Senior Tavius Robinson playing in the Texas Bowl to 'have one more game with my brothers'
There seems to have been a rise in the number of players who opt out of bowl games in the last three or four years, mostly to protect themselves from injury as the NFL combine and draft approach in the spring. But not Tavius Robinson
The Ole Miss Rebels, however, have not seen that be much of an issue since Elijah Moore and Kenny Yeboah opted out of the Outback Bowl three bowl ago and of right now no players other than a few in the transfer portal have opted out of next week’s Texas Bowl in Houston against Texas Tech.
Ole Miss senior defensive end Robinson is one of those players who is sticking with his teammates to enjoy one last outing with his “brothers.”
The native Canadian could have easily moved on and prepared himself for his professional audition and hopes, but he chose to stay and play, as did every other Rebel who could have opted out without too much criticism.
“We ended the regular season on a bad note and have a bad taste in our mouths,” said Robinson. “We want to get a win and since this is my last game and the last game for a lot of my brothers, we thought it was important to play it out.
“Wanting to end on a high note has been one of our motivators. The other thing is that this is it for me on the collegiate level. This is an unselfish team and that’s important to me.”
The Rebels, Tavius said, have had good practices leading up to the bowl.
“It’s felt real good to put the pads back on with fresh legs and work on the little things and work on our gameplan for Texas Tech,” he continued. “They are a good team with a good quarterback, good offensive line and good receivers. We will have to play well to beat them.
“Their offense is similar to Tulsa and Mississippi State – they like to throw the ball, but they are capable running it as well. They will be a real test.”
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Related: Ole Miss defense prepared for Texas Tech and its up tempo offense
Robinson came to Ole Miss from Guelph, Ontario, and has settled in nicely to the deep South despite an adjustment period.
“It was a big adjustment at first, but I feel a part of the South now,” Robinson noted. “The community is great and the coaches and my teammates are great. Football-wise, I have learned so much. It’s crazy how much I have grown as a football player and as a person.
“I wouldn’t trade it for anything.”
This is the end of the Rebel road for Tavius, but he sees good things moving ahead for the Ole Miss defensive line with young players like Tywone Malone and Zxavian Harris.
“Both of those guys have progressed so much this year and both will be special players as they mature more and more,” he added. “They are real talents.”
Tavius has had a productive season so far with 39 tackles and team leads in sacks (6), tackles for loss (7), QB hurries (6), forced fumbles (3) and fumbles recovered (2), but he wants to add to those totals and help the Rebs bring home a victory.
“The regular season is over, but we still have something to prove and I want to do my part to help us prove it,” he closed.
A good man with a good plan.
