Deon Butler to DB?

Rumors have been swirling for several weeks now, ever since Chris Bell verballed to Penn State, that Deon Butler would be moved to defensive back. I have very mixed feelings on this situation. On one hand, Penn State will have a plethora of wide receivers to take his place, many of whom have yet to play a down of college football. These players include Bell and redshirt freshmen James McDonald, Kevin Cousins, Willie Harriott and the injured Mark Rubin. Rubin is now healthy and has been practicing as a flex TE during Orange Bowl practices. He is another weapon that Morelli will have to work with next season. However, Butler has been Penn State's most consistent wideout all season long. Ever since he broke out against Cincinnati, Butler has been Penn State's gamebreaking wideout. When Derrick Williams was lost for the season against Michigan, Butler stepped up his play and was able to continue the success of the passing attack despite the loss of one of the best young players in the game. Taking Butler from the offensive side of the ball could be trouble with the amount of inexperienced players behind him. However, Penn State needs to find a corner to play opposite Justin King. Tony Davis has done well in his limited amounts of playing time. Knowledge Timmons, who redshirted this season, could also be in the mix. Butler seemed to impress the coaches with his play at DB on the foreing team in 2004. If he could nail down the other starting spot, it would be because he earned it. Not out of desperation.

It hasn't been mentioned much but I think Butler could be utilized on both sides of the football. If he wins a starting CB spot, why not try him as a slot receiver on offense for a handful of plays a game? We all know what a success Chris Gamble was when he played both ways at Ohio State.