A'Shawn Robinson

Early life

A native of Fort Worth, Texas, Robinson attended Arlington Heights High School. In addition to football, he competed on his high school's varsity basketball and track & field teams. A two-way lineman for the Arlington Heights Yellowjackets football team, Robinson was coached by Todd Whitten in his senior season. After the season, Robinson played for the West squad in the U.S. Army All-American Bowl, and was selected to the 2012 USA Today All-American Second-team.

Considered a five-star recruit by Rivals.com, Robinson was listed as the No. 4 defensive tackle in the nation in 2013. ESPN listed him as a four-star recruit and ranked him 105th overall on their "ESPN 300" ranking. Robinson chose to attend Alabama over Texas, Southern California, Louisiana State, Arkansas, and Florida State. He was originally verbally committed to attend Texas as of February 2012. Just prior to National Signing Day in February 2013, however, he de-committed from Texas and officially signed with Alabama.

Freshman year (2013)

Robinson started practicing with Alabama in August 2013 and played in the first game of Alabama's 2013 season on August 31, 2013. Robinson and tight end O. J. Howard were Alabama's only true freshmen to have both started a game and played in every game of the 2013 season. Robinson was also the only true freshman under head coach Nick Saban at Alabama to lead the team in sacks.

Robinson led Alabama in sacks and was seventh on the team in tackles. He was named by Alabama's coaches as one of the defensive "players of the week" in three of Alabama's 12 games. No other true freshman was a "player of the week" on offense or defense during the 2013 season. At Alabama's annual awards banquet after the 2013 regular season Robinson was one of four players to receive an "Iron Man Award" given to players who have shown the most dedication to the individual and team goals of the Crimson Tide's year-round strength and conditioning program.

At the end of his first college football season Robinson was the only Alabama freshman named to the Southeastern Conference (SEC) Coaches' All-Freshman team. Robinson was also on the 2013 Sporting News Freshman All-American team.

Sophomore year (2014)

Robinson was selected to the 2014 first-team in the pre-season Media Days All-SEC Team. He was held out of some practices in August due to a sprained knee. He led his team in tackles in the 2014 SEC Championship game versus Missouri. It was the first time in his career that he led the team in tackles. He started every game in the 2014 season, during which Alabama led the nation in rushing defense. His teammates gave him the nickname of "Infamous A-Tron," a blend of A'Shawn and Megatron. Robinson earned Honorable Mention on the All-SEC team after the 2014 season.

Junior year (2015)

Robinson started every game for the second season in a row and anchored a deep defensive line that helped Alabama lead college football in rushing yards allowed per game, yards per carry allowed per game, and sacks. Robinson led Alabama in quarterback hurries and was a finalist for the Outland Trophy, an award for the nation's best interior lineman (both offensive and defensive). Robinson did not win the Outland Trophy, and the Alabama football team used this snub as motivation in their College Football Playoff game against Michigan State. After the season, Robinson decided to forgo his senior year and enter the 2016 NFL draft.

Personal life

Due to his physical appearance, Robinson is often questioned of his actual age. Having started playing football at the age of 4, his mother stated that she would bring his birth certificate to games, due to opposing coaches challenging his age for eligibility. "I couldn't play because I was too big and they had to see my birth certificate," said Robinson. This would continue into his adult years; he shared that he was often mistaken for a 35-year-old coach when he was actually a 20-year-old student athlete.