Why Wan’Dale Robinson is Kentucky’s most significant recruit of the 2021 class
The latest development with the University of Kentucky’s football program affirmed what many already believed would be the case heading into 2021: the Wildcats will be more potent on offense.
UK’s addition of Wan’Dale Robinson, the top receiving threat at Nebraska last season and one of the most dynamic players to play high school football in the commonwealth, can be interpreted as an endorsement of incoming offensive coordinator Liam Coen. Perhaps Robinson, who announced his transfer from Nebraska on Monday and his latest commitment to Kentucky on Friday, perhaps would have considered joining the Wildcats had they retained Eddie Gran, but he spurned Gran’s offense once before. Advantage, new guy.
Robinson has been a productive college player, generating nearly 1,500 total yards of offense and scoring seven touchdowns in two seasons with the Cornhuskers, who went 8-12 and failed to receive a bowl invitation in his time in Lincoln. His infusion into the program gives Kentucky a type of play-making threat that it’s lacked in the receiving game each of the last two seasons.
Recruiting coordinator Vince Marrow put it bluntly in a tweet issued immediately after Robinson announced he was coming to UK.
“Boom don’t get no better than that one,” Marrow wrote. “Let’s go BBN.”
Another threat
Robinson’s 914 career receiving yards on 91 receptions in two years top the career total of any current receiver on Kentucky’s roster; Josh Ali, a senior who announced recently that he’ll be using the NCAA’s COVID-19 waiver for an additional year of eligibility, has 846 career receiving yards on 90 catches.
Adding Robinson to the mix should make life easier on Ali, who last year was the only UK wide receiver who grabbed 20 or more receptions. He finished with 54 catches for 473 yards; tight end Keaton Upshaw was next-best with 16 receptions for 198 yards and was the only UK player to record multiple touchdown catches (three). Allen Dailey and Demarcus Harris were the only other wide receivers to finish with double-digit catches in 2020; each had 14.
For additional perspective, 60 players in the Southeastern Conference last season finished with at least 20 receptions. Kentucky was the only school in the league with only one player on that list. With UK looking to shake up its offense, that was likely to change regardless of Robinson’s addition, but it looks like it’ll be easier to achieve now than it did before.
Quarterback aid
Heading into the 2021 season, the biggest question for Kentucky’s offense, and probably for the team as a whole, is, “Who will be its starting quarterback?”
That question might not be answered until Kentucky kicks off its season in September. The transfer of Terry Wilson all but confirmed it will be one of two guys left on the roster who have taken college snaps — Joey Gatewood or Beau Allen. Whichever of the two wins out following spring practice, summer workouts and fall camp will have an easier time getting acclimated to being “the guy” with Robinson on board.
Neither was a member of Robinson’s signing class. Gatewood, a Florida native, signed with Auburn in 2018 prior to his transfer to Kentucky last January, while Allen signed with UK as part of the 2020 class. There’s at least some history between Allen and Robinson as rivals; Allen’s teams at Lexington Catholic went 3-0 against Robinson’s squads at Western Hills.
Runners
If UK is successful in diversifying what it does offensively, it should allow its existing rushers — among them Chris Rodriguez, who this past week said he’s returning to the program — to further flourish. It doesn’t hurt that Robinson is Lynn Bowden-like in how he can be deployed in the backfield.
Robinson at Nebraska rushed 134 times for a total of 580 yards, each of the last two seasons finishing among the Cornhuskers’ top four rushers. He’s not going to steal carries from Rodriguez, who proved himself capable of being a lead back in the SEC while sharing the backfield with senior A.J. Rose and fellow sophomore Kavosiey Smoke, but rather should give UK more wiggle room to lighten his load as needed in 2021.
Two additional running backs — Jutahn McClain and Travis Tisdale — will fight for time as well. At worst, Robinson will be as good a decoy in the run game as an offensive coordinator could hope for, and Coen’s sure to make the most of his presence.
