One of the more sought-after prospects of the 2016 recruiting cycle, Cal wide receiver Demetris Robertson, has opened himself to recruitment again by declaring Thursday his intention to transfer. And, predictably, the announcement by the former Savannah Christian five-star player has opened up another round of guessing and speculating about where he might end up.
One person who refrained? Robertson’s coach at Savannah Christian, Donald Chumley.
“I couldn’t answer that,” said Chumley, who had not spoken to Robertson as of Friday morning. “I really don’t know.”
Georgia Tech was among schools that Robertson, who was rated the No. 1 receiving prospect in the country in his class, considered before selecting Cal. Georgia, Notre Dame and Stanford were others. Robertson took official visits to Tech, Georgia, Cal and Notre Dame, and signed financial-aid agreements with Tech, Georgia and Cal. He had also said that Stanford was his dream school, but he did not earn admission. He also previously committed to Alabama.
Chumley said he had not heard from coaches from any of those schools, though he also said he didn’t expect to hear from them. Chumley did allow that “Tech, Alabama, Georgia, Notre Dame – I imagine they’re all still interested.”
Two other possible destinations that were floated by college football media were Ole Miss and West Virginia, as former Cal assistants who worked with Robertson are now at those schools. Chumley said he was receiving calls from a number of junior colleges. Transferring to a junior college would allow Robertson to play this coming season and transfer to an FBS school and play in 2019.
Robertson earned freshman All-American honors in 2016, catching 50 passes. In 2017, he played two games before an injury sidelined him for the rest of the season. When he transfers, he most likely would have to sit out the 2018 season and then have two seasons of eligibility. It’s conceivable that he could apply for a medical redshirt for the 2017 season and regain another season of eligibility.
While Robertson said that he was transferring for personal reasons, Chumley said he didn’t necessarily interpret that to mean he would be transferring to a school close to home, calling that line of thinking speculative.
“I don’t think it’s just about where he plays on Saturday,” Chumley said. “It’s going to be school, education and everything. Because it always has been.”
Chumley, who is athletic director at Savannah Christian but no longer the coach, spoke with fondness for Robertson, calling him a “special young man” who has been through a great deal in his life.
Robertson will need to decide more quickly than he did as a high schooler. In 2016, as he attempted to earn a qualifying standardized test score for Stanford, Robertson did not make his college until May 1, two months after national signing day. Teams are in the midst of summer workouts and begin preseason training in a little more than a month.
“I just hope this doesn’t linger for his sake and he moves on and gets it done because I think the quicker he can get back to going back to being a young college student, the better he’s at,” Chumley said.
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