Duke Blue Devils CB Kimari Robinson faces strong criticism after swatting at a female athletic trainer trying to tend to his injured teammate.
Duke cornerback Landan Callahan was injured in the third quarter of the Blue Devils’ 24-20 loss to North Carolina on Saturday. Robinson came over and stood over Callahan, presumably to offer support and assess the extent of his teammate’s injury.
The issue arose when a female trainer ran to the scene and was blocked from rendering aid because Robinson was in the way. The trainer placed her hand on Robinson’s shoulder and began pushing him away when the Blue Devil defender suddenly swatted at her.
Fans on X reacted harshly to Robinson’s angry behavior and, for the most part, demanded discipline.
“The kid needs to be benched for a game or two, and forced to go through the emergency training again. You can’t have someone that big and strong acting like that in an emergency. Imagine if he had accidentally connected and floored her, giving her a concussion? Suddenly he’d be up on assault charges, and there would be a second medical emergency distracting the medics trying to help his teammate,” one fan wrote.
“Player should not be there. Let the medical staff do their job. They clearly suspect a neck injury, as the ATC is immobilizing the head. She is clearly just trying to make room to do her job,” wrote another.
Still, not everyone criticized Robinson.
“I get your point, but the emotions of a kid when someone as close as family is hurting and down isn’t a thing to dismiss either. They both obviously care for the down player,” another explained.
Robinson, a junior from Miramar, Florida, had three tackles in the game.
