In 2021, Wan’Dale Robinson played a full season of “homecoming games.”
Transferring home to Kentucky following two challenging seasons at Nebraska, Robinson produced one of the most stellar individual seasons ever by a UK football player.
Robinson caught more passes (104) and accumulated more receiving yards (1,334) in one year than any player in program history.
For those reasons, Wan’Dale Robinson has been voted the 2021 Lexington Herald-Leader Kentucky Sports Figure of the Year by media members, current and retired, from across the commonwealth.
“Robinson changed UK’s offensive identity. No wide receiver was more valuable to their team than Robinson,” wrote T.J. Walker of radio station WXVW-AM 1450 in Jeffersonville, Ind./Louisville. “The Cats don’t win 10 games without him.”
Wrote Tom Leach, the UK Sports Network radio play-by-play announcer: “Having the single-greatest season for a wide receiver in UK football history, in a season in which the team won 10 games for only the second time in more than four decades, and capping it off with an MVP performance in the New Year’s Day bowl game is enough to tip the scales in Wan’Dale’s favor in a year with a plethora of strong candidates for the top slot.”
In Kentucky Sports Figure of the Year voting, Robinson narrowly won out over what many voters considered the strongest overall field in the 41-year history of the award.
Robinson’s 74-point margin of victory over runner-up Sydney McLaughlin is the closest in the balloting since Kenneth Faried prevailed over John Calipari by nine points in 2011.
McLaughlin, a one-and-done track star at UK in the 2017-18 school year, electrified the Tokyo Olympics by setting a world record while winning the 400-meter hurdles. She picked up a second gold medal by running the opening leg for a dominant Team USA 4x400 relay.
“(It was) simply magical watching (McLaughlin) run,” wrote Jeff Piecoro, the color analyst on UK football radio broadcasts. “Just a spectacular athlete.”
Added Ivan K. Rice of The Bourbon County Citizen: “What (McLaughlin) did on the track this past season was simply amazing.”
Out of the 159 ballots cast, McLaughlin received more first-place votes (35) than Robinson (21). However, the hurdler, a New Jersey product, was not on as many total ballots (93) as Kentucky native Robinson (120) — and that proved decisive.
Rounding out the top five in the voting were UK football coach Mark Stoops in third; Madison Lilley, the star of UK’s NCAA championship women’s volleyball team, in fourth; and Lexington fencer and Olympic gold medalist Lee Kiefer in fifth.
Robinson’s victory in Sports Figure of the Year voting is an unprecedented fourth straight for the UK football program, following Josh Allen (2018), Lynn Bowden (2019) and John Schlarman (2020).
After an epic career at Western Hills High School, Robinson disappointed many in-state football fans when he rescinded a recruiting commitment to play for UK to cast his lot with Nebraska.
However, after two seasons in which the Cornhuskers never achieved a winning record and Robinson felt he was too often used as a running back, he came home.
Along with new offensive coordinator Liam Coen and transfer quarterback Will Levis, Robinson became a cornerstone of UK’s efforts to add a passing component to what had been a ground-reliant Wildcats offense.
In his first game in Kentucky blue, Robinson caught five passes for 125 yards and two touchdowns in a blowout win over Louisiana Monroe.
He never slowed down. Robinson caught at least four passes in every Kentucky game and had seven or more receptions in nine games.
Robinson turned an outside screen pass into a 41-yard touchdown in UK’s 20-13 upset of No. 10 Florida.
He had a season-high 13 receptions for 166 yards and a TD against rival Tennessee.
Saving his best for last, Robinson caught four passes for 76 yards on Kentucky’s game-deciding, 80-yard TD drive in the Citrus Bowl win over Iowa.
After finishing with 10 receptions for 170 yards vs. a respected Hawkeyes secondary, Robinson was named Citrus Bowl MVP.
“You normally don’t associate Wan’Dale Robinson with drops, but the UK receiver had the ultimate mic drop in the Citrus Bowl, willing the Cats to victory in his last game as a Wildcat,” wrote Mark Sonka, formerly of the Lexington Herald-Leader.
After the bowl, Robinson announced he is entering the 2022 NFL Draft.
His one season playing college football in his home state left a deep impression.
“Best receiver in UK football history? Many believe (Robinson) is despite him playing only one season for the Wildcats,” wrote Andrew Chernoff of Louisville’s WLKY-TV. “It was truly a magical homecoming for him this year.”
Added Drew Franklin of Kentucky Sports Radio: “Robinson’s one-year homecoming had a storybook ending at the Citrus Bowl. He left behind a blueprint for future wide receivers in Kentucky’s new offense.”
Wan’Dale Robinson is the 2021 Kentucky Sports Figure of the Year.
