PENN STATE Robinson will return, but position unsure

The versatile back suffered a concussion four weeks ago at Wisconsin.
STATE COLLEGE, Pa. (AP) -- Michael Robinson is back, and so are the official secrets.
Four weeks after receiving a concussion in the first quarter of Penn State's 16-3 loss at Wisconsin, the versatile back will return to action on Saturday, when No. 25 Iowa (4-2, 2-1 Big Ten) visits Penn State (2-4, 0-3).
"I think Michael Robinson will play," Nittany Lions coach Joe Paterno said. "He will play in a lot of different spots."
If you want anything more than that, you're asking the wrong guy. Robinson doesn't even appear on Penn State's depth chart this week. And like he did at the beginning of the season, Paterno is being coy about where Robinson could play.
He could play just about anywhere. Robinson came to Penn State as a quarterback, and has maintained all along that that's the position he wants to play. In fact, Robinson was playing quarterback -- subbing for the already injured Zack Mills -- when he took a shot to the head on a Wisconsin blitz.
But Robinson started that game the same place he's started every game this season, at wide receiver. Last year, he started much of the season at tailback. As a freshman, he got a start at fullback.
Kept under wraps
That's why Paterno is keeping Robinson under wraps. Arguably Penn State's best player -- one Paterno often describes as one of the best football players in the country -- Robinson could still play any or all of those positions. And the more Robinson keeps Iowa guessing, the better chance the Nittany Lions will have.
"We are going to use him everywhere we can to win the game," Paterno said. "It would be foolish for me to tell you where we are going to play him, how we are going to play him and what we are going to do with him, but he is going to be in the football game.
"We are going to try to get the most we can out of him based on what we expect from Iowa. That may sound like I am being evasive, but that is exactly what we are going to do."
Truth be told, that kind of unpredictability might be just what Penn State needs. Robinson switched to wide receiver because the rest of the receiving corps struggled to make catches. That allowed defenses to stack eight in the box, effectively shutting down Penn State's running game. The Nittany Lions have averaged just 130 rushing yards per game -- just 39 yards in Big Ten play.
Could open up field
Putting Robinson back at wideout might open the field enough to give Penn State a better shot at the running game.
"Mike can do so much," Mills said. "He lines up at receiver, he might end up throwing a pass, running the ball or catching it."
And all Robinson cares about is getting back on the field.
"Probably the first practice I had, when I lined up and I knew I had to catch the ball, I was a little bit nervous," Robinson said. "But I wasn't hesitant or anything like that."
But the receivers have improved, opening again the question of where Robinson might have the most impact. Should he replace one of the up-and-coming receivers? Should Penn State include him in more three-receiver and four-receiver sets, to spread the field and take advantage of this improving group? Should he go back to tailback to try to establish a running game?
Robinson says he's still practicing more at quarterback than anywhere else -- could he supplant Mills?
So far, only one person knows for sure.
"I know where he is going to play," Paterno said, "but I am not going to say."