moment and a cautionary tale. Here’s a look at how some quarterbacks — all consensus top-10 national recruits — fared when the games became real.

• 2007, Notre Dame signs Jimmy Clausen, Westlake Village (Calif.) Oaks Christian — Clausen looked lost as a freshman, but so did the entire Irish program.
• 2006, Georgia signs Matthew Stafford, Dallas (Texas) Highland Park — Solid sophomore season for the fast-finishing Bulldogs. The future is very bright.
• 2006, Florida signs Tim Tebow, Ponte Vedra Beach (Fla.) Nease — Let’s see. He’s the first sophomore to win the Heisman Trophy. Yes, he has worked out well.
• 2005, USC signs Mark Sanchez, Mission Viejo, Calif. — Had his problems, on and off the field, but might be poised to grab USC’s starting quarterback job (if another top QB prospect from the past, Arkansas transfer Mitch Mustain, doesn’t beat him to it).
• 2004, Oklahoma signs Rhett Bomar, Grand Prairie, Texas — Just when it appeared the Sooners had their QB of the future, Bomar was entangled in a get-paid-for-hardly-any-work scandal, getting him booted from the team and sending him to Division I-AA obscurity.
• 2004, Florida State signs Xavier Lee, Daytona Beach (Fla.) Seabreeze — Lee always had the physical tools. But he was mistake prone and cost the Seminoles some games, all by himself. Now he’s coming out early for the NFL draft, and there are rumblings that he won’t be selected.
• 2003, Miami signs Kyle Wright, Danville (Calif.) Monte Vista — Never worked out. Wright was supposed to be the latest in a long line of great Hurricane QBs. It never happened. In fact, he never came close.
• 2002, Texas signs Vince Young, Houston Madison — Young became one of the most dynamic quarterbacks ever to play college football. He had 467 total yards in an eye-popping Rose Bowl performance. Had the Heisman Trophy votes been held until then, Young would have won — in a landslide.

So there you have it.

A mixed bag.

Some once-in-a-generation stars.

Some average performers.

And a few duds.

By all accounts, Pryor will not be a dud. The name you hear most often — Vince Young — is a tantalizing comparison.

Pryor doesn’t just run. He glides, not looking like he’s working hard but pulling away from the pack. He slices and dices defenses with his arm and his legs. He is, you hear in almost universal echoes, a difference-maker.

Tebow made a difference for Florida, either as a change-of-pace freshman or a sterling sophomore.

West Virginia’s Pat White made a difference for the Mountaineers (Rodriguez administration).

Chase Daniel made a difference for rags-to-riches Missouri.

The right quarterback can alter the course of a program, save a coach’s job, getting other blue-chippers to follow in Pied Piper fashion. That’s why Ohio State is celebrating today.

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It has won. It has affirmation that Ohio State still leads Michigan, getting the made-for-Rodriguez quarterback away from Ann Arbor.

Now it has renewed dreams of maintaining the rivalry dominance against Michigan, getting back to the Rose Bowl (or better), challenging for another national title.

In a few months, we’ll know if those dreams are close to reality.

But on National Signing Day, which has become an event unto itself, there’s no question which program registered the biggest win.

Ohio State!

That’s why everyone watched.

That’s why Columbus puffed out its chest, while Ann Arbor and Happy Valley muttered.

Terrelle Pryor was coming to Ohio State. Who knows what it might mean in a few years.

But on Wednesday afternoon, it was big news — and it mattered.

And at Michigan, the mood was maize and (really) blue.

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