INDIANAPOLIS -- There are roughly 330 players at the NFL Draft Scouting Combine in Indianapolis this week. Outside of the stars projected to be first- or second-round picks, most are trying to make a name for themselves.

It wasn't so long ago that Penn State quarterback Anthony Morelli seemed destined to be one a star among stars at the combine. Nor was it that long ago when Morelli was the kind of big-name player that attracted attention no matter where he went.

Given his choice, Morelli believes he's in a much better place than he was when he was riding high as one of the nation's top high school quarterbacks. And, surprisingly, he wouldn't change places with Boston College's Matt Ryan, considered by most to be the top quarterback in the draft, because of the scrutiny that comes with being the No. 1 pick.

"It is almost to the point where some of those guys are so far up there that they have nowhere to go but down," Morelli said yesterday. "And not to take anything away from them because they are great football players, but they are really to the point where they have to put up or shut up. And every time you turn on the TV, you see them, and everyone wants to see them come out and run 4.2 40s and be the next Deion [Sanders] and all of that stuff.

"So flying under the radar, it can't hurt. And, frankly, you can only come out and improve your stock, so I am pretty excited about it."

Morelli, who measured 6 feet 3¹/₂, 231 pounds, starred at Penn Hills and, at one point, was rated by some as the top high school quarterback in the country. He originally committed to Pitt but said he began hearing rumors that then-coach Walt Harris was going to leave. Instead, he chose Penn State, despite the school's underwhelming record of producing NFL quarterbacks.

He played sparingly, mopping up four games and completing five passes, his freshman season. He was the backup again as a sophomore. He finally earned the starting job in as a junior and, in two seasons as the starter, led the Nittany Lions to 18 wins -- including two bowl victories -- and set a number of school passing records.

But he was inconsistent and developed a reputation for coming up small in big games and that, according to most scouts, is why he is considered a second-day pick or, perhaps, a free agent unless he has a fabulous run of workouts.

"He has a strong arm and he has some ability," said NFL network draft analyst Mike Mayock. "But he was totally inconsistent at Penn State, and because of that inconsistency, he is going to fall pretty late."

Morelli said he gets somewhat of a bad rap for being inconsistent and feels underappreciated by fans and those around the program, even though he helped the Nittany Lions win so many games. He also reminds people that when he signed with Penn State the program was mired in a run of down seasons and that he helped turn that around.

"We were 3-9 the year before I got there, and then I came and I think people thought we were going to win four national championships," Morelli said. "Expectations are so high at Penn State, but they don't realize that after going 3-9 we went to the Orange Bowl, then the Outback Bowl and the Alamo Bowl and we hadn't done stuff like that at Penn State for a while.

"I think people forgot what it was like when Penn State was losing after we won the Orange Bowl; they wanted a national championship, and we couldn't get it done."

One thing clearly hurting Morelli more than the conservative play-calling and offense he played in, was losing the year when he played spot duty as a freshman. A number of scouts and coaches said Morelli looked like a player who could use another season in college to develop some consistency.

Morelli agreed with that assessment, and said he wished he had that year back.

"I've never let any of that criticism bother me," Morelli said. "It doesn't affect my game. [The offense] is tough [for quarterbacks], but I was pretty successful. I had the right attitude and made the best of it. [Not redshirting] was frustrating.

"I feel if I had one more year, it would've been a lot better for me. But you can only do what you can do and make the best of the time you had."

One other knock on Morelli is that he struggled to read defenses. He publicly blamed his former coach at Penn Hills, Neil Gordon, who recently was fired, for starting that criticism. Morelli, however, bears no ill-will toward Gordon and said the firing was not right.

"I really wasn't bashing coach Gordon," Morelli said. "I really was just letting everyone know where [the criticism of his inability to read defenses] came from, but I have no problems with him. I just wanted people to know where that stuff came from because it is not true. But coach Gordon and I got along great when I was there, and I wish him the best.

"And I hope he gets a job somewhere else and goes back and kicks [Penn Hills] butts."

As for his former coach at Penn State, Joe Paterno, Morelli said he laughs when he hears people say he is out of touch with today's player or that the game has passed him by or that he is going to retire soon. Morelli said none of that is true, and he said he's forever grateful to Paterno for always sticking by him.

"Joe's not going to retire," Morelli said, then laughed. "He's going to be up there [coaching] until they carry him off. He's unbelievable. When I came in, I wondered whether he was going to be there [for his four years]. He's very, very sharp. He upstages the young kids.

"And don't let him fool you, he knows what's going on. There's no tricking the old man."