Auburn RB Durell Robinson enters NCAA Transfer Portal

6 days ago 2

Auburn redshirt sophomore running back Durell Robinson has entered the NCAA Transfer Portal, On3 has learned.

Robinson is seeking his fourth program in four seasons. Robinson’s career began at Charlotte, where he rushed for 166 yards and one touchdown on 40 carries. He then transferred to UConn, where he excelled as the Huskies’ lead back. In 2024, Robinson rushed for 731 yards and eight scores on 107 carries.

He was expected to have a large role in replacing star running back Jarquez Hunter at Auburn, but that just was not the case. Robinson, who dealt with the injury bug all season, tallied just three carries for 57 yards (54 of which came one run against Ball State) and one score.

Robinson committed to head coach Hugh Freeze, who was hired at Auburn prior to the 2023 season, out of the Portal this offseason. After two-and-a-half disappointing seasons, however, Freeze was let go following the Tigers’ 4-5 start to the 2025 campaign. He was replaced by USF head coach Alex Golesh, who led the Bulls to a 9-3 record this season.

“It’s surreal,” Golesh said on the Dec. 3 edition of ‘SportsCenter‘ about taking over at Auburn. “You feel like you’re in a little bit of a movie. But this is something you sit down for and you plan ahead of time. We literally had every single hour planned out for the first six months. The plan is the plan. You obviously deviate a little bit as you go. You prioritize more than anything else. In my program and my personality, you prioritize the players that you’re coaching.”

“The opportunity to come into a place like Auburn and specifically to get here on the Plains… I mean, this is one of the premier jobs in the entire country. For me, I’ve dreamed of an opportunity like this. When this opportunity came about, you sprint with this. It’s life-changing, not in the sense that the level that it’s at or what it really is. It’s life-changing because this is one of the very few places in the country that you can come and win a national title at.”

The program made a coaching hire that excited the fanbase. But Robinson will not be sticking around for the new era.