Coach | Notre Dame WR Commit Brayden Robinson "A Pleasure" To Work With
Chris Leichus has coached receivers at Red Oak High School in Texas for three years and for three years, he’s had the pleasure of coaching Brayden Robinson, a rising high school senior receiver, who announced his commitment to Notre Dame last week.
Leichus probably has as good of an idea of what Mike Brown and Notre Dame are getting in the 5-foot-8, 165-pounder as anybody. And according to him, the Irish are adding a tremendous talent to their receiver room, their roster and the Notre Dame community in general.
“He’s a pleasure to coach,” Leichus says.
On the field, Leichus says Robinson’s athleticism is “off the charts.”
“Anytime Brayden touches the ball, he's a legitimate threat to go the distance,” the coach says. “He's got that game-changing ability, whether it be on a punt return, a kick return, or from the wide receiver spot.”
A former college defensive backs coach, Leichus might have tried to lure Robinson to the other side of the field, but not at Red Oak.
“If we needed to turn him around and start at corner, he could do that,” Leichus says. “Luckily, we don't need him to do that, but he's offered.
“He was taking some reps there in spring as a joke and I said, 'Get back over here. You could do that, but over here.'”
Robinson certainly isn’t going to be the biggest guy on anybody’s roster, but he puts more than his share of time in the weight room.
“Pound for pound, he's probably one of the strongest guys on the team,” says Leichus. “I think his internal drive and his willingness to be great and be developed is going to help him in that respect.
“Not being an oversized wide receiver, he's able to use his God-given talents and then also what he's worked on.”
Robinson puts in the work on the practice field, film room and away from school to perfect his craft.
“He sees the big picture,” says Leichus. “He's very football smart. He understands coverages, where the weaknesses are in the coverage, whether it be man, zone or a combination of both. He asks questions to learn about defense and where the strengths and weaknesses are and why we would call a certain play to attack those weaknesses. He's advanced in that area.
“He's a master of the craft when it comes to that type of thing. He's a pleasure to coach. He's a pleasure to work with. I think all of those attributes put him beyond his years a little bit. A lot of that comes from his dad. Obviously his dad's our head coach and he was a great wide receiver as well. Dad's passed that on to him.”
Robinson is very coachable, something Leichus is convinced will serve him well when he shows up in South Bend as an early enrollee this winter.
“He's going to be that far ahead of the game because he asks those questions and he wants to learn continuously,” says Leichus.
Robinson is quick to pass on that knowledge to his younger teammates and Leichus uses him as an example for them.
“I say, 'Look, if you guys want to be where he is, step number one is taking care of the academics,’” the coach says. “Having someone who is such a stud on the football field be that strong academically, it's an easy sell to the younger guys as they're coming into the program.
“What better example for you as an incoming freshman or a guy coming to varsity to have him in your position group for three hours a day and then using him as an example in the building with graduating early, grades are on point. Without great grades, Notre Dame doesn't even touch you.
“'Oh hey, I want to play college football too, Coach.' 'Well timeout. Are you doing these things that he's doing? Because you have a guy right here who's showing you the roadmap to get there.'”
Leichus reminds Robinson that when he gets to South Bend, everybody is going to be a four or five-star.
“So, what's going to separate you now that you’re there?” he says. “Your strengths, your speed, football knowledge, outworking other people because college football is a game of attrition, especially in today's world with the transfer portal and everything…next year, they're recruiting to potentially replace you. Staying there sometimes is harder than getting there.
“He understands going into college that you're going from the top to the bottom. 'Hey, you've got to come prove yourself here now. We've got 105 guys on the team, everybody was a star in high school.' I think he's wired for that just because of who he is internally.”
One area Robinson probably won’t need to make many adjustments is off the field.
“Whenever we have a community event or a youth football camp for the little guys or something, he's one of the first ones out there hanging with those kids and just getting involved in that type of stuff,” says Leichus.
“The off-field commitments that I think are going to be required of him when he gets to the next level, he's not going to have any issues. He'll embrace those as well and enjoy them. So when I say he's well-rounded, he's the complete package.”
Leichus says Irish receivers coach Mike Brown has plenty to look forward to over the next few years with Robinson.
“He is going to really enjoy working with him. He's been nothing but a blessing to work with here.”
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