The dreaded sophomore slump. The standout freshman who can't reclaim the edge that made him so good so soon. The sparkling debut, the disappointing follow-up.

It could've been Stuart Reid, but he won't let it happen.

Reid, who leads the No. 8 men's soccer team against Rutgers at 7:30 p.m. tomorrow in Piscataway, N.J., is off to a break-neck start this season. The second-year forward from Belfast, Northern Ireland has tallied six goals and twelve points in his first four games, both tops on the team.

More than anyone could ask from a sophomore, right?

Not if that sophomore was Big Ten freshman of the year last year. Not if he led a squad with two Big Ten players of the year in points and goals. Not if he's on pace to shatter nearly every offensive record in Penn State history. Not if he's Stuart Reid.

Anything less than a repeat of his 14 goal, 29 point freshman campaign would be a disappointment. Big pressure for most, but not for Reid.

"I don't really feel the pressure at all," Reid said. "With the guys up front with me, I know I'll get the chances, and I know I can finish them."

The chances have come, and true to his word, he's finished them, to the tune of 1.5 goals a game and two game-winners in four contests. It seems Reid has taken any notion of a slump and booted it as skillfully as he does the ball.

"I think he's handled it well," Coach Barry Gorman said. "He set himself very high goals, but given his ability, he certainly has the capability of doing better than last year."

Ability, but something more. Maybe it's the knack. That indescribable ability to find the opening, to always be in the right place at the right time. To take every pass and turn it into a scoring chance, to turn chances into shots, and with remarkable consistency, transform shots into goals.

"He's a great finisher," senior co-captain and fellow forward Chris Kelly said. "He knows his job is to score, and he just goes out and does his job."

Maybe most important, Reid has his priorities in order. Even with a chance to rewrite the books, Reid's not concerned about his numbers.

"If it happens, it happens. If it doesn't, it doesn't," Reid said of the scoring marks. "What's important is a Big Ten championship, a National Championship. The other things are all on the side."