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IOWA CITY — It was only minutes before last Saturday’s Big Ten showdown at Ohio State and Iowa running back Adam Robinson was hunched over on the bench, head bowed, hands clasped together.

He looked nervous. Or sick.

Or both.

“I actually was praying on the bench,” Robinson said. “I always do that to ask for perseverance and safety. But I also was a little nervous for that one.”

Before the day was over, Robinson surprised himself by carrying the ball 20 times for 74 yards in a 27-24 overtime loss to the Buckeyes.

But Iowa coach Kirk Ferentz long ago stopped being surprised by the contributions of Robinson, who has been one of the primary reasons for the Hawkeyes’ surprising success this season.

“One thing I really know about Adam: If he can go, he’s going to go,” Ferentz said. “He’s one of those … I call them feel-good players. You’re around the guy, you feel good. He’s always got a positive attitude, he’s always hustling and he truly enjoys the game … This guy is just the real deal.”

Ferentz really needed Robinson to deliver on Saturday.

The redshirt freshman from Des Moines, who alternated with fellow freshman Brandon Wegher for most of the first eight games, had missed the previous two games with an ankle injury that had been expected to sideline him for a month. But with Wegher suffering from cracked ribs, Robinson returned to practice last week.

He said he was only about 80 percent, but he would try to contribute what little he could. His nervousness stemmed from the fact that he had not been tackled since near the end of the Michigan State game when he was injured.

“I didn’t know I was going to play the whole game,” Robinson said. “I knew I was going to start because Brandon was messing with some rib issues. But I thought he was going to be able to come in in the second quarter.”

Wegher wasn’t even able to go through pregame warm-ups, let alone play.

“I surprised myself in the second quarter,” Robinson said. “I didn’t know if I was going to be able to make it that far but when we got to that point, I thought ‘OK, I’m capable of going the full distance.’”

He seemed to get better as the game went on, collecting 57 yards after halftime.

And he emerged from the game without any further injury. He thinks he should be 100 percent by Saturday’s regular-season finale against Minnesota.

“He miraculously held up,” Ferentz said. “He’s a real tough-minded guy.”

Robinson has been remarkably consistent, rushing for between 60 and 110 yards in eight of the nine games in which he has played and going for 70 or more yards in every Big Ten game.

Despite missing those two games, he already has set Iowa’s single-season freshman rushing record with 703 yards. The previous standard was 679, by current Washington Redskins back Ladell Betts in 1998.

“I think he’s pretty good,” Ferentz said. “I don’t know who to compare him to, but he’s pretty good.”