Tucson (AZ) Salpointe running back Bijan Robinson is one of the top players at his position in the entire country. He’s holding close to 25 offers and this week checked in at No. 55 on the Rivals100. The Texas Longhorns are one of the teams showing a strong interest, having extended a scholarship offer to Robinson in January.
The 6-1, 205-pound Robinson said this week that he’s been in steady contact with the UT staff and he’ll be making his way to Austin next month to get an up-close look at the Texas program.
“Texas has been great. I’ve been talking to them, all the coaches. They tell me a lot of things that I don’t want to hear and a lot of things that I do want to hear. So that’s what I like, their honesty,” Robinson said. “I am looking forward to going out there with my coach in late March. Texas is a great school.”
And what exactly is UT’s non-sugarcoated message to Robinson?
“They’re just honest with you. They say you just have to get there and work, you can’t expect to just start right away,” Robinson said. “I like when coaches tell me that. It makes me work harder when I get there.”
Texas’ running back depth is thin after taking only one true running back in each of the last two recruiting classes. As such, Robinson feels he’d have a chance to play early and often should he choose the Longhorns.
“They’re trying to find some, but they can’t really find anybody. If I do go there, it would be a good opportunity to play right away, maybe, and just to get to work really quick,” Robinson said.
A four-star prospect, Robinson holds offers from programs like Arizona, Arizona State, Alabama, Auburn, LSU, Michigan, Nebraska, Notre Dame, Ohio State, Oklahoma, Oregon, Texas A&M, UCLA, USC and Washington. He continues to navigate through the recruiting process and said he’s trying to learn things from each coach he communicates with.
“It’s been great. It was a little hectic at first but I’m getting used to it,” Robinson said. “Talking to the coaches is stressful. They’ll tell you a lot of things where you can learn from other schools, and just whatever school you go to make sure you learn from that coach.
“If a coach is patient with you, I feel that’s the right coach for you. If you (don’t) like your head coach or position coach, then I feel if you don’t have a feeling for that, it’s not the coach for you.”
As for his visit to Texas next month, Robinson said he’s looking forward to spending some time with the current Texas team members and just getting a better feel overall for the UT program.
“Just the players. I’ll talk to the players a lot, the running back group, the running backs coach, just see how they handle things around the facility, the area itself and just the vibe of all the people around campus,” Robinson said.
Robinson rushed for 2,400 yards and 36 touchdowns on just 170 carries last year (14.1 yards per carry).
