Could Wan’Dale Robinson be a trendsetter for Kentucky wide receivers?
Asked from whom he’d most like to catch passes this fall, Wan’Dale Robinson responded with the closest thing to a correct answer.
“Tom Brady,” Robinson said. “He’s the GOAT.”
Since the NFL Combine early last month, Brady came out of retirement and Robinson’s draft profile has been more or less cemented. He has been told that he won’t fall outside of the top 100 picks in April’s draft, which would make him no worse than a third-round selection. Size — he measured in at 5-foot-8 and 179 pounds at Kentucky’s Pro Day on Friday — will almost certainly prevent the UK receiver from climbing into the first round, but it’s a good bet that he’ll hear his name called by the end of day two. The Tampa Bay Buccaneers have three draft selections through then, so perhaps the former Western Hills High School star will get his wish and be paired with the seven-time Super Bowl champion.
Robinson will bring speed and strength to whatever offense in which he ends up: he ran a 4.44 40-yard dash at the combine and threw up 19 reps in the 225-pound bench press on Friday. He also improved his vertical by a half inch, to 35 flat, between the start of March and April 1.
His collegiate career ended in a pro-style scheme that featured Robinson as a receiver. Deeper appreciation for positional versatility is on the rise, though, and while he wasn’t keen on lining up at running back for Kentucky, as he did often at Nebraska, Robinson has no quarrel about doing so at the next level, a la Deebo Samuel.
“That’s something I can bring to an offense and something that I’m ready to do,” Robinson said.
A season in Liam Coen’s offense better-educated Robinson on NFL terminology and concepts. Coen returned to the Los Angeles Rams, but Kentucky hired Rich Scangarello from the San Francisco 49ers to maintain, and build upon, a pro-style scheme that helped it win 10 games and improve a passing game that had grown stagnant. Long-term, it should help the program churn out NFL-ready offensive skill players at a rate similar to its output in other position groups. Robinson is set to become the second wide receiver drafted during Mark Stoops’ tenure, following Lynn Bowden, and just the third offensive skill player (Benny Snell) in that span.
Robinson’s advice to those hoping to become part of a trend?
“Whenever you sit in those interviews and things, you want to be able to understand what coaches are talking about,” he said. “Obviously, this past year helped me in a big way. In just about every meeting room I was in, I was able to understand what was going on because I’ve been in that pro-style scheme before.
“This place just allows you to grow as a person. There’s really good people here. It doesn’t get much better than that.”
Pro Day winner
It would be hard to dispute that Quandre Mosely, who wasn’t extended a combine invite, left UK’s Pro Day as the biggest winner. The 6-foot, 185-pound defensive back ran an unofficial time of 4.32 seconds in the 40-yard dash and posted the highest vertical of the day at 36 inches. His vertical would have put him in the top five among all cornerbacks, and top 10 among all defensive backs, at the NFL Combine. His 40-yard dash, if official, would have been in the top three among all DBs at the combine.
Mosely’s marks call to mind of a similarly-sized defensive back who got drafted out of Kentucky after a strong Pro Day showing last year: Brandin Echols. The New York Jets took Echols, who was considered a combine invitee (the actual event wasn’t staged), in the sixth round. If Mosely, a “super senior” who has exhausted his eligibility, sneaks into the draft, he’d be the fifth defensive back selected from Kentucky since 2019. UK had just four DBs drafted from 2001-2018.
“I got the height. I got the speed. I know the game. I play multiple positions around the field,” Mosely told reporters Thursday. “Wherever they need me, I can play.”
Notes
▪ Quarterback Terry Wilson returned to Lexington to participate in UK’s Pro Day. He missed most of his final collegiate season, played at New Mexico, due to an elbow dislocation but worked with a private quarterback coach since the end of the season to refine his throwing mechanics. He told Jon Hale of the Courier Journal last week that Kentucky is No. 1 in his heart of the four colleges at which he spent time. “I’m BBN for life,” Wilson said. “All-in with Kentucky.”
▪ Murray State offensive lineman Jacob Vance also participated in the Kentucky Pro Day. A 6-foot-4, 308-pound native of Prospect, Vance was named to the All-Ohio Valley Conference First Team in 2020 and 2021. He’s aiming to become the Racers’ first NFL Draft selection since 2019 (Quincy Williams) and their fourth this century.
