TAMPA, Fla. -- Dealing with high expectations is part of the job description for a Division I-A quarterback. When you play at tradition-rich schools such as Penn State and Tennessee, handling those expectations can be burdensome.

	Outback Bowl Who: Penn State (8-4) vs. Tennessee (9-3). When: 11 a.m., Monday. Related article Outback Bowl Notebook: Morelli's anti-Gordon rant drew plenty of support

Just ask Tennessee's Erik Ainge. If there is someone out there who understands what Penn State quarterback Anthony Morelli has gone through this season, it must be Ainge.

Ainge was a highly touted prospect out of Hillsboro, Ore., who came to the Volunteers with enormous expectations. He was a PrepStar All-American and was one of the most highly recruited quarterbacks on the West Coast.

After a breakout freshman season at Tennessee in 2004, Ainge was benched for parts of his sophomore season last year, when the Volunteers stumbled to a 5-6 record. Ainge has rebounded for a fine junior season and knows better than anyone the ups and downs a young quarterback faces, especially in the first season as the starter.

"It's his first year starting, and he's thrown for 2,200 yards," Ainge said of Morelli. "They're 8-4. I don't think he should be getting all the criticism he's been getting. He just has to keep playing. He's plenty talented."

Morelli's first season as the starting quarterback was a mixed bag. He led Penn State to a New Year's Day bowl game and a winning record in the Big Ten, but there were few personal highlights.

Morelli has completed 53.7 percent of his passes for 2,227 yards with eight touchdowns and 10 interceptions. He struggled in Penn State's four biggest games against Notre Dame, Ohio State, Michigan and Wisconsin, throwing one touchdown and five interceptions. Three of those interceptions came at No. 1 Ohio State, two of which were returned for touchdowns in the fourth quarter of a 28-6 loss. At one point, he went seven games without throwing a touchdown pass to a receiver.

"He only had 30 snaps going into the year and he got thrown into some tough situations," Penn State coach Joe Paterno said. "We played Ohio State and Notre Dame on the road in the first four games. He had to go out there and compete and didn't have a lot of success."

Morelli started to play better late in the season. In the final five games, he had four touchdowns and three interceptions, including 220 passing yards and two touchdowns in the regular-season finale against Michigan State, when he rallied the Nittany Lions to a 17-13 victory.

"It's been a learning experience," said Morelli, a 6-foot-4, 220-pound junior from Penn Hills High School. "This is going to happen with any first-year quarterback. You're not going to come in and light the world on fire."

His teammates are sympathetic to his plight.

Morelli stepped into a tough situation having to replace team MVP Michael Robinson, who led the Lions to a Big Ten championship and a BCS bowl game last season, and playing without the help of a good offensive line.

Defenses picked up on that and dropped six or seven players into pass coverage, knowing the Lions would have a hard time running the ball with efficiency. Morelli's teammates also know the quarterback position is a lightning rod. Had Penn State won one of the games against those four ranked opponents, Morelli's resume would look a lot better.

"He's going to get all the fame or all the blame," sophomore receiver Deon Butler said. "We've been supporting him. He doesn't pout. He just tries to get better. He's definitely done a great job. I respect him a lot for that."

Morelli sees the Outback Bowl Monday as an opportunity to redeem himself for an unspectacular season. A solid game and a victory against a ranked team from the Southeastern Conference would ease a lot of the pain from those four games he didn't play very well. It also would give him and the team some positive momentum for next season.

"It would help me a lot and it would help our team a lot going into next year," Morelli said. "I just think we have to go play ball. I think we put too much pressure on ourselves. We go out there and try to make a big play, and things don't go our way. If we go out and play the way we know how to play we'll be all right."

Paterno is looking for a smart game from Morelli against the Volunteers.

"I think it's important for him to have control of his game," Paterno said. "He's not going to go out there against a club like Tennessee, a team that mixes things up and has a good blitz scheme, and be a great player all of a sudden.

"I think he has to maintain his poise and be aware of what's happening, and that will make him a better football player."