Robinson expected to take a pounding 20?to?25 times a game

IOWA CITY - C'mon, it's not like they're asking Adam Robinson to climb Mount Everest.

All the Iowa sophomore has to do is carry the ball 20 to 25 times during a Big Ten football game. It'll be a physical pounding week in and week out, but there will be plenty of oxygen and, probably, no snowstorms.

“All we're asking him to do is carry the ball,” Iowa Coach Kirk Ferentz said Tuesday “A lot of backs nationally do it. They do it in the pros, too. I don't think we're asking for anything that's out of the ordinary.”

Before Tuesday, the last anyone saw of Robinson was the Penn State postgame. Robinson had just come off a career-high 28 carries and wasn't afraid to admit a little soreness.

Tuesday, after a week with no game, Robinson was refreshed, on task and ready for whatever amount of carries comes his way Saturday when the No. 15 Hawkeyes (4-1, 1-0 Big Ten) travel to Michigan (5-1, 1-1).

“That break was much needed, I was really banged up after that Penn State game,” said Robinson, who goes into the weekend fifth in the Big Ten with 96.0 rushing yards a game. “The bye week was much needed. ... I was really sore. I took some shots. That's part of the game. I was able to repair during the bye week.”

Iowa coaches measure every practice

repetition Robinson takes. His hydration and diet are watched closer than they ever have. When Robinson weighs in, he's expected to be within two pounds of 200.

Basically, Iowa is acutely aware he's precious cargo. This is such a 180 flip from August when Robinson, Jewel Hampton (ACL, out for season) and Brandon Wegher (left the team) were around, but it's reality and Robinson welcomes it.

He's gone from fighting for every carry to solo act.

“Back in the summer, when Brandon, Jewel and I were the contenders or whatever, the mindset was we're going to have three guys capable of carrying the ball,” Robinson said. “It would be selfish of any one of us to say, forget the other two and let me have all the carries.

“But now we're in a position where we don't have three and it's just me. At this point, it's been thrust on me. The circumstance now is I can embrace it and accept it.”

If the 20-plus keeps up, Robinson will be in uncharted territory in about five games. While splitting with Wegher last season, he carried 181 times. He's carried 98 this season, fourth in the Big Ten behind Michigan quarterback Denard Robinson (119), Wisconsin running back John Clay (115) and Illinois running back Mikel Leshoure (104).

“If Adam can go, he'll go, and if we have to rest him during the week, we'll do that,” Ferentz said. “We'll do whatever it takes. But it's not unusual or abnormal to just feature one guy back there.”

Iowa spent last week trying to fine-tune freshmen Marcus Coker and Brad Rogers, who remains an option at running back while being listed as No. 2 fullback.

“If we could have, we would have had two-a-days all week, but the school went ahead and scheduled classes,” Ferentz joked. “Plus, everyone else would have walked off the team.”

Gains were made, Ferentz said, but probably not enough to warrant a planned amount of carries.

Remember, Coker missed two weeks of fall camp and some five weeks of practice overall with a broken collarbone. Rogers has spent fall learning fullback. Another freshman, Anthony Hitchens, played safety until moving over during Ball State week on Sept. 25.

“They're better than they were a week ago. I don't know if they're good enough, but they're better,” Ferentz said.

The initial plan with Coker, a highly regarded 6-foot, 230-pounder, was to nurse him along behind Robinson and Hampton. Hampton's knee and Coker's shoulder threw the plan out of the window.

Now it's the little things ... protections, pass routes, playbook.

“It's not just take a ball and go. There are a lot of things runners do just like any other position,” Ferentz said. “It's pretty involved. But at least that is a position, historically, where younger players seem like they can play a little bit.”

It's not climbing Everest, but it's not color-by-numbers, either.