SAN ANTONIO -- When Bruce Pearl recruited a stellar freshman class to Tennessee it was expected to sustain newfound momentum.

When Thad Matta brought three McDonald's All-Americans to Ohio State last fall the expectations were a little higher.

Like, get to the Final Four. Now.

Tennessee achieved its goal, and then some. Ohio State's is still on the table.

When the two meet tonight in the Sweet 16 round of the NCAA tournament, the Vols are playing with house money.

The Buckeyes, meanwhile, are carrying a 19-game winning streak, a No. 1 ranking, a No. 1 seed and the pressure of capitalizing on an opportunity that won't come again.

It won't come again because one of those freshmen, Greg Oden has a short collegiate shelf life. When the NBA draft is held this summer, the only suspense is whether he'll be the first or second player chosen.

Oden, point guard Michael Conley Jr. and shooting guard Daequan Cook collectively raised the bar at Ohio State.

Joined by a fourth freshman, forward David Lighty, all have been significant contributors to a season that has already claimed Big Ten regular-season and tournament titles.

The big prize, however, is still dangling out there, 80 minutes of basketball away, in Atlanta.

"The fun thing,'' Matta said Wednesday, "is that if we're fortunate enough to make the Final Four, we would probably be the youngest team to do it.

"I don't know if there's ever been a team get to the Final Four with only one returning starter.''

That's only one more than Tennessee had, but nobody in October projected the Vols to make the Final Four.

Tonight, somebody's freshmen will move on. Somebody's freshmen go home to become sophomores.

The 7-foot, 280-pound Oden will be described many ways in his life, but sophomore is not one of them. NBA rookie is his next designation.

"He's unlike anybody I've ever gone up against because he just changes the game,'' Pearl said Wednesday.

And yet we forget that Oden is just a kid, no more fully formed than UT's Wayne Chism or Ramar Smith.

Maybe it's that something in us refuses to believe it.

Because of his considerable dimension, his considerable skill and the deceptive countenance of much older man, it's difficult to comprehend that this time last year Oden was helping Lawrence North beat Muncie Central in the finals of the Indiana state high school tournament.

"He might look like he's 40, but when you talk to him he sounds like he's 12,'' said teammate Lighty.

He's actually somewhere in between. He turned 19 in January, shortly after dumping 24 points and 15 rebounds on UT in a 68-66 Ohio State victory in Columbus.

Oden provided a startling reminder of his youth Wednesday in the Ohio State locker room, where sat flanked by student managers to keep the media horde at bay.

"I've never shaved in my life,'' he said. "I'm serious.''

But what about the beard that makes you look more like a coach than a player?

"Every time I get a haircut I just have it trimmed up.''

So, take heart Vol fans. Remember, he's just a kid.

Tennessee fans of a certain age will recall another 7-footer who blocked the Vols' path to postseason glory.

In 1981 and again in 1982, UT ran up against Virginia's Ralph Sampson in second-round NCAA games.

As a sophomore, the 7-4 Sampson had modest numbers when Virginia eliminated UT 62-48 in '81.

The following year, he was dominant in a 54-51 victory.

Sampson was the Naismith national player of the year three seasons, but Virginia never reached the Final Four until the year after he was gone.

Ohio State wants to get there with Oden, so it's now or, likely, never.

The Buckeyes have already dodged one bullet, rallying from nine points down late to beat Xavier in overtime last Saturday.

"Our heads were under water,'' said Matta, "and we had to survive.''

They did. But pesky Tennessee could plug up the drain again tonight.

At least it helps if your head is 7 feet high.