College football recruiting rarely pauses for a breath in the fall, even when most of the attention is fixed on Saturdays already on the board. Programs keep working the phones, hosting unofficial trips and trying to lock in players who will not arrive on campus for nearly two years.
Florida State has been in the middle of that grind while also trying to steady its own season. Mike Norvell’s staff spent the weekend coming off a win over Virginia, a result that staffers hoped would quiet some of the noise around a defense that has taken its share of criticism.
IMG Academy, the Bradenton boarding school that draws prospects from across the country, has been a regular stop on that circuit. Cornerbacks who land there often carry long offer lists before they ever play a varsity snap in Florida, and the 2028 group is no exception.
On Sunday, IMG Academy cornerback Man Robinson committed to Florida State, Rivals reported. The pledge gives the Seminoles their third commitment in the 2028 class.
Robinson, listed at 5-foot-11 and 180 pounds, told Rivals he had made his decision and planned to return to Tallahassee twice in November. He had been on the Seminoles’ radar well before the move to IMG.
He chose Florida State over offers from Oregon, Georgia, Pittsburgh, Virginia Tech, Florida, West Virginia, Miami, Tennessee, Oklahoma, Kentucky and Vanderbilt. Several of those schools stayed in contact through his sophomore year.
Robinson started high school at Christian Academy of Louisville before transferring to IMG. That path put him in front of Power conference staffs earlier than most players in his class.
“I chose Florida State because they’ve shown me the most love since my freshman year back home at Christian Academy of Louisville before transferring to IMG,” Robinson said. “Coach (Evan) Cooper, Coach (Blue) Adams, Coach (Tony) White and Coach Norvell have been consistent and told me early on that they felt that I was one of the top defensive backs in the country! My family has always told me to choose where I felt the most love, and they’ve shown me that since the beginning!”
He also pointed to the fit on defense as a reason the decision settled where it did. Tony White’s scheme has been a selling point for the staff with defensive backs who want to play downhill.
“I love Coach White’s attacking style of defense!” Robinson said. “I consider myself a physical playmaker and I think his defensive scheme fits me well. They’ve struggled some, but they are good coaches. And good coaches don’t all of a sudden forget how to coach. And I think yesterday’s win over Virginia proved that they are more than capable, and I believe in them just like they’ve believed in me.”
Rivals Industry Rankings list Robinson as the No. 43 cornerback in the 2028 class. He was a Rivals Sophomore All-American.
The commitment does not close the class. Florida State is still working other defensive backs and skill players who have not set a timeline.
Robinson’s ranking leaves room to climb if his junior film holds up against IMG’s schedule. Evaluators have treated the boarding-school season as a better read than a single regional camp.
For Norvell, early pledges in the 2028 cycle are a way to show continuity while the current team tries to string wins together. Robinson’s comments tied the choice as much to relationships as to the result against Virginia.
