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Bijan Robinson is never satisfied.

After rushing for more than 2,000 yards last season as a sophomore, the Tucson Salpointe Catholic running back went right back to work.

He commuted from Tucson to Los Angeles to Phoenix back to Tucson and LA for workouts. He not only has a speed trainer but a running back coach in the off-season.

“In the off-season, I’m training every day,” Robinson said. “I have a trainer in LA. From January to March, I’m in Tucson. From March on, I’m in LA and sometimes Phoenix. I do similar things to what (Los Angeles Rams running back) Todd Gurley does with vertical and agility.”

Robinson was born to run the football.

His uncle is Paul Robinson, a former track standout at Marana, who played football running back at the University of Arizona, before becoming the AFL Rookie of the Year in 1968 when he ran for more than 1,000 yards for the Cincinnati Bengals.

Now 73 and living in Tucson, Paul Robinson is one of Bijan’s strongest supporters.

“He talks to me all the time,” Bijan said.

A combination of genetics and work ethic has been hard for teams to stop since Bijan broke onto the varsity scene as a freshman.

He’ll be Scottsdale Saguaro’s primary focus on Friday night at Arizona Stadium, where Robinson and the Lancers (13-0) stand in the way of a sixth consecutive 4A state football championship for Jason Mohns’ 12-1 Sabercats.

“He might be the best player in the state, regardless of classification,” Mohns said of Robinson. “He’s a special player. He’s not the only one. Obviously, (RB/DB) Mario Padilla has been there forever. He’s a dynamic player. (DB/WR) Lathan Ransom is a special player. They’re big up front, physical. Coach (Dennis) Bene and that staff does a great job.”

Definitely, it’s going to take more than Robinson for Salpointe to beat Saguaro. Salpointe is the No. 1 seed, but it would be considered a major upset if No. 2 Saguaro goes down.

Last year, Saguaro had a good game plan, keeping Robinson in check for much of the game, before he broke a few big runs in the final quarter in Saguaro’s 28-7 win in the 4A final.

Robinson had 164 yards on 24 carries in that game, but his 6.8 yards a carry were considered an off game for Robinson, who ran for 2,023 yards and 26 TDs last season when he averaged 10.7 yards a carry.

This year, Robinson, 10 pounds heavier and two inches taller at 6-foot-1, 205 pounds, has rushed for 2,245 yards and 34 TDs, averaging 15.7 yards a carry, breaking his school’s record for touchdowns in a single season.

There has been only one game this season that Robinson played in the final quarter – a  28-21 win over Goodyear Desert Edge on Aug. 31. That was the only game in which an opponent came within a touchdown of the Lancers.

They’ve won their last last seven games by an average score of 54-13.

In his last four games, Robinson has rushed for 810 yards and 14 TDs with no more than 10 carries in any of the games.

“Bijan, like a lot of our kids, has worked really, really hard,” Bene said. “We know the 4A championship goes through Saguaro. Our kids back in January, they’ve worked so hard to get stronger and faster and try to match up with those guys. Saguaro is so dominating.”

Saguaro, which lost its only game to Las Vegas Liberty, has 23 players on its roster with at least one Division I college football offer.

“They have more guys with (D.I) offers than the all of the Southern Arizona teams combined,” Bene said.

Robinson is a major recruit, who picked up his most recent offer from Ohio State. He said he believes Notre Dame and Georgia will be next. He has USC and Arizona State among his top schools. He is starting to talk about visits now with plans to visit a school or two in mid-January.

Other than Robinson, Salpointe’s only other major recruit is Ransom, a great athlete who figures to be a defensive back in college. Ransom missed last year’s state championship game because of an injury. His absence was glaring in the final.

Salpointe has to have Ransom, a 6-2, 183-pound junior, on the field to have a chance against Saguaro. He has 24 catches for 580 yards and six TDs at receiver. In the secondary, Ransom six interceptions and eight pass deflections.

“We think we’re going to beat them,” Robinson said. “We know their tendencies and skill set. I know their defensive players have offers. We know how to control them.

“Now we’ll mix up the pass. I move around a lot. I’ll go to slot receiver. Last year that didn’t happen. The game plan was to stop me. For us, to run up the middle every play, it wasn’t that hard.”

To suggest human-interest story ideas and other news, reach Obert at [email protected] or 602-316-8827. Follow him at twitter.com/azc_obert.

4A championship

Friday, 7 p.m. at Arizona Stadium, Tucson

No. 1 Tucson Salpointe Catholic (13-0) vs. No. 2 Scottsdale Saguaro (12-1)

5A, 6A championships

6A – Saturday, 4:30 p.m. at Sun Devil Stadium, Tempe

No. 1 Chandler (12-1) vs. No. 6 Gilbert Perry (11-2)

5A – Saturday, 12:30 p.m. at Sun Devil Stadium, Tempe

No. 1 Peoria Centennial (13-0) vs. No. 3 Scottsdale Notre Dame Prep (13-0)

MORE HIGH SCHOOL FOOTBALL

  • 4A championship preview: Saguaro dynasty build on love and relationships
  • Robinson’s big night leads to Salpointe rout of Sahuaro in 4A semifinal
  • AIA state football championship schedule, results

 

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