Air Force’s Robinette isn’t your typical NFL prospect
CENTENNIAL, Colo. — Except for the few who have donned cap and gown already, most of the 330 prospects heading to the NFL combine next week have put the pursuit of a college degree on hold to focus on a football future.
They’ve traded campus life for high-tech gyms where they’re trimming milliseconds off their times in the 40-yard dash times and three-cone drill. They go through mock interviews to prepare for the grilling from general managers in Indianapolis. Then they rest and recuperate while wolfing down meals managed to the calorie through meal services arranged by their agents. Not Jalen Robinette. The Air Force cadet and NFL hopeful who led the nation in yards per catch last season is taking six college courses, though he is also working out with former Stanford star Christian McCaffrey and 27 other pro football hopefuls at the Landow Performance training facility in suburban Denver.
“I’m a 23-year-old student in the dorm room,” said Robinette, who makes the roughly 100-mile roundtrip commute from the Air Force Academy six days a week, hitting the books in the morning and the weights in the afternoon.
“My plate is still full, but I’m enjoying it,” Robinette said. “I stay pretty busy. I’ve always looked at the big picture, which is pretty much why I came to the academy.”
His rigorous course load includes military strategic studies, power to influence in organizations and critical decisions in space, which delves into the first moon landing in 1969 and the Challenger space shuttle explosion in 1986.
“We actually dive into the recent history and get to talk about the choices and the decisions behind that, why we weren’t ready to launch with the Challenger — new information that’s recently been declassified,” Robinette said. “It’s really interesting. … It’s really cool.”
It’s all part of an education that’s preparing him to be a leader, whether on the battle field or the football field.
At a shade under 6-foot4 and just shy of 220 pounds, Robinette reminds some scouts of Denver Broncos star receiver Demaryius Thomas, who came out of Georgia Tech’s triple-option offense.
Robinette’s hallmarks are similar. He has a propensity for big plays, he has great hands, his concentration on contested balls is splendid and his run blocking is superb.
Despite averaging fewer than three catches a game, he drew enough notice to become the first Falcons receiver invited to the EastWest Shrine Game, Senior Bowl and NFL combine. Robinette caught just 35 passes as a senior, but they covered 959 yards for an NCAA-best 27.4-yard average, and he had six touchdown receptions. In four seasons, he caught 120 passes for 2,697 yards and 18 touchdowns. A former high school quarterback, he also threw six passes, completing three — all for touchdowns.
He knows he could have gone to another school and put up bigger numbers like Clemson’s Mike Williams or Western Michigan’s Corey Davis. But he said he has never regretted choosing Air Force, not even when he caught just 16 passes his freshman year.