COLUMBUS, Ohio -- Anthony Morelli didn't remove his helmet when the final gun sounded. Instead, he walked slowly to the tunnel, blood running down his left arm, while former teammate Tamba Hali spoke in his right ear.

It was difficult to comfort the junior signal caller. Even after he was off the field.

"I made mistakes. I take all the blame," Morelli said in a whisper.

Hali advised him to keep his head up and put Saturday's game behind him, Morelli said. For the Pittsburgh native, that may have been easier said than done.

Morelli tossed three interceptions -- two of which were returned for touchdowns late in the game -- while throwing for 106 yards. He did not complete a single pass for more than 15 yards.

"He's down," Joe Paterno acknowledged, "but he'll be all right."

Most of his teammates agreed.

Morelli had trouble finding the open receiver. He didn't look off his primary reads enough, and he didn't take many shots downfield either.

At least until the final quarter.

"I wanted to win this game, drive the team down the field and put points on the board. And that's what I tried to do," Morelli said. "It just didn't work out."

Quarterbacks coach Jay Paterno looked on from the corner of the interview room, perhaps there for encouragement, while Morelli recounted each of his mistakes.

Morelli was barely audible, even with a microphone. Everything was in a whisper.

He explained he was pressing too much in the end, chalked it up to a learning experience and said there was nothing wrong with the offense -- it was just stupid mistakes.

But turnovers only told half the story. Dropped passes and "rookie" mistakes also plagued Morelli.

Derrick Williams dropped two catchable balls, though Morelli's touch may have been off since he overcompensated for the drizzling rain. He said he was throwing the ball a little harder, which was making it more difficult for the wideouts to handle.

Halfway through the game, Morelli made another bad decision. He ran an option to the left side on a 2nd-and-1 play. Instead of cutting upfield, he ran east-west and was tackled for no gain.

"He thinks he's faster than he is," Paterno said. "One thing he's gotta learn, sometimes, I think he forgets down and distance."

So far this season, Morelli ranks 86th in the nation in passing efficiency (106.2) and has thrown as many touchdowns -- four -- as interceptions. Still, Williams voiced confidence in his quarterback.

"This is Anthony's first year, his first year starting as our guy," Williams said. "He's our guy, so we're gonna fight with him -- whether we win or lose."