TALLAHASSEE -- The familiar landmarks, the comforting signs of home...they were gone as Janarius Robinson made his way back to Panama City.

Florida State’s sophomore defensive end lost his childhood home -- a house that was his grandmother’s, and then his mother’s -- during Hurricane Michael. Robinson and his family evacuated to Georgia. When they returned, their home was unrecognizable.

“It was very weird because it just really looked like someone dropped a nuclear bomb on us,” Robinson said. “Everything is destroyed. From buildings to schools to houses. Churches. If you didn’t know where you was, you wouldn’t know because nothing looks the same.”

Robinson started a GoFundMe account to help his family recover from the catastrophic damage (link provided here). Per an FSU spokesperson, FSU's compliance office worked in partnership with the NCAA to seek waiver approval from the NCAA for this initiative. Boosters may give to the initiative without adversely impacting Robinson's eligibility.

Robinson returned to Panama City on Friday morning to a "devastating" scene. Like so many residents of Florida's Panhandle, the place he called home his entire life was "ripped to shreds" by the major category four hurricane that made landfall last week.

"Having something that you always grew up in and lived in taken away from you is going to be hard," Robinson said. "Going back there and it's not there, and it's not standing still. We're going to get through it though.

"It's the memories. That house has been there forever. It's my grandma's house. Some of the stuff, memories, you can't get that stuff back. Especially the house."

Teammates and coaches have made sure that they're available to comfort Robinson and provide support as needed.

"Just being there for him. Making sure he's alright and making sure his family's alright," said linebacker DeCalon Brooks. "We're just making sure that we're there for him in his time of need. A lot of people were affected by this hurricane. A lot of people's homes were damaged, they don't even have a home anymore. So, we just want to look out for those that were really affected by this hurricane."

Added defensive coordinator Harlon Barnett: "We let him know that our prayers and thoughts are with he and his family. I can’t say I know how you feel because I don’t. I’ve never been through something like that. You just try to show him love and let him know that we care about him. And if there’s anything that we can do to help we’re willing to do so. That’s a tough situation."

As of now, Robinson's family isn't sure how it's going to cope and rebuild. His mother is staying with a family friend while Robinson returned to the football team and was back practicing on Tuesday after taking a few days to help his family out in Panama City. Retuning to football, in a way, has been a bit of a sanctuary for Robinson.

"This is a time for me to get my mind away and off of things that've happened," Robinson said. "I come out here, get my mind off it and get back to work with my brothers. ...This is a way that I can get my family back on its feet. Coming out here and doing what I can to help my family, that can put me in a good situation."

Players assist with hurricane relief

Robinson mentioned that he was thankful to his teammates for not only providing support, but also making a concerted effort to help others impacted by Hurricane Michael.

FSU players helped load crates of food and water bottles over the weekend to send to areas affected by the storm.

A few of our Noles loaded 54 trucks with 40,000 bottles of water and 125,00 cases of food with the local food bank to send to areas affected by Hurricane Michael. #DoSomething pic.twitter.com/qiSuIsW709 — FSU Football (@FSUFootball) October 14, 2018





"It was a group project that all athletics decided to do, athletes from each team," Brooks said. "We just wanted to help out those that were affected by the hurricane and just give back to the community."

Added Robinson: “That means that my teammates care about me and also other people that got affected by the storm.”