It was the second day of July's Big Ten media conference in Chicago, and the Purdue quarterback was seated at a round table waiting to be interviewed. He was equipped with promotional DVDs trumpeting his Heisman Trophy candidacy.

"No, I didn't bring them," said Painter, somewhat embarrassed. "That wasn't me."

Painter could say the same about his first four games this season. A senior on pace to break almost every Big Ten passing record, Painter has not been a disaster, but he has been only adequate.

That's enough to vanquish his Heisman hopes and make Painting a Masterpiece, a video package of career highlights, something less than a Picasso.

When No. 6 Penn State meets host Purdue today for a noon start, the Nittany Lions will face a famed Boilermakers spread offense that has yet to click.

"I think we're doing some things well," Painter said Wednesday. "I just think we're a little off from being great. The last game [a 38-21 loss to Notre Dame], there were opportunities and we were so close. Once we get those ironed out we'll score points like we have in the past."

Penn State is 5-0 overall, 1-0 in the Big Ten. Purdue is 2-2 overall.

Painter's statistics - a 57.4 completion percentage for 1,113 yards and five touchdowns - while solid, are shy of the standards he set in his previous 21/2 seasons as spread architect Joe Tiller's paintbrush. One reason for the decline has been a new batch of receivers, although Desmond Tardy (23 catches for 366 yards) has been productive.

"I think our receivers and quarterback are getting closer to being on the same page," said Tiller, who will retire from coaching following this season. "I mentioned that early in the season, and I think that as the games go by, I think we're getting more productive in that area."

If Painter maintains his pace, however, he'll break the conference passing records in attempts, completions and yards sometime before the end of the season. The holder of those marks is Drew Brees, Tiller's first protégé at Purdue.

"Their success and the spread offense were the big things that brought me here," Painter said.

So was the opportunity to someday play in the NFL. Painter is 6-foot-4, 230 pounds and has a cannon right arm, making him a prototypical pro quarterback. But there have been questions about his touch.

"Those kinds of things are a long way down the road," said Painter, a possible first- to third-round pick. "It doesn't matter if you're projected first in the draft or last, a lot of things can happen during the season."

The bigger problem at Purdue is its defense. The pass defense has surrendered 244.8 yards per game, but the Boilermakers have allowed a Big Ten-worst 194.5 yards a game on the ground. The Penn State run offense averaged 267.6 yards in the first five games. For Purdue, the math doesn't compute.

"We think we can run the ball against anybody," Lions guard Stefen Wisniewski said, "but definitely [against] Purdue."

Penn State has its own injury to fret over. Wide receiver Jordan Norwood missed last week's win over Illinois with a hamstring pull and sat out most of practice this week. His availability will be a game-time decision, but the coaches may err on the side of caution with Wisconsin, Michigan and Ohio State next on the schedule.