North Carolina A&T

Tarrell Robinson was named the sixth head coach in the program's history on May 2, 2012. He is one of the most impactful figures in the history of North Carolina A&T Athletics. Robinson played four seasons on the men’s basketball team (1997-01), served as a graduate assistant for the men’s basketball team, played a role for the women’s basketball program as an assistant coach and an associate head coach before becoming the program’s all-time winningest coach, winning numerous championships, and reaching numerous postseasons along the way. 

In the more than 15 years he has been associated with the women’s basketball program, the Aggies have produced seven Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) titles, including four regular-season championships and three tournament titles, two MEAC rookies of the year (Eboni Ross, T’Wuana Cook) and a MEAC player of the year (Brittanie Taylor-James). Also, in that same time frame, the Aggies have had 18 different players earn 29 all-conference recognitions, nine different players earn multiple all-conference honors, including three players becoming three-time all-conference selections, and eight players earning all-rookie honors. 

As the Aggies head coach, the Aggies have had four first-team all-conference selections. In addition, five different players have earned eight second-team all-conference accolades, including Aprill McRae earning three second-team honors and Cinia McCray earning two. Robinson has also had nine third-team selections, six all-rookie recognitions and two all-defensive team honors. 

Robinson’s three MEAC tournament titles came in 2016, 2018, and 2021, and his four MEAC regular-season titles came in 2016, 2018, 2019, and 2021. As the Aggies head coach, A&T has made six postseason appearances – three NCAA tournaments (2016, 2018, 2021) and three WNITs (2013, 2014, 2019). In addition, Robinson has five 20-win seasons (2012-13, 2013-14, 2014-15, 2017-18, 2018-19), and his teams have finished lower than fourth place only four times during his tenure.

On Nov. 22, 2022, the Aggies defeated S.C. State 68-49 in Orangeburg, S.C., to earn his 192nd win as the Aggies head coach. The win made him the program’s all-time winningest coach, passing Tim Abney (1986-99) for the record. Nearly two months later, on Jan. 13, Robinson won his 200th career game with a 67-63 win over Northeastern at Corbett Sports Center. In capturing the win, Robinson became only the third A&T basketball coach – men or women – to earn 200 wins at A&T, joining legendary figures Cal Irvin and Don Corbett. Robinson has a 207-119 (.635) career record, a 107-32 (.770) mark at Corbett, and a 132-42 (.759) against conference opponents heading into the 2023-24 season. He is the only basketball coach in school history (men or women) to open their respective N.C. A&T tenure with three consecutive 20-win seasons.

Robinson’s teams have also been stellar in the classroom. In 2015, it was announced the Aggies had a perfect single-year APR score of 1000. Five players on Robinson’s 2015-16 had undergraduate degrees. Four of those players pursued master’s degrees. Center Alexus Lessears was named N.C. A&T’s 2018 academic athlete of the year after posting a 4.0 for the 2017-18 school year. In 2021-22, Sean Kelly Darks earned a spot on the Big South’s All-Academic team. The A&T women’s basketball program has an APR multi-year score of 955.  

Defense and sharing the basketball have also been a staple of Robinson’s program. The Aggies have finished first twice in scoring defense and have finished no lower than fourth only once in Robinson’s six seasons. Opponents are only averaging 56.9 points per game against A&T while being defeated by an average scoring margin of 5.6 points since Robinson became the head coach. The Aggies have not finished lower than third in the conference in assists per game since the 2013-14 season, including leading the conference in 2015-16.

The program has also made some of its most significant historic achievements under Robinson. He helped the program transition from the MEAC to the Big South before the Aggies became official Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) members before the 2022-23 season started. During the 2013-14 season, the Aggies got off to the best start in school history by going 7-1 as they finished the year 24-7. Also that season, the Aggies made history by becoming the first historically black college or university to win consecutive games in the preseason WNIT. Robinson was also selected to participate in The Center for Coaching Excellence, presented by the Women’s Basketball Coaches Association (WBCA). The Aggies have also been nationally ranked in the mid-major collegeinsider.com poll on four occasions during Robinson’s tenure. 

Robinson returned to A&T after spending three years as an assistant coach, recruiting coordinator and associate head coach at Virginia Commonwealth under head coach Beth Cunningham. Before his stint at VCU, Robinson spent four successful seasons at N.C. A&T under legendary head coach Patricia Cage-Bibbs. Robinson made a name for himself as a talented recruiter, having brought in highly-touted players to A&T and helping to lead the Aggies to consecutive MEAC regular-season championships starting in 2007.

Robinson coached four seasons under Bibbs. After a 9-19 season in 2005-06, Robinson assisted Bibbs in signing what turned out to be some of the best players in school history, starting with Fayetteville, N.C., native Ta’Wuana Cook. Cook became the program’s first MEAC Rookie of the Year, its second all-time leading scorer and its all-time leader in assists. He was also instrumental in signing two-time MEAC all-tournament performer Lamona Smalley and 2009 MEAC player of the year Brittanie Taylor-James. When Jaleesa Sams, ranked as high as No. 31 nationally by Scouts.com, signed to play at A&T in 2007, the women’s basketball team had its most highly-touted recruit in history.

From 2007-09, Robinson and his recruits helped the Aggies compile a 51-15 record and their first MEAC tournament championship since 1994 when they took the title in 2009. The MEAC championship win earned the Aggies a berth in the NCAA Tournament in 2009 as they were awarded a 14th seed, the highest seed for an HBCU team at the time. Cook, Sams, Taylor-James and JaQuayla Berry are all 1,000-point career scorers and all-conference performers.  

After leaving A&T for VCU, Robinson continued to excel as a recruiter. After serving as the program's recruiting coordinator, he was promoted to associate head coach in May 2011 at VCU. He helped the Rams make three-consecutive postseason appearances from 2009-12. The Rams also made it to the third round of the WNIT in 2010 and 2012. He helped land back-to-back classes that ranked among the best in the CAA, including players who ranked among the Top 30 in their respective positions.

His 2011-12 class included the Ram’s most highly-recruited player in center Aprill McRae, who was named the 22nd-best post player in the nation by ESPN. McRae would go on to transfer to A&T. In 2011, Robinson was recognized as one of the nation’s top 25 Mid-Major women’s basketball assistants by collegeinsider.com. Robinson was also invited to the prestigious Nike Villa 7 Consortium in 2011 and 2012. The Nike Villa 7 Consortium partners with the VCU Center for Sports Leadership and brings together the country’s elite assistant basketball coaches to help prepare the next generation of college basketball leaders.

Before his successful stints at A&T and VCU, Robinson spent two seasons as a graduate assistant for the A&T men’s basketball program under head coach Curtis Hunter. He worked two seasons as the assistant boys basketball coach at High Point Andrews High School.
Robinson first made his mark at A&T as a student-athlete. He played on the men’s basketball team from 1997-2001. He scored 934 career points, grabbed more than 700 rebounds and blocked 35 shots. He led the Aggies in rebounding his junior season.

Robinson attended E.E. Smith High School in Fayetteville, N.C., where he was an Honorable Mention McDonald’s All-American and lettered for three years. Robinson earned his B.A. degree in psychology in 2001 from N.C. A&T and was enrolled in the graduate program at N.C. A&T, where he was a candidate for a master’s degree in Human Performance and Leisure Studies.
Robinson and his wife, Kelli, have three children, Jordan, Jada and Lauren.