Ad Disclosure
It was a frustrating season for Auburn junior RB Jovon Robinson, but at least it ended with a flurry. He can’t wait for 2016 now.
And neither can his coaches.
Much was expected of Robinson this year, but one thing after another kept him off the field. Attitude issues and a nagging ankle injury kept Robinson sidelined for most of the season. And when he was finally ready to play, there was the issue of playing time among a full stable of quality backs, most notably sophomore Peyton Barber. Sophomore Roc Thomas and true freshman Kerryon Johnson also got some carries in Robinson’s absence.
That’s a lot of talent and only one football to share between them. Robinson had just four carries through the first seven games this season but got his opportunity in the eighth game against Ole Miss and he hasn’t looked back.
Over the next four games, Robinson threatened the 100-yard mark in each, topping it once with a Tigers’ season-high 159-yard performance in a 26-10 victory over Texas A&M. He piled up 107 of those yards in the first half alone.
It was his breakout game. He replaced Barber, who did not start because of an undisclosed injury, and made the most of his opportunity. Robinson carried a season-high 27 times and scored his first touchdown.
He’s been Auburn’s leading rusher ever since. Over that four-game span Robinson rushed for 462 yards and two touchdowns on 76 carries, averaging 6.1 yards per carry.
That momentum was slowed down by Alabama last Saturday. In 14 carries, Robinson rushed for only 51 yards. But that’s what Alabama does. For comparison sake, Leonard Fournette, the Heisman Trophy leader at the time, rushed for only 31 yards on 19 carries in an early-November loss to the Tide.
It should come as no surprise that Robinson’s talents would be ultimately brought to the forefront. As head coach at Auburn, Gus Malzahn has produced seven different 100-yard rushers. He’s had the SEC’s leading rusher the past two seasons, Tre Mason (2013) and Cameron Artis-Payne (2014). Auburn is one of only five schools with at least one 1,000-yard rusher per season from 2009-14.
The 6-1, 230-pounder has won the starting job as the Tigers’ featured back. It just took a little longer than he’d anticipated. But Robinson has grown accustomed to that. He was declared academically ineligible by the NCAA upon his first try with Auburn back in 2012.
He sat out a season before enrolling in Georgia Military College, where he was a man among boys much like former Auburn star Cam Newton when he spent a year at the junior college level.
Robinson rushed for 3,198 yards and 43 touchdowns in two seasons, leading his team to the NJCAA title game. The 2013 NJCAA national player of the year set national junior college single-season records for rushing yards (2,387), touchdowns (34) and points scored (204).
It’s been a long time coming, but Robinson is finally making a name for himself at Auburn as well.
However, he’ll have to continue to earn it. The Tigers have a bowl game still to play this season and then the battle begins again for the lead role in the 2016 campaign. Robinson should go in as the frontrunner, but the gap is negligible. Barber finished the regular season as Auburn’s leading rusher and needs just 24 yards in the bowl game to reach 1,000 yards for the season.
Glenn Sattell is an award-winning freelance writer for Saturday Down South.
