COLUMBUS — All Terrelle Pryor had to do was take a look around him, but the Ohio State freshman quarterback couldn’t. Everywhere he turned — a full 360 degrees — there was a reporter, a photographer or a notepad.

He had more digital recorders shoved in his face than you would find at Radio Shack. Pryor was easily the marquee attraction during the Buckeyes’ media day Thursday evening at Ohio Stadium. All this attention and Pryor hasn’t even thrown a pass on a football Saturday in Columbus.

Reporters circled Pryor for about a 15-minute interview. They lined up four deep. A few feet away, Todd Boeckman, fielded questions from four reporters as Pryor spoke to the media. Boeckman actually helped lead the Buckeyes to the national championship game last year. Boeckman is still, despite the scene Thursday, OSU’s starting quarterback.

All this attention surprised Pryor. He should be used to it by now. ESPN provided gavel-to-gavel coverage of his recruitment process that stretched into March.

“Yeah,” Pryor said admitting wonderment. “I’m wondering why. There are all these great players here and I’m the one getting hounded.”

Pryor, who has the kind of charisma star athletes just have, doesn’t just pass the eye test, he blows it away. The 6-foot-6, 235-pounder with an arm like a cannon and legs like a jet has biceps the size of a linebacker, thighs like a running back ... and inexperience like a true freshman.

“I got picked off like three or four times (in the second practice),” Pryor said. “That’s a lot. When you’re dropping back you’ve got to read what the safeties are doing. When you’re the quarterback, you’ve got to know what’s going on.”

Like most freshmen, even the No. 1 high school recruit in the country, Pryor’s head is spinning a bit from his first few college practices. His confidence may have taken a brief hit with the interceptions.

“That’s what teammates are for,” Pryor said. “When I throw a pick, my teammates are like, ‘Don’t worry about it. It’s only the second day.’ I get fired up because I don’t like to throw picks.”

Boeckman, who threw for nearly 2,400 yards with 25 touchdowns and 14 interceptions last season, understands the Pryor hype. Coach Jim Tressel even paired the two as training camp roommates.

“Well, Terrelle is a question asker like crazy and Todd is the guy who knows all the stuff,” Tressel said. “You watch it on the practice field, and Todd at every turn you see him talking to Terrelle.”

Boeckman and Pryor’s relationship started strong when Pryor signed with the Buckeyes. The first thing he asked Tressel for was Boeckman’s cell phone number. He sent Boeckman a text message that said he was looking forward to learning from him.

“It’s not uncomfortable at all,” Boeckman said of rooming with the young kid who wants his job. “I think I want to compete and hopefully he can make me that much more of a better player. If he can help us out in any way, I’m all for it.”

One way may be the pistol offense. It’s a variation of the shotgun, but the running back lines up behind the quarterback. Tressel likes the idea of Beanie Wells and 240 pounds of tailback running downhill at linebackers.

Pryor came to Ohio State with unprecedented hype and status. It is easy to see when seeing the size of this freshman’s arms. Wide receiver Brian Hartline said Pryor was concerned about his new teammates resenting the publicity.