Every kid dreaming of being a collegiate athlete dreams of playing for their favorite college team.
Luckily for Florida State junior wide receiver Duce Robinson, he didn’t have to look far as his father, Dominic, played for the Seminoles from 2001-2004 for legendary head coach Bobby Bowden. Duce grew up with FSU very much being a part of his household. Trips to games at Doak Campbell Stadium and watching the Seminoles win the 2013 national championship are etched in Duce’s memory.
Even though Duce didn’t start his career at FSU, his love for this university runs deep within his blood. When Duce joined FSU after spending his first two years at Southern Cal, everything looked comfortable and familiar to him as he passed through the football offices.
The long offseason of hard work in the hot Tallahassee sun and getting acclimated to head coach Mike Norvell’s culture and offensive coordinator Gus Malzahn’s complex system was a challenge. His hard work paid off on Saturday when the Seminoles took the field at Doak Campbell Stadium to take on East Texas A&M.
After catching two passes for 18 yards the previous week against Alabama, and showing how valuable he was as a perimeter blocker, Duce was still searching for his first touchdown in an FSU uniform.
The Seminoles began their first offensive possession by methodically marching down the field for a score to put them up 7-0. Robinson caught one pass on the drive and showed his physical blocking.
On their next drive, the Seminoles began at their own 18-yard line with four minutes, 59 seconds left in the first quarter. Senior quarterback Tommy Castellanos took the snap out of the shotgun and delivered a long bomb down the field to a streaking Robinson, who caught it in stride and raced into the end zone for his first career touchdown as a member of the Florida State football team. The crowd went wild as Robinson scored on an 82-yard catch and run. Robinson can only experience his first touchdown as a Seminole once, a moment he will remember forever.
“It’s surreal,” Robinson said. "Growing up coming to games, watching games in Doak and to be able to first catch a pass last week but also score a touchdown this week, it’s a feeling like no other.”
The connection between Castellanos and Robinson would continue the next drive. With Castellanos in the shotgun again and on the 42-yard line, he could smell blood in the water and delivered another long pass to the end zone towards Robinson. This time he came down with the pass one-handed and would wind up being a SportsCenter-type highlight to give FSU a 21-0 lead with two minutes and 26 seconds left in the first quarter.
“I thought Duce was remarkable,” Norvell said. “He showcased what we get to see in practice, his speed, length, play making ability. That was an incredible touchdown catch, great ball by Tommy to keep it on the outside where it was Duce or nobody. That was a thing of beauty. Obviously the long 80-yard touchdown, that was just speed, and Tommy put the ball out there for Duce to go get it, and he did.”
Robinson had finally made his presence known within the first quarter of the game, accounting for 160 yards and two touchdowns — the most by an FSU player in a single quarter in at least 25 years. The talented junior ended the day with five catches for 173 yards and two touchdowns.
“Being able to run out of that tunnel, being able to score a touchdown as a Seminole and watching Chief Osceola throw the spear down, those were all memories I had as a kid watching on TV that now I get to live out on a daily basis,” Robinson said. “All I know is 5-year-old me would be very proud of myself.”
The Seminoles would cruise to an easy 77-3 victory as they enter their bye week. Robinson had a stellar career while at USC and he looks like he is off to a great start with the Seminoles. A physically imposing receiver at 6-foot-6 and 223 pounds, he is surprisingly fast for someone of his size.
He has similarities to former FSU star receiver Johnny Wilson, who has similar measurables. Robinson, however, is a little faster than Wilson. Both can catch the deep balls and hurt defenses on fade routes, but Robinson looks to be a more polished, well-rounded receiver with better ball skills.
Castellanos said after Saturday’s game that he felt like he let Robinson down in not throwing the ball his way more often against Alabama. As the good friends sat side by side in the postgame press conference, Robinson said “that dude never lets me down.”
“I absolutely love playing with this dude, playing for this guy,” Robinson said. “He is everything and more that you could ask for from your quarterback.”
As the season continues, look for the Seminoles to exploit defenses by throwing Robinson at them with full force. Robinson is a matchup problem for everyone on FSU’s schedule after his performance against East Texas A&M, complementing Malzahn’s desire to run with his capabilities as a field-stretching deep threat.
(Photo at top by Mike Ewen)
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