You may not believe this, but Jimmy Kennedy and I have a lot in common.

OK, so one of us tips the scales at around 330 pounds, while the other one tickles them at 150, soaking wet. One of us can throw 280-pound offensive linemen aside like rag dolls, or burst through the line, elevate his massive body off the ground and block a field goal.

The other one's athletic prowess these days is limited to flinging a Ping-Pong ball into a 16-ounce plastic cup.

Kennedy can be seen moseying through campus in the company of his lovely, equally popular fiancée, basketball star Rashana Barnes. If you see me in the company of any female, you should probably apologize to her later.

Physical stature and mojo aside, Penn State's junior defensive tackle and I aren't that very different. Both of us rise from our slumber at 8:30 nearly every Tuesday for an early-morning teleconference, where yawns are exchanged nearly as much as questions and answers.

It is here where the similarities start to reveal themselves. Like me, Kennedy has seen his Nittany Lions get off to a disastrous 0-4 start, a period in which State looked like it would have trouble with many Division II teams. He's watched his squad rebound to rip off three straight confidence-boosting victories, a period in which the Lions have played as well as any team in the country.

And like me, he hasn't gotten all excited and starting to make bowl reservations.

"We've got to have guys running scared," Kennedy said Tuesday. "Like guys are saying, just because you beat three teams, you're not that great."

Couldn't agree more. There's no denying Penn State's playing its best ball of the season right now, maybe even its best ball in years. But although the team is "3-0" since it wiped the slate clean prior to the Northwestern game, its overall record reads 3-4. Each and every game from here on out is a must-win if the Lions are to keep their hopes for a postseason bid alive.

And like me, Kennedy also understands that this team has been a notoriously slow starter all season, in wins and losses. In fact, the Lions have yet to take the lead first this season.

Kennedy has played in big games on the road before, and is aware of the importance of Penn State coming strong out of the gate tomorrow in Champaign against what is a stacked Illinois squad.

"I think it's going to be hard for us to get off to a good start, and important for us to get off to a good start," he said.

Kennedy has said he's hard on his teammates, continually stressing to them that they haven't done anything yet. Why? He expects big things from them, demands that they play to their potential.

Similarly, this column has contained its fair share of criticism these past few months, but only when its cynical author felt that the Lions weren't doing all they were capable of doing.

Both the player and the writer know Penn State has the ability to come from behind, as it did against Northwestern and Ohio State, but also that the Lions may not have the luxury of putting themselves in a similar hole against this particular opponent.

It says here that the key to Penn State's success this week will hinge upon the extent to which Kennedy and his 10 defensive companions are able to shut down Kurt Kittner, the Big Ten's top passer, and a balanced Illini attack.

If the Lions' defense can keep Zack Mills and the offense in the neighborhood, Illinois could very likely be 7-2 come Sunday.

"It's going to be real important just to keep it close and be in the game," Kennedy said. "If we keep it close I believe we'll win this game."

There you have it, folks — the big fella and I see eye-to-eye.

Well, eye-to-shoulder, anyway.