HEADING SOUTHWEST: Durfee's Robinson signs with JUCO power Odessa College in Texas UPDATED AGAIN

FALL RIVER – Tyree Robinson is signed and sealed. Delivery will be in a few months.

Durfee’s basketball standout on Friday signed a letter of intent to play basketball for Odessa College in Odessa, Texas. The signing took place in the Durfee High School library, with Robinson joined by a gathering of well wishers, including his mother Carolyn and Odessa head coach Tra Arnold. Robinso will attend Odessa on a full scholarship.

Arnold and assistant coach, Jeff Mailhot, came east on a recruiting trip which included the landing of a prize recruit, Durfee’s high-flying, slam dunking, shot blocking dynamo.

“He’s a priority to us,” Arnold said.

Odessa is one of the premier Division 1 junior college men’s basketball programs in the nation. Robinson said he selected Odessa, even though he has not yet visited the school, for more than its hoops tradition.

“Because of the academic program,” said Robinson, who has learning disabilities. “I know it’s going to help me be successful and get my associates degree.”

Arnold said Odessa is well equipped to help its student-athletes with their studies.

“The thing now with the new NCAA rule, it’s very prevalent they moved the GPA rule up from 2.0 to 2.5 to go to Division 1,” he said. “And we’re just fortunate at Odessa College to have all the resources, with tutors and the teachers, from faculty down to the president, that helps us help our student-athletes to graduate and be successful.”

And what of Robinson’s prospects on the basketball court?

“I think the way we play up-and-down style, his athleticism, and how aggressive he is, I think he’ll fit in well,” Arnold said. “A good defensive player, very athletic, will compete all the time, and that’s the kind of guys we like.”

Arnold said there’s no need to stick a position label – be it small forward, big guard, power forward – on Robinson. “He’s a basketball player,” Arnold said. “He’ll play where he fits.”

Durfee coach Jameson Guimond, one of the signing attendees, said he’s already excited thinking about how much Robinson will improve practicing and playing at such a high level. Odessa has sent more than 100 players to NCAA Division 1 programs, and its list of NBA players includes Larry Johnson, Craig Ehlo, and Moochie Norris.

Jaylen Brantley, who played with Robinson on the Boston Amateur Athletic Club, just transferred to the University of Maryland after one year at Odessa.

“I’m interested to see,” Guimond said. “Who knows how good he can get.”

Vinnie Godwin, a Fall River resident and a probation officer for New Bedford District Court, was another attendee on Friday at Durfee.

The former college hoops star at Roger Williams has played a major role in Robinson’s life, coaching him at BABC from fourth grade through 10th grade. Those powerhouse teams included Bonzie Colson Jr. (now playing at Notre Dame) and Godwin’s son Isaiah, and they won multiple national titles and even an Under-16 crown in Italy.

Godwin has been far more than a coach . He has helped guide Robinson through some of the mine fields associated with a kid growing up in the inner city. He said Robinson, 19, is very loyal person, one who has made progress controlling the aggressive nature so evident on the basketball court.

"Vin was there when Ty was an at-risk teenager," said BABC founder Leo Papille, who coached Robinson on the most senior BABC teams. "He went the extra mile. He always challenged Ty. He would not accept any excuses. He gave tough love. He set a standard of bahavior, a line Ty would not cross. Vin molded Ty into a young man that folks enjoy being around."

In Robinson’s junior season, the Durfee forward got into a verbal altercation with a Bishop Feehan player and spat on him, action that earned him a multi-game suspension. Godwin was at that game and quickly came to courtside to help take Robinson away from the court area.

“He’s a tough kid. He plays life hard,” Godwin said. “He has to funnel his aggression. He’s just a product of his environment.”

Durfee played Feehan three more times during the Robinson era, and Feehan coach Matt Freeman after those games praised Robinson for his sportsmanship.

Godwin’s wife Lori, who works for the Department of Youth Services, has also been part of the Robinson team and was the leader in getting him an IEP (Individualized Education Plan), Godwin said.

Having grown up with eight others in a two-bedroom dwelling, Robinson has often sought elbow-space at the Godwin home in the north end, not far from Durfee.

“He’s like my third son,” Godwin said.

Email Greg Sullivan at gsullivan@heraldnews.com. Follow him @GregSullivanHN