From feeling passed over to joining the top volleyball program in the country.
That’s where Jayden Robinson finds herself in 2025 after signing with the No. 1 ranked Nebraska volleyball team on Nov. 12.
Robinson hails from Missouri City, Texas, where she attends Ridge Point High School. During her senior season, the outside/opposite hitter guided her team to a 33-14 record, earning a district championship while averaging 5.0 kills per set on .381 hitting and 2.9 digs per set with 45 service aces.
Now, she will be joining the Huskers come 2026.
“I didn’t have a dream school growing up,” Robinson told Hail Varsity. “I always had my options open because I didn’t know if there were schools looking at me growing up, because I was always underrated and overlooked. So, I didn’t really have a dream school because I didn’t feel like having my hopes high to a school that possibly didn’t want me.”
After wanting to quit volleyball early on, the six-foot-3 pin is ranked No. 10 nationally by PrepVolleyball.com and No. 12 by PrepDig in the 2026 class. She played at Houston Juniors Volleyball Club and New Age Volleyball Club before switching over to Houston Skyline Club Volleyball.
“I would just say a lot of hard work, and a lot of like mental challenges went into it,” Robinson said. “For me, if you ever look at my Instagram story, it’s me in the gym majority of the time. I would say just getting into the gym for me really helped me increase not only volleyball skill wise, but just mentally. It’s mental as well, because also my dad is the trainer, he does everything for me. He talks to me about the mental challenges through athletes and helps me overcome those things. And then he also helps me in the weight room to help me perform better and prevent injuries and stuff like that.”
Jayden’s father, Jason Robinson, is a former college basketball player at Buffalo who played professionally overseas for over a decade.
Robinson announced her verbal commitment to the Huskers in June of 2024 before ever touring campus.
“No matter what the campus looked like, I felt like I was meant to be there whether I’ve seen the place or haven’t, and the coaching staff really helped me,” Robinson said. “They really helped me pick the school that I needed to go to.”
When Robinson arrives in Lincoln, she will be majoring in pre-health with hopes of becoming a physical therapist. She said that she wanted to make sure she chose the right program for her, both academically and athletically.
“It was a big decision on whether the school has my major, and obviously if the school wanted me for sports,” Robinson said. “I really wanted to go to a school that’s very competitive and be surrounded by people that are like me, that are very competitive. That was a big decision for me.”
Nebraska recruiting coordinator Jaylen Reyes played a big part on the Huskers landing Robinson’s commitment.
“Jaylen Reyes, connected with me first, and then with my second call, the whole coaching staff was on the call,” Robinson said. “So, it was kind of just good to be on a call with everyone and seeing every one’s different personalities on the coaching staff. It was a good two calls that I had with them, but I also had a connection with Jaylen Reyes before being on the call with him because of NTDP.”
Robinson has trained with the USA Volleyball National Team Development Program. In 2024, she helped USA win gold at the NORCECA Girls U19 Continental Championship. She also played for the U19 team at that competed in the FIVB Women’s U21 World Championship in August.
While playing on the team, Robinson competed with future Husker teammate middle blocker Keoni Williams.
“It was very impactful, because just having another teammate that I know that I’ll play with in the future is like next step, because no one would have thought like you’d be playing with your future teammate before you go off to college,” Robinson said. “So, I would say playing with Keoni, it was a good experience. It was a really good experience because we got to get to know each other even more than we already did.”
Williams got to witness Robinson’s game firsthand, describing it as “powerful.”
“Just her blocking, her hitting, she goes with so much force, and if you’re up against her, I would be scared,” Williams said. “She’s very powerful.”
Now, Robinson is bringing her talent to Lincoln.
“My game is very, very, energetic, very competitive, and it’s like OK, this is me just getting all crazy over myself, just like really fun,” Robinson said. “I would say I’m a very fun player to watch, because there’s no telling what I would do next.”
For now, Robinson will finish her final semester of high school before enrolling at Nebraska in January.
“I’m excited to move in, in January, and can’t wait to officially be a Husker,” Robinson said.
