Denard Robinson is a Transcendent College Football Player & More
Like most viewers of college football, I have always enjoyed watching exciting players like Denard Robinson play the game. Nearly every year it seems like there are a few players who are so compelling to watch, that you root for them regardless of what team they are playing for. What usually, but not always, captures most fans attention is the player’s flashiness or explosiveness. Sometimes it is simply their moxie or toughness that wins fans over and makes them hard to root against.
This year there are already three players I just can’t root against: Andrew Luck of Stanford, Robert Griffin III of Baylor, and Denard Robinson of Michigan. All three are exciting players, full of moxie and appear to have great character and leadership qualities. But only Denard Robinson has that certain video game quality to his play that only comes around a few times a decade. Not since Reggie Bush played for USC, have I seen a player like Robinson who every kid wants to be when they’re playing the video game EA Sports NCAA Football.
I wouldn’t even be the least bit surprised if many Ohio State alums have children that can’t resist the allure of playing the video game with Michigan for the chance to control Denard Robinson. When Reggie Bush was at USC, I had friends who worked for opposing conference teams ask me to get them autographed Reggie Bush jerseys for their sons for Christmas. Despite the parents’ deep-seated dislike of USC, you couldn’t wipe the smile off of their faces as their sons opened that present.
As obvious as it is that Denard Robinson is one of those rare players who transcend his team affiliation, it was his interview with the college GameDay crew following the Notre Dame victory that won me over. When it was mentioned that he had rushed and passed for a combined total of 446-yards in the game, he was clearly genuinely shocked by the news (note his reaction at the 2:06 mark in the video). This exemplified the winning mindset I try and instill in all of my clients. The truly great winners and champions are so consumed with being in the moment, they have no idea how well they performed until after the competition is over. If you are keeping tabs on your performance during competition you are not 100% in it and performing to your full capabilities.
Denard Robinson and his Michigan team are still a work in progress and still have a ways to go to get back to the top of the college football world. But with Denard’s continued development and the leadership and coaching of Brady Hoke (who I previously wrote about here) the future looks very bright for both Robinson and Michigan.
