Duce Robinson, one of ACC's top receivers, announces his return to Florida State in 2026

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) — Florida State has its difference-maker back for 2026: Wide receiver Duce Robinson is returning to school.

Robinson announced Thursday that he was passing up the NFL draft to return to FSU for his senior season. The 6-foot-6, 223-pound Robinson was second in the Atlantic Coast Conference in receiving yards (1,081) and had six touchdowns in 2025. He averaged 19.3 yards per reception.

“This has truly been one of the best years of my life,” Robinson said in a video posted on X. “I’m really excited to be able to be a Seminole again in 2026.”

He was Florida State’s first 1,000-yard receiver since Tamorrion Terry in 2019 and the 14th one in school history.

A first-team All-ACC selection, Robinson had five 100-yard receiving games. He also was praised by coach Mike Norvell for his perimeter blocking.

Florida State has endured a difficult December, which followed a 5-7 season and a 2-10 mark in 2024. The Seminoles had approximately 30 players announce their intentions to enter the transfer portal, but they got some good news in the last few days — and there’s new hope for 2026.

The team’s top cornerback, Ja’Bril Rawls, reversed course on Wednesday and said he would return in 2026. Rawls had 40 tackles, two tackles for loss and an interception in seven games. He was often viewed as a reliable run stopper, although Rawls suffered a season-ending injury in the game against Clemson.

On Thursday, in addition to Robinson’s return, Florida State also announced that John Garrett was hired as deputy athletic director and general manager of player personnel, a restructured position that “will oversee all football roster construction, player evaluation, recruiting operations and NIL integration.”

Garrett will report to athletic director Michael Alford but work closely with Norvell, who helped guide the team to the 2023 ACC title but is 38-34 at Florida State. In a Nov. 23 announcement that Norvell would return for Year 7 at Florida State, administrators said they would address “performance deficiencies in the program” and that revising the structure of the Seminoles’ organizational chart became a focal point.

The new structure is patterned after NFL models, Alford said.

“This is a transformational step for Florida State football,” Alford said. “The college game has fundamentally changed, and elite programs must operate with the same discipline, structure and clarity of roles as professional organizations.”

Garrett was Florida State’s director of scouting for offense in 2022 and ’23 before moving to Duke, where he was the general manager of player personnel. The Blue Devils were a surprise ACC champion, upsetting Virginia in the league’s title game.

Now Garrett returns and his work will revolve around roster construction as he shapes “high school recruiting strategy, transfer portal acquisition and retention, scholarship allocation and long-term personnel planning,” the school said in a statement. Garrett has worked for four NFL teams (Dallas, Cincinnati, Arizona and Cincinnati) and is the brother of former Cowboys coach Jason Garrett.

Florida State is expected to be active in the transfer portal, which opens on Friday. Robinson’s return could help the Seminoles attract a transfer quarterback. Tommy Castellanos, the starting quarterback in 2025, is out of eligibility after dropping his appeal to the NCAA for a fifth season.

“We will lead a collaborative effort to build a football team with the right kind of student-athletes that will consistently compete for championships,” Garrett said.

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