It appears Demarcus Robinson has crawled out of the doghouse, but whether he makes it onto the Georgia Dome field seems to be another matter entirely.
The wide receiver was suspended for Florida’s game this past Saturday against Florida State for what was termed as an unspecified violation of team rules. With the SEC championship game on tap Saturday, head coach Jim McElwain revealed earlier this week that he would leave Robinson’s fate in the hands of his senior Gator teammates.
Those teammates have decided to welcome Robinson back to the team, with the receiver returning to practice Wednesday with the team. Whether that means a return to the field remains to be seen as McElwain responded "[w]e’ll see what happens” when asked if the junior will play against the second-ranked Tide.
“Yeah, the seniors got together and have given him an opportunity (to return). He talked to the team,” the first-year coach said. “You know, it was a choice, like I said, for him not to be with his family and us in the last ball game. Sometimes the greatest lessons in life are when things are taken away from you and you’re no longer enabled.
“As I’ve said before, he has come a long way. But he still has a long way to go to understand it’s not OK to make choices that hurt your team.”
Robinson’s 47 receptions are tops on the team, while his 505 yards are second. He led the team in both categories last season with 53 and 810, and in receiving touchdowns (seven) as well.
Robinson, who will likely leave Gainesville early for the NFL, has been suspended at least four times during his three seasons with the Gators.