Jeff Robinson Mentors His Son, A College Football Prospect, Through Pandemic Uncertainty
MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) -- High school sports kicked off for cross country, soccer, tennis and swimming Monday.
One notable exception, of course, is football, and a football family is forced to adjust with the help of a father that understands its impact.
Jeff Robinson was a scout, and now works with high schools and in the community. He was a coach's kid, and a Division I cornerback at Northwestern University. He understands what no high school football means to student-athletes.
"The fact that they're losing their mentors, they're losing their interpersonal relationships, so those type of things are the things that are really hurting for the kids," Jeff said.
He's also a parent to a senior-to-be college prospect, Jeffrey Robinson, who found out he won't have a fall season.
"It was devastated at first, but then I looked at it as a time to get better physically and mentally," Jeffrey said. "You got to look at the positives out of this situation."
That means he must connect with colleges and showcase what he has done on tape from his junior season.
"Kids have to, you know, make sure that they're emailing those coaches that have been in contact with them already, make sure that they do participate in virtual combines," Jeff said.
Because the traditional game tapes are gone, and so too are the Friday night lights, at least in Minnesota.
"The thing that makes it really hard, in Minnesota in particular, is the fact that other states, neighboring states, are playing," Jeff said. "Those colleges are able to get a better look at the kids who are in the neighboring states."