It's so easy to sit back and criticize, to second-guess, to say that Penn State linebacker Sean Lee made a costly mistake by not leaving for the NFL after his terrific junior season in 2007. But we're not in the man's cleats, are we? We don't know what he was thinking back then, when he was one of the great players in Penn State history, better than teammate Dan Connor, who was an All-American linebacker that season, maybe even better than Paul Posluszny, who was anointed by no less than former Penn State legend and NFL Hall of Famer Jack Ham as the greatest linebacker in school history. We don't know what Lee wanted from his senior season.

Now, we do.

Lee wanted one more game like the one Penn State will play tomorrow against Ohio State before 110,000 fanatics at throbbing Beaver Stadium.

"A dream of a lifetime," he called it this week.

There's a little more to it than that, actually. It goes back to Lee's senior year at Upper St. Clair High School in 2004-05 when he led the football team to an 11-1 record, practically willed the basketball team to a WPIAL Class AAAA championship and was named the Post-Gazette's Male High School Athlete of the Year.

"I had such a great experience with my teammates that year," Lee said. "I wanted that same experience in my senior year here. In college, you're with these guys non-stop. You eat together, live together, practice together, play together. You come in young together and grow up together. To do all of that at a great university such as Penn State and be able to play in front of 110,000 fans, that's what makes it so rewarding."

That's why Lee understands, better than most, the thought process of widely ridiculed Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback Sam Bradford, who passed up NFL millions after last season to return to Oklahoma only to have his '09 season -- not to mention his draft chances next spring -- ruined by a shoulder injury. That's also why Lee won't second-guess himself, even though he could go lower in the '10 draft than he would have gone after his junior season.

In April 2008, Lee blew out his right knee in a non-contact drill during spring practice and missed last season. The agony he experienced during rehab was nothing compared to having to watch his teammates lose at Iowa and to Southern California in the Rose Bowl.

Lee came back strong this season and had 32 tackles in the first three games, including 5 1/2 for losses. But he injured his left knee late in that third game against Temple. That forced him to sit out three more, including the home loss to Iowa, Penn State's only defeat.

"I had never been injured before. I don't care what you say, you take that for granted," Lee said. "Then, after you're hurt that first time and you put in all the work to get healthy again, you expect to stay healthy. That didn't happen with me. But that's football. All you can do is fight through it."

So Lee has. Penn State defensive coordinator Tom Bradley worked him back into the lineup gradually, giving him 18 plays against Minnesota and 33 against Michigan. He turned him loose against Northwestern last week, and Lee responded with 12 tackles during his 63 snaps. He made plays all over the field. It was like '07 again.

Lee was some player then. Connor, a backup with the Carolina Panthers after being picked in the third round of the '08 NFL draft, was strong against the pass at Penn State, less so against the run. Posluszny, a starter with the Buffalo Bills since being a second-round pick in '07, was better against the run than the pass. Lee was equally outstanding against both. He surely would have been a first-team All-America in '08. He would have challenged Connor's school record for career tackles. He would have been better than Connor and Posluszny. He would have lived that senior-season dream.

If only Lee had stayed healthy ... .

"He's close to being what he was," Bradley said after reviewing video of the Northwestern game.

"I feel like I'm getting better each week," Lee said. "Not just my knee, but I'm getting in better football shape."

Just in time for Ohio State.

The stakes are high. The winner stays in contention for the Big Ten title and a Bowl Championship Series game. The loser will end up in a much-lesser bowl.

No one on either sideline will enjoy it more than Lee, especially after the past two years.

"He just loves to compete," Bradley said. "No one tops him when it comes to dedication to football and being prideful in how he plays. He's everything you want in a football player."

The NFL team that gets Lee next year will find that out.

"You had better believe he'll play in the NFL -- for a long time," Bradley said. "Where do you want to play him? I'd play him inside in a 3-4, outside in a 4-3. He's that versatile."

Lee, of course, isn't looking beyond Ohio State. He has that type of focus. Bradley said Lee practices just as hard as he plays. Bradley told of seeing Lee studying his Northwestern game assignments at his locker right up until the Nittany Lions took the field for kickoff.

That focus is why it's easy to believe Lee when he said he hasn't thought about where he'll go in the NFL draft. It's also easy to believe him when he said he has no regrets about staying at Penn State. He will graduate next month with a finance degree.

"For me, it's all about getting the opportunity to play football. It's not about the money," he said.

That's why Lee can't wait for tomorrow to get here. To be able to lead his team as a captain out of the tunnel from the Penn State locker room into that mass of humanity, to join with his teammates and match their best against the best that the Ohio State players have to offer ...

We all should be so lucky to be in Lee's cleats just one time.