UCF’s Aaron Robinson stretchered off after first play of 2018

Robinson made a tackle on kick coverage and came up injured.

The first play of UCF’s season resulted in Knights cornerback Aaron Robinson being stretchered off the field at UConn’s Rentschler Field.

Robinson was on the Knights’ kick coverage unit. He burst downfield and tackled the Huskies’ Keyion Dixon at the 16-yard line. He stayed down and didn’t appear to move much at all. Medical personnel quickly brought out a stretcher and removed his pads and facemask, then took him to a tunnel while he was immobilized on the stretcher:

It wasn’t immediately clear what Robinson’s injury was or what caused it. One possibility, which neither the school nor any reporters has confirmed yet:

ESPNU’s cameras showed UConn coach Randy Edsall walking across the field to console UCF coach Josh Heupel. A handful of Robinson’s teammates offered encouragement as he was leaving the playing field. He gave a thumbs-up and appeared to be moving his legs.

Robinson had just begun his redshirt sophomore season a few moments earlier, playing in the very first game of Week 1. The Alabama transfer played in 13 games for the Tide as a true freshman in 2016 and had to sit out last year after transferring, per NCAA rules.

We’ll update this post as more information becomes available on Robinson’s condition.