As the final seconds ticked off the clock and Michael Robinson and Austin Scott slid off tackles, Ricky Upton watched from a stationary bike on the Penn State sideline.

The month, the week, the day -- all had started with so much promise for Upton, who looked like he had emerged victorious from a tough preseason battle for the Nittany Lions' starting tailback job.

But the senior from Tennessee took his final carry with less than 90 seconds remaining in the first half, seeing spotty action the rest of the way as Robinson and Scott spear-headed a 186-yard rushing performance in the second half of Penn State's 23-10 win over Temple.

Originally listed as the starting tailback on Monday's depth chart, Upton was unceremoniously unseated from the position on Thursday night when the coaches told him Robinson would get Saturday's start instead.

Upton carried the forlorn look in his eye from the field into the post-game interviews and tried to explain to everyone that it really wasn't killing him.

"You do feel bad for him," Penn State quarterback Zack Mills said. "I don't really know what to say about it. He got a couple carries in the first half and the coaches made a switch and Austin got his opportunity and ran with it."

Scott certainly looked as comfortable running with the ball as he did with the imaginations of Penn State fans, which were left wondering just how good the true freshman could be. After just one rush for five yards in the first half, Scott had 11 carries for 64 yards after half time and always looked to be one broken tackle away from a long run.

But it was Robinson who stole the show with a 53-yard sweep -- just a speed burst away from being a 72-yard touchdown run -- in the fourth quarter, highlighting a nine-carry, 84-yard rushing performance.

With so many different options in the backfield, Larry Johnson, Penn State's departed 2,000-yard rusher, said he isn't quite sure who is most likely to emerge later in the season. After watching the game from the sideline Saturday, however, he says the group should be just fine in his absence.

"There's a lot of guys back there who have a lot of talent," Johnson said. "It's all about opportunity and whoever gets in there. Anything can happen."

That includes the emergence of redshirt freshman Donnie Johnson, whose only action Saturday came on special teams.

That includes the return of Mike Gasparato, the pre-season favorite to start the season opener at tailback before a hamstring injury kept him out of practice and the Temple game.

That includes the emergence of Scott or fellow freshman Tony Hunt, who had three carries for 12 yards, and Rodney Kinlaw, who missed the game with an ankle injury.

Fullback Sean McHugh, who jokingly reminded everyone that he was the only player to rush for a touchdown during the game, said there's no way to know the answers to all the what-ifs this early.

"It's hard to pick one because they were all effective today," McHugh said. "It's not like one guy was getting stuffed; they were all making plays."

For his part, Upton made plays, too. He rushed four times for 19 yards and caught one pass. But his third rush of the game came with less than a minute remaining in the first quarter and his day was largely limited to pass protection after that.

"Right now, I want to prove I'm a strong back and I will run hard out there," Upton said after the game. "I'm not worried about how things are going to go. We're just going to go back into practice on Monday and watch the game film for Boston College."