PENN STATE Third-string QB Chris Ganter expected to start against Gophers

Minnesota isn't looking ahead to next week's trip to Michigan.
CHICAGO TRIBUNE
CHICAGO -- Penn State football coach Joe Paterno came into the season with a wealth of talent and experience at quarterback.
Zack Mills and Michael Robinson gave the Nittany Lions (2-2, 0-1) a pair of athletes few teams could match. Mills started at quarterback with Robinson starting at flanker. Sometimes they switched positions.
Today, Paterno will be fortunate to have one of them suited up at No. 18 Minnesota (4-0, 1-0). No. 3 quarterback Chris Ganter is expected to start with freshman Anthony Morelli backing him up.
"I am not going to panic," Paterno said. "I think both Chris and Morelli will be OK."
It could be worse. Robinson was knocked out in the first quarter against Wisconsin and was taken off the field, motionless. He regained use of his limbs and returned to State College on Sunday. He had a concussion and could return to the field in a couple weeks.
Wait will be weeks
"He will not play this week," Paterno said. "I talked to Dr. Wayne Sebastianelli [Penn State director of athletic medicine] and he said it may be three or four weeks before he will be cleared."
Robinson was Penn State's leading receiver with 16 catches for 231 yards and a touchdown. He also gained 99 yards rushing on 22 carries and completed 5 of 8 passes for 87 yards and a touchdown. He was at practice this week.
"I feel fine, other than a couple of headaches here and there," he said Tuesday.
Mills injured his shoulder on the first play of the game -- a 49-yard pass to Robinson -- against the Badgers. He suffered a partial separation of his right (non-throwing) shoulder.
"He is optimistic he might be able to go this week," Paterno said. "I think they can strap it up and the whole bit, but if there is any danger, we won't use him."
It was a tough weekend for Paterno. Also Saturday his son-in-law Christopher Hort suffered head injuries in a bicycle accident. Paterno declined to comment.
"I would rather not get into my situation personally and my family's," he said Tuesday. "We are going through some tough things and I don't want to get into that. I would rather talk about our football team and talk about what a tough team they are going to play."
Minnesota won't be looking at this game as a warm-up to next week's trip to Michigan, where they hope to extract some revenge for last season's comeback win by the Wolverines. Gopher coach Glen Mason is as close to Paterno as anyone in the conference and respects the Nittany Lions regardless of record.
"They're kind of like their uniforms, they're old-fashioned," Mason said. "That's not a negative. They're fundamentally sound, they're well coached, they play extremely hard and they're classy. You don't have to worry about cheap shots against Penn State: you don't have to worry about trash talking and all that stuff."