California Connections Help LEad Star Transfer From Georgia to UAB

By Steve Irvine

BIRMINGHAM, ALABAMA - February 8, 2026

In a time when it’s hard to talk about the transfer portal without the conversation quickly turning to tampering, we offer you the story of how Roderick Robinson II changed addresses from Athens, Ga. to Birmingham, Ala.

It’s certainly not a story that involved tampering. In fact, in some ways it’s the opposite of tampering.

Before we get started, understand that Robinson, a 6-foot-2, 235-pound running back, who spent the past three seasons at the University of Georgia, was one of the top ranked recruits in the country when he finished at Lincoln High in San Diego, Calif. A pair of untimely injuries slowed down his progression at Georgia but it was still a big deal when he entered the transfer portal in early January. Programs throughout the country immediately put him on their radar.

“We were all sitting around when it happened,” said UAB assistant coach Danny Mitchell. “When we saw him pop up in the portal, we saw the big name and obviously the Georgia logo. I said ‘Hey, I know Roderick, I’ve known him for a long time.’”

Mitchell, who came to UAB when Trent Dilfer took over the program in 2023, is a San Diego native. He is a former head coach and athletic director at Christian Unified High and former offensive coordinator at The Bishop’s School. Both are among the top football programs in the CIF San Diego Section. Mitchell met Robinson while coaching against him in 7-on-7 competitions and had friendly relationships with the Lincoln High staff.

“I said ‘I’m just going to reach out to him, let’s take a shot,’” said Mitchell, who coaches the running backs alongside Hindley Brigham.

Mitchell reached out to Lincoln High offensive coordinator Jason Carter, who was not only a close friend but former flag football teammate, to get Robinson’s phone number. He got the number quickly and called Robinson from his cell phone, which still has the area code from his hometown.

“I mean, schools (on the West Coast) were calling,” Robinson said of that first phone call. “San Diego State had already reached out. So, when I saw the 619 number, I kind of just assumed that it was them. And then when he started speaking, he told me he was at UAB, it kind of shocked me. But we talked, had some great conversations, built that relationship and ultimately it led me to commit and come here.”

Actually, that was just the first part of the commitment formula.

“I can’t take credit for recruiting him,” Mitchell said. “I just got him in contact with us. The greatest recruiters were his grandma and his dad.”

Roderick Robinson Sr. was born and raised in Birmingham. Part of his childhood was spent in Smithville, where he’d park cars in the family’s yard when Alabama or Auburn were playing football games at Legion Field. He also grew up in West End and Center Point and attended high school for a short time at Huffman before finishing at Pinson Valley. His mother, Laquita Smith, a graduate of West End High and UAB, still lives near the UAB campus, as does her mother.

Birmingham is part of his DNA. After joining the military, Robinson Sr. traveled throughout the country and the world. Roderick II, his oldest child, was born in Germany and lived in Georgia, South Carolina and San Diego while growing up. The elder Robinson said he figured out early that his son would choose a life filled with sports.

“Ever since he was a little baby, he was sitting in front of the TV with me,” Robinson Sr. said. “He was my first, so I was learning. I’d put him in his little chair and he would just quiet down and watch football games with me. He was probably catching and throwing the ball at two. Like really catching it. We started him in football at (five years old) in South Carolina. I think that’s the only year he probably ever sat on a bench. He was supposed to be six to play, but he was five and they let him play. So it was a bunch of six-year-olds and seven-year-olds on that team. I think it was the last game where the coach decided to play him and he ran somebody down on the 1-yard line. I mean, the kid was gone, he was about to score a touchdown. Rod just didn't give up and he ran him down. I was like, I think we got something with this kid.”

Roderick II was always one of the taller players on the field or court as a kid but didn’t start filling out until he reached high school. He played junior varsity football as an eighth grader and varsity as a ninth grader when the family lived in South Carolina. He moved to San Diego before his sophomore year and enrolled at Lincoln High, a traditional football power in California.

“I'll tell you it was a great experience, and I think they needed it more than anything because it was different from what they were used to,” Robinson Sr. said. “They had never been to a school like Lincoln before. The reason I took them there is because, after I went there and met a lot of the coaches, I saw how the program was run. I felt like my kids needed that toughness, that mental toughness and that physicality that Lincoln brought.”

After a year of adjustment, Roderick II flourished on the football field. As a junior, despite battling an ankle injury, he rushed for 1,273 yards and 17 touchdowns. That was the appetizer for a senior season when he rushed for 2,378 yards, averaging 10.9 yards per carry, and 39 touchdowns. He literally carried his team, which also included former UAB offensive lineman Logan Moore, to one of the most special seasons in the storied history of the program.

Lincoln dropped the second game of the season and followed with 12 wins in a row to claim the CIF Division 1-AA state championship. Against Chula Vista Mater Dei, which went on to defend its own Division 2-AA state title that season, Robinson had 476 yards on 32 carries with eight touchdowns in a win. In the championship game, Lincoln beat traditional power Concord De La Salle, a program that once won 151 consecutive wins over a span that covered at least part of eight seasons. Robinson II had 22 carries for 217 yards and four touchdowns in the championship game while playing with hamstring problems that he endured for several weeks.

He was selected as the KUSI Silver Pigskin Player of the Year, which is the most prestigious award for San Diego high school football, and was a four-star recruit that 247 Sports ranked as the 13th best running back recruit in the country and California’s 14th ranked recruit. He chose Georgia from an offer list that stretched to more than 25.

His best season at Georgia came in 2023 as a true freshman when he rushed for 196 yards on 24 carries, which is an average of 8.2 yards per carry, and scored twice. He had seven carries for 70 yards in the blowout win over Florida State in the Orange Bowl. He also made a pregame impression on Brigham when UAB played at Georgia, even though Robinson did not play in the game.

“There was a memory of this giant freshman running back from Georgia, he almost looked like a tight end,” Brigham said.

Toe surgery slowed him down in 2024 and he suffered a leg injury while the Bulldogs prepared to play in the College Football Playoff quarterfinals. Last season, Robinson had just six carries for 22 yards with his biggest contribution coming in the SEC Championship Game victory over Alabama when he opened the scoring with a 1-yard touchdown reception.

He left searching for a bigger role. He had plenty of programs offering that to him but one, surprisingly, stood out to him.

“I didn't see this coming at all,” Robinson Sr. said. “When Rod first went into the portal, he started getting hit up by all these different schools.  I think UAB was one of the first ones that he told me about. When he told me about it at first, I was like, UAB? How does UAB know about you? He said they’ve actually reached out the most. Being in California, I don't get to go home as much as I would like. I liked what they were doing with the coaching staff and started thinking this might be a really good idea.”

Once Roderick II decided to take a trip to the school, the UAB coaching staff made sure Roderick’s grandmother was part of the visit.

“When they picked us up from the hotel, my mom was in the truck,” Robinson Sr. said. “We knew she was coming on part of the visit but didn’t know she would be in the truck. I thought that was a nice touch.”

Robinson II didn’t commit while he was on the visit but he was convinced UAB was where he belonged. He knew coming in that he loved the city and looked forward to being close to his grandmother and other family members. What he didn’t know, at least until the visit, was how well he got along with Brigham, Mitchell and the staff. He committed not long after leaving Birmingham and turned around quickly to began school at UAB.

It was a big deal for the Blazers.

“This guy could be the force of nature for us at running back next year and for the next two years,” said Brigham. “I don't think that Rod decided to come to UAB to springboard himself to a bigger, better opportunity.”

There was also an added bonus.

During the recruiting trip, Brigham and Mitchell were talking about what they needed to complete the running back room. They had already added Louisiana-Monroe transfer Braylon McReynolds and Coastal Carolina transfer Ja’Vin Simpkins was coming in for a visit after Robinson. As they continued to talk about their plans, Robinson II had a question.

“I asked them what about my brother?” Robinson II said.

Rashad Robinson just finished his senior season at Lincoln High. The 5-foot-8, 195-pound running back, who is described at “lighting in a bottle” by his father, rushed for 1,100 yards and 20 touchdowns as a senior. The numbers could have been larger if he didn’t share the backfield with another running back, who gained nearly 1,600 yards and 20 touchdowns. Rashad was committed to play at the University of San Diego, which plays in the FCS non-scholarship Pioneer League, but chose to follow his brother after the UAB coaches studied his film and offered him a walk-on spot.

That was the final piece of an intriguing recruiting process.

“It’s crazy how it all worked out, man,” Mitchell said. “People don’t know until you hear some of these stories. There could be 10 reasons that the kid doesn't want to go to a school, but if the right ones – or one - hit, you're in the door.”