AUBURN, Ala. -- For a couple of weeks in the blistering August heat of 2012, Jovon Robinson was an Auburn football player.

Robinson had a monster first season at GMC.

If the current Auburn staff gets its wish, the former running back signee will return in January.

The record-breaking junior college star spoke with Auburn coach Gus Malzahn, offensive coordinator Rhett Lashlee and running backs coach Tim Horton Wednesday.

“It actually surprised me because I wasn’t expecting it,” Robinson said. “Auburn has always been one of my favorite schools, but when they called it really spiked my interest a little bit more.”

Robinson, who is rated a 5-star and the nation’s No. 1 junior college prospect by 247Sports, has a long-standing relationship with Malzahn, who started recruiting him nearly five year ago.

“I’ve always liked coach Malzahn,” Robinson said. “He was actually the first coach, OC to recruit me out of high school. He came to my high school when I was in 11th grade and told me I could do some special things with him.

“Me and Malzahn, our relationship has been kind of older. As good as it was back then, it can be better now.”

Robinson signed with Auburn in 2012 out of Wooddale in Memphis, Tenn. He reported to Auburn that summer and went through the first couple of weeks of preseason practice before being ruled academically ineligible after it was discovered that at least one of his high school grades had been changed by a Wooddale guidance counselor.

Robinson said he doesn’t harbor any resentment for how things went down at Auburn a couple of years ago.

Robinson practiced for a couple of weeks at Auburn.

“It’s still the same for me. You can assume that Auburn really was the best fit for me,” he said. “I’m still the same person. I’ve been the same player since high school. It’s more being consistent for me, not trying to prove anything. It would be nice to say, ‘I got a chip,’ but I’ve been the same person since I was eight years old. I’m just trying to get better and better.”

Of course, Robinson liked the potential of Auburn’s offense coming out of high school and feels the same about it now.

“It’s explosive,” he said. “They spread the ball around. They have guys running around the edges, going deep. It’s really a fun offense to watch. It’s actually something like I’m doing at GMC. It’s one of the more diverse offenses for running backs."

Robinson plans to visit Auburn next weekend.

Robinson, 5-foot-11 and 225 pounds, had a monster first season at Georgia Military College in Milledgeville, Ga., last fall with a junior college record 2,387 rushing yards and 34 touchdowns on 272 carries, earning NJCAA Offensive Player of the Year honors. He led GMC to an 11-1 record as a freshman, losing to East Mississippi 52-32 in the NJCAA championship game.

Robinson, who is a December graduate, lists a top five, all even, of Auburn, Alabama, Georgia, Florida State and Tennessee. Here’s what he had to say about his other four top schools.

Alabama: “I like the role of the running back there. I know some of the coaching staff and the relationship is already there. It’s actually closer to my home so it wouldn’t be a lot of traveling for my family.”

Florida State: “They won a national championship and that’s always a plus. They have an amazing quarterback. Their offense is kind of spread. I’ve never been out to Florida State so I’m looking forward to that. Definitely going to try and get down there this spring.”

Georgia: “It’s basically the same thing as Alabama, the running back is kind of the focus of the offense. I’ve actually Georgia a couple of times so I know about the campus and I know some of the players personally, which is always good.”

Tennessee: “I haven’t done much research on Tennessee yet. They haven’t pursued my or treated me as important as much as the other schools yet. I do know Tennessee has a solid program and there is a significant role for the running backs there.”

Robinson hopes to have a decision before the start of his sophomore season.

“Just figuring out a new offense and building relationships is what I’m looking forward to,” he said.

Auburn signed two players out of GMC in the 2014 class in defensive linemen DaVonte Lambert and Devaroe Lawrence.

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