Will Penn State's starting quarterback please stand up?

And the starting quarterback for Penn State in its season opener Saturday afternoon against Youngstown State is . . .

To be continued.

Just when you thought Joe Paterno was finally going to make a commitment to someone in the cast of thousands (hey, just kidding) bidding to succeed two-time All-Big Ten Conference selection Daryll Clark as the Nittany Lions' passer du jour, the 83-year-old coaching legend used the occasion of his first weekly news conference of the 2010 season to continue waffling. Maybe JoePa will send the Masked Marvel out to take the first snap from center in Beaver Stadium, a guy wearing a question mark on his jersey instead of a number.

Sort of makes you wonder if the three or possibly four untested candidates are so closely bunched because their talent level is equally high or, the obviously less attractive alternative, their experience level equally low.

Paterno spent much of yesterday's media grilling trying to evade questions about the quarterback situation as if he were Gale Sayers or Barry Sanders putting on moves in the open field.

Is the mystery guest apt to be sophomore Robert Newsome, who appeared to have had a slight edge going into spring practice? Redshirt sophomore Matt McGloin, the former walk-on who gained parity with Newsome by the time the Blue-White game was held? Or is it late entry Robert Bolden, the true freshman who didn't even arrive on campus until the summer?

Heck, for that matter, the eventual winner could be another freshman, Paul Jones, who was ticketed for a redshirt weeks ago, although Paterno now says that decision is merely "tentative" and could be rescinded as the situation evolves.

"I think, potentially, there's talent there," Paterno said after fielding the first question, which was, of course, about a crowded quarterback derby that seemingly might not be determined until the singing of the national anthem a few minutes before the opening kickoff. "But right now, they're just not that comfortable yet. We'll have to see what happens.

"Obviously, we'll have to make a decision to start one of them. Maybe we'll do it tomorrow night."

The quarterback is not like a baseball team's starting pitching rotation, however. Most teams prefer to announce a starter capable of seizing the position and making it his own, if for no other reason than continuity's sake. A college team will experiment with a dual quarterback system, but a three-player merry-go-round is almost unheard of.

In announcing a depth chart on Monday that clearly was written in wet sand, not fast-drying cement, Newsome, McGloin and Bolden all were listed as co-starters, or maybe that's tri-starters.

Make no mistake, the final choice won't be determined by committee. Paterno casts the only vote, as he did in overriding the recommendation of his son and quarterbacks coach, Jay Paterno, to cede some of starting quarterback Anthony Morelli's playing time to Clark in 2007.

If other players have their individual preferences, they're loath to reveal them. It's the Penn State way to echo the party line, even if the party line is kind of vague.

"They've all had to step up their games," senior wide receiver Brett Brackett said of the quarterback jumble. "It's really been a good thing for our team. I think our coaches have a tough decision as to who's going to be the guy.

"We've been working with all three of them equally on first-team reps pretty much since [preseason drills] started. We feel we have a pretty comfortable situation with whoever they decide to go with."

Senior wideout Brett Brackett and senior defensive tackle Ollie Ogbu were named team captains in voting of team members . . . The Maxwell Football Club will present the first Joe Paterno Award this season, which goes to the nation's top college coach . . . The fourth season of "The Big Ten's Greatest Games" premieres Friday on the Big Ten Network, with new episodes to run at 6 p.m. for 13 consecutive Fridays. The most commonly requested game by fans is Penn State's 17-10 squeaker over Ohio State in 2005, the repeat of which will be televised on Nov. 12. Other Penn State games on the schedule are the 2002 contest against Michigan (Oct. 29) and the 2001 game against Illinois (Nov. 19). *