Finally 100% Healthy, Davonte Robinson Prepares for Special Super Senior Season

An uncommon injury almost completely derailed Davonte Robinson’s football career. The COVID-19 pandemic put him further behind the 8-ball, until it gave him another chance.

A four-star recruit from Lexington’s Henry Clay High School, Robinson spurned late advances by Notre Dame to sign with Kentucky. Learning behind Mike Edwards and Darius West, Robinson received his first significant snaps as a nickel and dime cornerback in 2018, earning an above average grade from PFF at 75.5. He was on pace for a breakout 2019 season as the Wildcats’ top safety, but he never made it to training camp.

The summer ahead of his fourth year in Lexington, Robinson suffered a torn quadricep during an offseason workout. His season was over before it started.

“They told me it was uncommon what happened,” Robinson said Thursday. “In my mind I didn’t know what was going to happen, but I just fought though all of it and kept pushing everyday.”

Pandemic Delay

Rehabilitating alongside Terry Wilson for almost a year, Robinson faced another setback out of his hands, COVID-19. Through the early parts of the pandemic he was still able to participate in physical therapy on UK’s campus. Physically, he was closer to 100%, but there were still mental obstacles in the way of his return to the football field.

“I feel like it was more for me, just with Covid, all of that happening, it just kind of pushed everything back for me, so it was a slower process, but at the same time I knew everything was going to be alright,” Robinson said.

“Last year I was still more in my head than anything, just with the injury coming back to camp and Covid, that was my first time taking reps. It was a lot, but I’ve overcome it.”

Similar Success Story

Throughout his year-long recuperation, there was a familiar face providing support, Darius West. Like Robinson, West missed an entire year of college football after suffering a preseason injury. That was just one of the major surgeries the former four-star prospect had to recover from throughout his career.

In West’s first season back in action, he was good, not great. He ranked third on the team in tackles in 2017 with 86, but there were times in pass coverage where he misjudged the eagles, leading to big plays. The following year that was not the case. He had 86 tackles, three interceptions and earned midseason All-American honors.

Robinson may be on a similar path. The 2020 season was not how he envisioned his final season playing out at Kentucky. Primarily acting as Kentucky’s nickel back, he was good, not great, dipping to a grade of 58.7 while totaling 27 tackles, two for loss.

When the NCAA haver players an opportunity to redo the Covid plagued season, using the waiver was a no-brainer for Robinson.

“It was always a clear decision,” he said. “I knew I had a lot more to give and a lot more to prove. I didn’t want to end my year last year the way that it happened. Just in my mind it was a clear decision that I was coming back.”

Confidence in a Diverse Defense

Robinson admits he was not entirely 100% in 2020. That is no longer the case.

“I feel good. I feel like I’m 100%,” he said. “Mentally I’m all there. Physically I’m all there. I feel really great.”

His teammates and coaches can see a rejuvenated Robinson on the practice field.

“D-Rob is starting to look more like himself,” said defensive coordinator Brad White. “He looks so much better. You can tell the confidence level that he’s playing with right now. That’s encouraging to see. He’s making plays and with every play that he makes, it adds to the confidence level. So much of that position is building the confidence back. He’s going to have to be a big contributor for us, there’s no doubt about that.”

“I feel like he’s more confident he looks faster out there,” said his fellow safety, Yusuf Corker. “He’s looking great out there making plays and I feel like he’s going to be real good for us this year in the nickel, medium safety spot.”

Robinson’s role will not dramatically change, but it will be exponentially more important. As J.J. Weaver recovers from injury, the outside linebacker room is light on depth. To mitigate that problem, UK will turn to a strength of the defense, its safeties, by playing more of its “medium package” that resembles a 3-3-5 defense. The exotic look enlists Robinson to play alongside Corker and Tyrell Ajian, a couple of experienced seniors that know Mark Stoops’ defense better than the back of their hands.

“Honestly, it’s exciting, because you can move guys here and there. Everybody can play different positions,” said Robinson. “We’re very diverse in what we can do. If one person wants to go down, we can sub a guy in and we won’t miss a beat.”

Robinson missed a few beats over the last two years. Now healthy and gaining confidence, it’s his time to shine in Kentucky’s secondary.