A familiar face has returned to the UALR men’s basketball program, as head coach Steve Shields added former Trojan Daniyal Robinson to his staff for the 2007-08 season. Robinson brings an unmatched familiarity with UALR to the position, having experienced the university both as a player and a coach.

A two-year letterman at UALR, Robinson spent three seasons as an administrative assistant on the Trojan coaching staff before leaving for Illinois State with Porter Moser. 

His duties at UALR include on-court coaching, recruiting, conducting individual workouts, and instructing the Trojans’ post players.
 
Robinson spent the past four seasons as an assistant coach on Moser’s staff at Illinois State, where he worked with the Redbirds’ post players and built invaluable recruiting contacts. He was the lead recruiter on 2006-07 Missouri Valley Conference Freshman of the Year Osiris Eldridge.
 
A native of Chicago, Ill., Eldridge was a top-150 recruit in high school, along with fellow Robinson signee Bobby Hill. Robinson’s efforts also landed Lorenzo Gordon, MVC Newcomer of the Year and First Team All-Conference selection, and Levi Dyer, the 2006-07 MVC Most Improved Player.
 
Robinson came to UALR from Indian Hills Community College, where he averaged 11 points and six rebounds as a sophomore for a team that posted a 35-4 record. He earned Second Team All-Region honors that season while helping Indian Hills to state and regional championships, as well as a spot in the NJCAA Tournament. Indian Hills ended the regular season ranked No. 1 by the Associated Press that season.
 
He transferred to UALR in 1996 and played in 56 games over the next two seasons with 37 starts. As a senior, Robinson averaged 5.6 points and 4.4 rebounds per game while starting 22 of 28 games.
 
Robinson graduated from UALR in 1999 with a bachelor’s degree in health education. He joined the coaching ranks in 2000 as part of Moser’s original staff at UALR, and contributed to the largest turnaround in Sun Belt Conference history – helping that year’s team to 18 wins after recording just four the previous season. His three seasons at UALR were spent coaching alongside Shields, who was an assistant coach at the time.
 
A native of Rock Island, Ill., Robinson was a two-time IBCA All-State and All-Conference honoree at Rock Island High School under head coach Duncan Reid. He was also named to the Quad City Times All-Metro First Team as well as team captain and most valuable player.
 
He and his wife, Kim, have two children, Devyn and Reece.