Honors & Awards
» Paul Hornung Award Watch List (2020)
» Paul Hornung Award Finalist (2019)
» Second-Team Freshman All-American (2019, The Athletic)
» Honorable-Mention All-Big Ten (2020, Coaches)
» Honorable-Mention All-Big Ten (2019, Media)
» Two-Time Big Ten Freshman of the Week (Sept. 23, 2019; Oct. 7, 2019)
» Nebraska Scholar-Athlete Honor Roll (Spring 2019)
Nebraska Records
» Season Receptions by a True Freshman (40 in 2019)
» Season Receiving Yards by a True Freshman (443 in 2019)
2020 (Sophomore)
A member of the 2020 Paul Hornung Award watch list after being a finalist for the award last season, Wan'Dale Robinson again proved to be a key and versatile player for the Nebraska offense as a sophomore. Robinson led the Huskers with 51 catches and 461 receiving yards despite playing only eight games and splitting duties at running back. Robinson was also fourth on the team with 240 rushing yards, and led Nebraska with 696 all-purpose yards. He earned honorable-mention All-Big Ten honors from the conference coaches. Robinson ranked fourth in the Big Ten and 23rd nationally with 6.4 receptions per game, the fourth-highest average in the country for an underclassman.
Robinson led Nebraska with six catches for 29 yard at No. 5 Ohio State and was third on the team with four catches and 32 receiving yards at Northwestern. In the win over Penn State, an injury to starting running back Dedrick Mills forced Robinson to primarily play running back, and he carried the ball 16 times for 60 yards. Against Illinois, Robinson accounted for 120 yards from scrimmage on only 13 touches. He rushed seven times for 60 yards and had six catches for 60 yards. He showed big-play ability on the ground and through the air, as he caught a 31-yard pass and had a 32-yard rush. At Iowa, Robinson had 117 scrimmage yards on 15 touches. He rushed six times for 42 yards, tying for the team lead in rushing yards. Robinson also led Nebraska with a career-high nine receptions and 75 receiving yards. In the win at Purdue, Robinson accounted for 119 yards from scrimmage on only 11 touches. He caught a career-high nine passes for 114 yards, his second career 100-yard receiving game. Robinson had 14 offensive touches for 90 yards against Minnesota. He carried the ball eight times for 49 yards, including a career-long 47-yard run while catching six passes for 41 yards. In the season finale at Rugers, Robinson caught six passes for 79 yards and rushed seven times for 24 yards while scoring both a rushing and receiving touchdown.
2019 (Freshman)
Robinson played in 10 games as a true freshman, becoming Nebraska’s first letterwinner from Kentucky. He flashed playmaking ability although injuries limited his production over the final three games. Robinson was a versatile member of the Husker offense, making three starts at receiver and one at running back.
He caught 40 passes for 443 yards and two touchdowns while rushing for 340 yards and three scores. Robinson caught the most passes and totaled the most receiving yards by any true freshman in Nebraska history. He ranked second on the team in receptions, receiving yards and receiving touchdowns, while ranking third in carries, rushing yards and rushing touchdowns. Robinson also totaled 1,029 all-purpose yards as a true freshman, which ranked second on the team and was the third-highest total ever by a Husker true freshman.
An honorable-mention All-Big Ten selection, Robinson was a two-time Big Ten Freshman of the Week and a second-team freshman All-American. He was one of four national finalists for the Paul Hornung Award, joining Ameer Abdullah (2014) as the only Huskers to be a finalist for the Hornung Award.
Robinson ranked fourth nationally among all FBS freshmen in all-purpose yards per game in 2019 with the second-highest total among Power Five freshmen. Robinson was also one of only two FBS players to total 400 receiving yards, 300 rushing yards and 200 kickoff return yards in 2019.
Robinson led Nebraska in all-purpose yards (131) while starting his Husker debut against South Alabama. He had four carries for 21 yards, caught three passes for 33 yards and returned three kickoffs for 77 yards. Robinson totaled 44 yards from scrimmage at Colorado and had three catches for 48 yards against Northern Illinois.
He shined in his Big Ten debut at Illinois, scoring the first three touchdowns of his career. Robinson caught eight passes for 79 yards and two touchdowns against the Illini, while carrying the ball 19 times for 89 yards and one touchdown. For his efforts at Illinois, Robinson was named the Big Ten Freshman of the Week.
He enjoyed a career game against Northwestern, which earned him Big Ten Freshman-of-the-Week accolades for the second time in three weeks. Robinson caught seven passes for a career-high 123 yards against the Wildcats to post the most receiving yards in a game by a true freshman in school history. He also carried the ball seven times for 44 yards. Robinson had a career-long 49-yard catch and a career-long 42-yard touchdown run.
At Minnesota, Robinson had two catches for 10 yards and six carries for 24 yards before an injury kept him out for more than half the game. Robinson returned from the injury with a big game against Indiana, when he led the Huskers with 83 rushing yards and was second with 71 receiving yards, totaling 154 yards from scrimmage. The next week at Purdue, Robinson had 123 all-purpose yards, including 75 yards from scrimmage (29 rushing, 46 receiving). Robinson eclipsed 1,000 all-purpose yards at Purdue, becoming the fourth Husker true freshman to total 1,000 all-purpose yards, joining an exclusive club that includes Ahman Green (1995), Ameer Abdullah (2011) and De’Mornay Pierson-El (2014).
Robinson missed the next two games with an injury and returned for the season finale at Iowa, although he was limited to just three carries for 14 yards before missing the second half due to injury.
Before Nebraska (Western Hills HS)
Robinson was the consensus top player in Kentucky as a senior at Western Hills High School in Frankfort, winning the Paul Hornung Award in addition to being named Kentucky’s Mr. Football and the Gatorade Kentucky Player of the Year. A standout all-purpose back, Robinson looks to become Nebraska’s first-ever letterwinner from Kentucky. In addition to his state honors, Robinson was named one of five finalists for the 2019 All-American Bowl Player-of-the-Year award, which is presented annually to the nation’s most outstanding high school senior.
In his illustrious career, Robinson totaled 8,582 yards from scrimmage with 118 offensive touchdowns. On the ground, he gained 6,795 yards, averaging more than 11 yards per carry while scoring 97 rushing touchdowns. He was also a threat in the receiving game, catching 102 passes in his career for 1,787 yards and 21 touchdowns. Robinson totaled 781 career points which ranks No. 2 all-time in Kentucky history.
As a senior in 2018, Robinson rushed for 1,973 yards and 30 touchdowns while catching 31 passes for 725 yards and 11 touchdowns. He also returned a pair of punts, one interception and one fumble for a touchdown, accounting for 45 touchdowns in 11 games. Robinson also threw a pair of touchdown passes. Defensively, Robinson had 113 tackles, including 12 TFLs and one sack. He also had three interceptions, broke up five passes, forced six fumbles and had one fumble recovery. Robinson was also a threat in the return game, returning five kickoffs for 111 yards and six punts for 170 yards and two touchdowns.
Robinson rushed for 2,330 yards and 33 touchdowns as a junior in 2017, when he also caught 25 passes for 343 yards and six scores. He also rushed for 2,000 yards as a sophomore, gaining 2,014 yards with 28 scores and adding 22 receptions for 434 yards and three touchdowns. Robinson also contributed as a freshman, rushing for 478 yards and six touchdowns while catching 24 passes for 285 yards and one score.
A consensus four-star recruit, Robinson is regarded as the nation’s No. 2 all-purpose back in the 247Sports Composite rankings. He was ranked as the nation’s No. 61 player by Rivals and No. 117 by 247Sports, which also regarded Robinson as the top player in Kentucky. Robinson, who was selected to play in the 2019 Army All-America Bowl, chose Nebraska over Kentucky, and he also visited Alabama, Michigan, Ohio State and Purdue.
Personal
Wan’Dale is the son of Dale Robinson and Victoria Davis, and he was born on Jan. 5, 2001. A marketing major, he has volunteered with a Day of Service, Husker Heroes, the Nebraska Football Road Race and local hospital visits.