“I know how hard I worked to get here.”
Darius Robinson started focusing on playing football during his junior year of high school after making the switch from basketball. The Southfield, Mich. native was a three-star defensive line recruit coming out of high school and he decided that Columbia, Mo. was going to be his new home.
While Mizzou consistently struggled to finish games throughout Robinson’s career or even have a winning season, he stuck around and believed in the team for his graduate year season.
“He knew he didn’t play his best ball last year, so he really wanted to give it another go,” Reginald Robinson, Darius’ brother, said.
Robinson went on to shine, leading the team in tackles-for-loss with 14 and also added eight and a half sacks during the 2023-2024 season under defensive coordinator Blake Baker. Robinson was named a First-Team All-SEC selection. He finished his career with 12 sacks and is tied for 25th all-time at Mizzou in that category.
The Tigers finished the regular season 10-2. While the vision was to win the SEC Championship and compete for the national title, the Tigers were unable to reach that goal due to the losses from Georgia and LSU. That setback didn’t stop the team.
“Whatever the best bowl game was going to be, we knew we wanted to win that game and we were able to get that done,” Robinson said. “It’s not how you start, it’s how you finish.”
The Tigers were able to secure a New Year’s Six Bowl, where they faced the Ohio State Buckeyes and won. No one from the Mizzou team opted out of their prestigious bowl game.
The Tigers finished their complete season with a record of 11-2, which was their first winning season since 2018 under Barry Odom.
“It was just a blessing to finish the season strong,” Robinson said.
This was the fourth time in Mizzou history the program finished with 11 wins.
Darius Robinson has always had a good relationship with his head coach, Eliah Drinkwitz.
“He’s a family man. Like all the things we’ve been through together….we persevered and won 11 games this year,” Robinson said.
Robinson was invited to compete in the 2024 Reese’s Senior Bowl alongside a few of his teammates: Cody Schrader, Javon Foster, and Kris Abrams-Draine.
Going into the Senior Bowl, Robinson was looking to prove himself to everyone.
“It’s always been something to prove…I’m a Mizzou man…I keep saying I got more work to do because it’s not done yet,” Robinson said.
After his first day at Senior Bowl practices in Mobile, Ala., Robinson quickly turned heads with his athleticism and skill, and the fact he’s able to be versatile on the entire defensive line. He was named the “Overall Practice Player of the Week” by NFL scouts and front office executives from the Senior Bowl. Many are now saying Robinson may go in the first round of the NFL draft.
Robinson’s main message to NFL teams: “You’re getting the best D-Lineman in the draft. You’re going to get a guy that’s going to be relentless. You just get the guy that you can count on.”
Another thing an NFL team is going to get from Robinson is true leadership. On the field, Robinson is often seen in the middle of the huddle hyping his team up and getting them motivated. “I’m yelling, screaming…like ‘let’s go man, we doing this for a purpose’,” Robinson said.
Off the field, Robinson runs his own nonprofit foundation, Helping Hands Foundation.
“I believe in helping others before myself,” Robinson said.
He was named to the SEC Football Community Service Team.
Robinson will play in the Senior Bowl on Saturday, Feb. 3 as a member of the American Team, which will be televised on the NFL Network at 12 p.m. CST. Robinson will also be at the NFL Combine on March 3, 2024 in Indianapolis.