After playing three positions in five years at Penn State, the maturation of Tim Shaw may be nearly complete.

At preseason camp in August, Shaw was informed that he would be moved to defensive end because of a lack of depth at the position.

Though he may not have liked it, Shaw accepted the challenge in the name of putting the defense's best 11 players on the field, as Paul Posluszny took over the middle linebacker spot and up-and-coming sophomore Sean Lee was able to start on the outside.

Asked to describe the switch, Shaw summed it up in a single word: Tough.

The fifth-year senior from Livonia, Mich., is built like a linebacker, and is therefore undersized for an end. At 235 pounds, the experience of going up against offensive linemen who weigh upward of 300 pounds is often a burden.

"It's like one of the dumbest things you could ever do," Shaw said. "It's like trying to wrestle a bear or something. Sometimes I feel like these guys just swallow me up, and I just stand there and fight back. Sometimes I feel like I'm running my head into a brick wall."

A defensive end's contributions are more difficult for the layperson to spot than those of a linebacker. Shaw has four sacks as well as 34 tackles this year, and acknowledges that while linebackers can make a string of tackles on consecutive plays, linemen can go entire games without being noticed -- even if they're playing well.

"He does a lot of things you don't see until you watch the tapes," said defensive coordinator Tom Bradley.

Because of his speed (according to Bradley, he ran a 4.5-second 40), Shaw alters angles and forces runners to run farther to the sideline in order to outflank him. Bradley said his speed makes up for some of the deficiencies Shaw might have as an undersized defensive end.

"I always tell Tim to use his speed," defensive tackle Ed Johnson said. "That's something those big guys can't handle."

After working hard to learn how to play defensive end, Shaw realized there isn't much on the football field he can't handle.

Switching positions came as nothing new to Shaw, who was moved to linebacker from running back at the beginning of his true sophomore year.

"It was tough," Shaw said. "It was just kind of an ego thing. That was when I really feel that I grew up and learned a lot. I had to sit that year out with my redshirt. It was tough giving up running the ball, but ultimately I think defense is where I belong at this level and hopefully the next level."

Shaw says he would have been a great running back, but that nobody's going to keep him off the field -- regardless of where he has to play.

While it took some growing up to adjust to the defensive side of the ball and his new role, it took some more to accept his spot on the defensive line after starting two years at middle linebacker.

"He definitely made a great sacrifice for our team, especially with the circumstances that we had ...," Posluszny said. "He's been nothing but positive about the position change."

Shaw was told by those in the know that his position change has not hurt his draft status, and the switch might showcase his versatility and character attributes.

Three weeks ago Shaw said he'd prefer to have stayed at linebacker this year, but his tone is a bit softer now.

"This year was kind of tough to sit back and give up my [personal] dreams and goals as a college athlete," Shaw said.

"I thought I was a leader, so this is how I'm going to be a leader. I'm going to make sacrifices. That was a big growing step for me."