What will Kam Robinson's return mean for Virginia's defense?

Overreactions are rampant early in the college football season. And one of the most tempting ones surrounding Virginia's program might have been that the Cavaliers don't need Kam Robinson.

After all, they dominated NC State 34-8 in their opener with Robinson watching from the sideline. And they're expected to cruise in Friday night's home game against Norfolk State, an FCS program that went 1-11 in Michael Vick's first season as coach. Why would Virginia need more help?

Anyone who has watched Robinson's first three years in Charlottesville would quickly disagree. He has become Tony Elliott's most dynamic and disruptive defender, returning three of his five career interceptions for touchdowns and making plenty of other game-winning plays, including a tackle for the decisive safety in last season's win over Washington State.

Just about the only thing that has prevented Robinson from joining past stars like Tiki Barber, Anthony Poindexter, Chris Long and Chris Slade in the pantheon of Virginia's all-time best defenders has been injuries.

He missed the first three games of last season with a collarbone injury and sat out the final three after tearing an ACL against Duke. His rehabilitation gave hope that he'd suit up against the Wolfpack, but Elliott decided he wasn't completely ready.

In one sense, he wasn't sorely missed. Virginia's deep, veteran defense stymied CJ Bailey and held NC State to one touchdown, marking the third time in its last four games without Robinson that it had done so. Fellow linebackers Myles Brown, Maddox Marcellus and Landon Danley combined for 20 tackles against the Wolfpack, with Brown registering eight on just 19 snaps.

Still, excitement is high for Robinson's return Friday night — even if it's a relatively brief one.

" We all know what Kam Robinson is capable of," Elliott said Tuesday at his weekly press conference. "Now he's got to get back into play mode and play shape and all of that. So I think he can be very effective getting home on the blitzes."

"I think the first thing is to make sure we know where he's at, right? And we're not putting him in a position to ask him to do something that maybe he's not ready to do yet with his process of returning to play. But. I think that you gain more speed."

Virginia's deep front four played well against NC State, but did not register a sack. The Cavaliers' two takedowns of Bailey came on blitzes from linebacker Caleb Hardy and safety Jaylen Jones.

Defensive coordinator John Rudzinski is likely to give Robinson a few chances to chase down NSU quarterback Deljay Bailey, who was sacked three times in a loss to Old Dominion last Saturday. The Spartans are a run-first offense, with 83 rushing attempts and 40 passes through two games, but figure to face quite a few passing situations Friday.

If Friday's game gets out of hand early, neither Robinson nor many of his fellow starters is likely to see extensive action. But Elliott and Rudzkinski would love to see Robinson shake off the rust and make a few confidence-building plays.

Most importantly, they want him to emerge healthy for next Saturday's test against West Virginia's up-tempo, run-heavy offense in Charlotte, and the rest of the season.

"I just think the biggest thing with that group is there's not a huge drop off when Kam's not in there, you know, and that's what we've wanted to do,' Elliott said. "Now we know Kam's special and he's going to go make those freakish plays that like only Kam can make."

"...Some may say, well, that's what's best for the team, but you know, a fresh Kam, a fast Kam, right? I think is more effective rushing the passer. I think he makes more plays, and then also
it takes some of the exposure to injury away by having a competitive depth."

Add us as a preferred source on Google