Springdale High Duo Signs to Play Football

By Alex Abrams

Posted: February 1, 2012 at 3:05 p.m.

Anthony Reyes
STAFF PHOTO ANTHONY REYES -- Springdale High football players Tony Dennis, right, and Kempys Robinson, second from left, smile before signing national letters of intent Wednesday Feb. 1, 2012 in Bulldog Fieldhouse in Springdale. Joining them at the table are, from left, Diann Robinson, Kamond Robinson, 11, and Dennis' sister Isabella Cates, 8. Dennis signed with Arkansas Tech University, while Robinson signed with the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff.

• Print item
• E-mail
• Share
• Tweet

SPRINGDALE — For now, Kempys Robinson and Tony Dennis are teammates on Springdale High’s boys basketball team.

They’ll be strictly football players once they get to college.

Robinson signed a national letter of intent with Arkansas-Pine Bluff, and Dennis made his decision to play for Arkansas Tech official Wednesday during a signing ceremony inside the Walker Fieldhouse.

“I’ve known UAPB since I was a little kid, and I always wanted to go there,” Robinson said. “And when they gave me a full ride, I just said, ‘I want to go there and be a Golden Lion.’”

Robinson said UAPB’s football coaches recruited him to play wide

receiver, H-back and tight end for the Football Championship Subdivision

school.

The 6-foot-4, 240-pound senior said having relatives in the Pine Bluff area helped convince him to sign with the school over Arkansas Tech, Central Arkansas and Evangel University in Springfield, Mo.

For Dennis, Arkansas Tech seemed like the right choice. He capped a long and sometimes tumultuous road from multiple-sport star to future college running back/slot receiver with his signing Wednesday

morning. He has battled injuries during his time at Springdale, including a pair of broken fibulas and a torn anterior cruciate ligament.

“When I first got injured, I was really nervous that I wouldn’t be able to play anymore,” Dennis said. “But I rehabbed and I got back and my knee was solid this year, so I thought I had a chance to go

somewhere.”

Dennis said his decision to sign with Arkansas Tech was a tough one, especially since a pair of former Springdale coaches in Arkansas State coach Gus Malzahn and ASU tight ends coach Eli Drinkwitz tried

recruiting him. Dennis said he also had several offers to play college basketball.

Dennis, a 5-9, 180-pound guard and one of the leading scorers on Springdale’s basketball team, said he’ll focus solely on football at Arkansas Tech.

“But maybe coach (Steve) Mullins will let me walk on for basketball,” Dennis said.

A crowd that included dozens of friends, family members and most of the Springdale basketball team crowded into the Walker Fieldhouse to watch Dennis and Robinson sign their national letters of intent and then pose for photographs.

“I think both of them have not even come to close to reaching the

potential they can be at, and I think that’s what those college

coaches saw as well,” Springdale coach Shane Patrick said. “Not only

are they good now, but what can they get to? So I’m just real excited

for those guys to have that opportunity.”

Comments

To report abuse or misuse of this area please hit the "Suggest Removal" link in the comment to alert our online managers. Please read our comment policy.

Use the comment form below to begin a discussion about this content.