Bijan Robinson returns to Salpointe as a hero, sees No. 5 jersey retired

It's a fitting term for the valiant reception that Salpointe Catholic High School alum and Atlanta Falcons running back Bijan Robinson received on Friday morning inside the Kalil Family Gymnasium.

In front of his family, the entire student body, friends, coaches and media, Robinson returned home to Salpointe a hero to see his legendary maroon and gold No. 5 jersey retired for all time. 

“It's just such a blessing and great to see what God has brought me,” Robinson said. “From the moment I stepped foot on this campus to now, where I'm at today, it's been an amazing journey and for (Salpointe) to honor this day and retire the jersey it's pretty amazing. I just can't thank everyone enough here.”

The Lancers hosted an extravagant ceremony at Friday morning's school assembly for Tucson football's prodigal son, anchored by a 25-minute speech from former head football coach Dennis Bene, who led the Lancers from 2001-19 and coached Robinson all four years.

Bene recapped moments from Robinson's varsity career, including humorous recruiting stories, games when the running back faced personal adversity, and even the time Robinson's rising fame and demand clashed with Bene's strict bus schedule, resulting in the back being left at Tucson High postgame.

“Bijan is the best running back on Planet Earth,” Bene glowed. “But if you get to know him, like I've had the great honor of getting to know him, he's one of the most incredible humans you'll ever meet. He's tremendous and I've been blessed to share many of his milestones that he's included me in over the past 10 years and I feel very blessed and grateful.”

Following Bene's speech and introduction, Robinson emerged to massive applause, walking through a line of Lancer cheerleaders with his younger sister, a member of the team. Robinson took the stage, where his jersey, framed with four photos from his high school career, was unveiled.

The standout Salpointe alum spoke for 12 minutes, equal parts thankful and reminiscent. 

“I remember sitting right here where you guys are,” Robinson told the student body. “(Every day) was an opportunity for me to learn a lot. And every single year, as I've grown as a player and as a student, (my time at Salpointe) helped shape how God wanted to bless my life.”

Following Robinson’s speech, Salpointe athletic director Phil Gruensfelder stepped up to the microphone. Taking advantage of Robinson’s appearance, Gruensfelder announced to the assembly that Robinson was the newest inductee into the school’s Sports Hall of Fame, a club rich in history that includes well over 150 inductees.

Robinson was presented with a medal, which he proudly wore for the rest of the morning at the school.

Arizona’s all-time career touchdowns leader with 114 across his four years in maroon and gold, Robinson became one of the most prolific rushers and recruits in the state’s history from 2016-20. He logged 7,036 rushing yards, second all-time in Arizona history, including three seasons with over 2,000 yards on the ground.

The No. 2 overall running back in the class of 2020 and No. 16 recruit overall per Rivals Industry player recruiting rankings, Robinson was the Arizona Football Gatorade Player of the Year as a senior. He led the Lancers to back-to-back 4A State Championship appearances in 2017 and 2018, as well as two undefeated regular seasons in 2018 and 2019. Robinson won the Ed Doherty Award, Arizona's Player of the Year award presented by the Grand Canyon State Gridiron Club, two years straight as a junior and senior. 

He attended the University of Texas, where he continued to shine, finishing his three-year stint fourth overall in school history in career rushing yards with 3,410 rushing yards and 41 touchdowns. He became the fourth Longhorn running back to win the Doak Walker Award, given to the nation's top college football running back, in 2022 and earned unanimous All-American honors.

Robinson went to the Falcons with the No. 7 overall pick in the 2023 NFL Draft and has emerged as one of the NFL’s premier running backs, producing campaigns of over 1,400 yards in 2024 and 2025. He’s accumulated over 1,700 career receiving yards and 38 touchdowns as a do-it-all back in Atlanta.

Even after all of his achievements and his jersey retirement, Robinson still had nothing but glowing things to say to the people who helped him reach career stardom.

“Playing football at Salpointe was fun for me, but it was also important for me to help every other player here get recruited,” the NFL star emphasized. “I think that's what is so cool for me, was seeing (my teammates) get recruited and looked at... We were blessed to do what we did here on the field, but it also benefitted everybody else at the same time, which is pretty special about my journey here.”

Robinson's No. 5 is the first number to be retired for the school since 2018, when Salpointe retired former USC All-American Kris O'Dowd's No. 76. Coincidentally, Robinson's No. 5 is the fifth jersey number to be retired at the school.

It's been a rollercoaster of a month for Robinson, who signed a three-year contract extension worth up to $75 million to become the highest-paid running back in NFL history. While that might've been short-lived, as Detroit Lions star back Jahmyr Gibbs inked a deal worth $75.75 million three days later, August continued to be a big month for the Tucson native as he navigated the NFL preseason to gear up for a potentially explosive fourth year in Atlanta.

Friday presented an opportunity for the Salpointe alum to breathe and take a step back before he attacks the 2026 NFL season starting next Sunday against the Pittsburgh Steelers — a chance to see how far he has come since scampering down sidelines under the lights on a hot Tucson night. 

“This is all I needed right here, man,” Robinson said. “(Salpointe) is like my roots. Everything else is for the world to see, but me being here is where it all started. Me being here is how I became the man I wanted to become, the player, everything.

“It's all like surreal to come back to these moments right here and share it with everybody, especially for the season that's starting next week. This was a cool moment for me to realize what I was blessed to do and now I get to go do it next week.”