The name Robinson has been associated with LSU athletics for 60 years, and junior Hannah Robinson is eager to keep that family legacy alive during her tennis career.LSU’s tennis stadium bears the name of her great-grandfather, W.T. “Dub” Robinson, a coach at LSU from 1948 to 1974. Her grandfather, Johnny Robinson, played on the 1958 LSU football team that won the national championship and went on to play safety for the Kansas City Chiefs.”When I first came in, it was really, really cool being part of family tradition,” Hannah Robinson said. “Obviously my grandfather was a big name here, and my great-grandfather too, so I was really happy to keep it in the family.”Robinson never knew her great-grandfather, but she said she has heard what an influential man he was.”I’ve met a lot of people who have known him,” she said. “Being at LSU, some random person will walk up to me and say, ‘Oh I took a class from your great-grandfather.’ He seemed like a really great guy. I wish I could have known him.”Hannah Robinson said she has a great relationship with her grandfather, who lives in her hometown of Monroe.”He helps me a lot and gives me a lot of good tips about when he was an athlete here,” she said. “He’s got a lot of boxes and trophies around his house, and I’m always digging in them. He tells me about some of his injuries that were really gross but really cool. It’s a lot of fun with him, and he’s a really great guy.”Hannah Robinson’s father, Matt Robinson, played tennis for one year at LSU and said he couldn’t be prouder of his daughter.”I’m just blessed to have such a terrific child,” Matt Robinson said. “She’s a good athlete and a good person with good character. I really enjoy coming down to watch her play, especially in the W.T. Robinson Stadium.”Matt Robinson said Hannah was also talented in other sports when she was growing up.”She played softball when she was a kid, and she could hit the ball really well,” he said. “She played first base, and she had a cannon for an arm as a little child.”Hannah Robinson said she started playing tennis when she was 8 and never doubted she would come to LSU.”I played every sport imaginable,” she said. “But one day I went out and hit with my dad and started playing tennis, and I really liked it. So I decided to keep playing, and I ended up here.” Hannah Robinson has a 49-21 overall singles record in her first two seasons. She was also named Louisiana Freshman of the Year in 2007.As a sophomore, she finished the season ranked No. 27 in the Intercollegiate Tennis Association Southwest Regional rankings. She also led the team with five match-clinching wins, including two on March 26 against Colorado and Southern.Hannah Robinson was an ITA Scholar-Athlete both years and said she hopes to go on to law school after college.Her roommate, LSU senior tennis player Staten Spencer, said Hannah’s relaxed nature extends to her life off the court.”Everybody on the team loves her,” Spencer said. “She’s got a good sense of humor, and she’s easy going and laid back. She’s really easy to get along with, and it’s a lot of fun living with her.”LSU women’s tennis coach Tony Minnis said he knew the impact Hannah Robinson could make at LSU when he recruited her at age 16. “I felt like she had a lot of potential, and I knew she was a fighter,” Minnis said. “I was a little surprised and impressed that after a great freshman year [at LSU], she followed it up with a great sophomore year. That’s difficult to do.”Matt Robinson said Minnis immediately offered Hannah a scholarship when he first saw her play, and he and Minnis actually have history on the tennis court themselves.”Tony Minnis and I used to battle it out in juniors together,” he said. “He was a terrific tennis player, and he was in my age division, so we played a lot of tournaments against each other.”Minnis said it’s a privilege to have Hannah Robinson on the women’s tennis team.”The one thing that attracted me to Hannah was she was a tremendous tennis player,” Minnis said. “And her family legacy is a great story. Her situation could be a little bit stressful because of the high expectations, but she’s done an unbelievable job since she’s been here.”—-
Contact Rachel Whittaker at [email protected]