In a move that will delight Florida State fans, star wide receiver Duce Robinson has announced his return for the 2026 season. But will he live up to the hype?
According to ESPN's Pete Thamel, Robinson, a standout player for the Seminoles, will be back for his senior year. This news comes as a boost for the team after a 5-7 season in 2025, where Robinson was a rare bright spark. Standing at an impressive 6-foot-6 and weighing 223 pounds, he dominated as a wide receiver, earning a Biletnikoff Award semifinalist spot.
Robinson's stats are impressive: he racked up 1,081 receiving yards and 6 touchdowns from 56 receptions in just 12 games. This performance put him in the history books as the ninth-highest single-season receiver in Seminole history and the first to surpass 1,000 yards since 2019. And that's not all—he achieved these feats while battling through minor injuries, starting 11 games and appearing in every 2025 matchup.
Here's where it gets impressive: Robinson's impact was felt across the board. He had double the receptions of the next closest Seminole (Lawayne McCoy and Micahi Danzy, both with 27 receptions). He almost doubled the receiving yards of the next player (Danzy with 571 yards). And he had twice as many receiving touchdowns as any of his teammates (McCoy and Danzy had 3 each).
Robinson's standout performances include a 9-catch game against both Virginia and Clemson, the most by a Seminole in a single game that season. He also had a season-high 173 receiving yards against East Texas A&M, including an 82-yard reception, the longest passing play for FSU that year. He scored two touchdowns in that game, a feat matched only by Danzy's performance against Pittsbrugh.
A true standout performer: Robinson had over 100 receiving yards in five games, a feat not seen since Rashad Greene's eight such games in 2024. Even more impressively, Robinson managed to eclipse 120 receiving yards in each of those five games, a feat not achieved by a Seminole since Greene in 2014. Robinson's consistency was remarkable, as he caught at least one pass in every game of the season.
Beyond his on-field contributions, Robinson was a regular team captain and is highly regarded within the program for his maturity. Originally from Phoenix, Arizona, he made a significant impact at USC before transferring to FSU prior to the 2025 season. With the Trojans, he played in 23 games, starting five times in 2024, and accumulated 39 receptions for 747 yards and seven touchdowns during his time in Los Angeles.
The big question: Can Robinson replicate his success in the upcoming season and lead the Seminoles to new heights? Only time will tell, but his return is undoubtedly a huge boost for Florida State's 2026 campaign.
