Cam Cameron is a little anxious about coming into Happy Valley this weekend. What's the main cause for the Indiana coach's concern?

"Penn State is playing as well as anyone right now," he said. "When (quarterback Zack) Mills is in there."

Whoops.

Fortunately for Cameron and his Hoosiers, Mills likely won't be "in there" tomorrow afternoon. The high left ankle sprain the freshman quarterback suffered against Illinois will keep Mills on the sideline and once again set the stage for junior Matt Senneca.

"If he's not ready to go, I'll be ready to start," said Senneca, who completed six of 23 passes after replacing an injured Mills last week. "If he's ready to go, I think he's earned the spot, and I'd expect him to go."

Whether or not Mills will be ready to go has been the question of the week. He did some light jogging during Tuesday's practice, and practiced his drops Wednesday. He said he is still experiencing pain, and walks with a limp, but that his ankle has felt better every day.

Mills expressed frustration on having to sit on the sidelines, and said he wanted to come back in, but realized that tomorrow's final decision will be made by the team physicians and Penn State head coach Joe Paterno.

Paterno, who said he toyed with the idea of reinserting Mills at Illinois but thought better of it, is just as hesitant about bringing Mills back at less than 100 percent this weekend.

"There is probably an outside chance he can play. I don't think it is any better than an outside chance," Paterno said. "Right now we are planning on Matt Senneca being the quarterback."

Senneca has completed 37 percent of his passes for 412 yards and two touchdowns this season, compared to Mills' 56, 1,293 and seven. His performance at Illinois was probably the worst of his career, but feels it's only a matter of time before the plays begin to click.

"I feel comfortable with the whole offense," he said. "It's just a matter of me executing and putting the ball where it has to be."

Something that Senneca didn't do against Illinois. Though his receivers dropped a myriad of passes, many of Senneca's throws -- including a pair of short swing passes -- were well off the mark.

He was his quickest and harshest critic following the game, but noted how he's learned to be resilient this year, something that should help him tomorrow in a must-win situation.

"I've learned I can deal with a lot more harsh situations than I could have imagined coming into this season," he said.

Senneca realizes that the team will miss Mills, however.

"We need him to come back," he said. "It would hurt us a little if he wasn't able to play but if not we'll have to deal with it."