AMHERST — Shane Robles sat wide awake in his room deep into the September night. There was no way he would get a good night’s rest — too much anxiety and impatience filled his body. As each minute passed, he knew he was closer to finding out whether or not he did enough as a wide receiver at the UMass football open tryout earlier in the day.

He eventually fell asleep, closing his eyes for maybe two hours before waking up the next morning. Robles had to run some errands, so he freshened up and moseyed out the door.

Exhausted and restless, he hopped in his car and headed for Target. On his way there, the UMass freshman felt his phone vibrate uncontrollably.

Defensive line coach Valdamar Brower had some news to share with him.

“The night after the tryout, I was freaking out,” Robles said. “Because before, I never thought I had a chance. And then after the tryout I was like, ‘Damn, I was probably one of the better guys there.’ I was running some errands the following morning, and then coach Brower called me and told me I made it. I was like, ‘Coach, I’m ready to do whatever you need me to do,’ hung up the phone, and I immediately called my mom.”

Brower and Rory Pommerening, the Football Operations General Manager for the Minutemen, were the two coaches on hand at the walk-on tryout. UMass wide receivers coach Matt Zanellato didn’t witness Robles’ ability first-person, but heard from Brower and Pommerening that he was easily the best one there.

“I wasn’t there for tryouts, but I heard from people that were there that what stood out was he was one of the most athletic kids out there,” Zanellato said. “And he was definitely someone that we thought could help our team have some success.”

Robles was born in California, moved to Massachusetts when he was 6 years old (where his mom’s side of the family was), and grew up in Amherst.

He originally committed to Endicott after a standout senior season at Amherst High School in the fall of 2019. Unfortunately the COVID-19 pandemic had other plans, and he ultimately stayed home and instead attended Greenfield Community College the following fall.

He decided right away that he wasn’t done with football. So, he made a plan with his trainer, Richard Hogans, to spend two years at GCC while training every day to get him in the best shape possible for a tryout at UMass down the line.

That plan played out perfectly, and it came to fruition when Robles enrolled at UMass and made the team this fall. He’s academically a junior, but a freshman in terms of eligibility.

During his first taste of practice, he noticed the difference between FBS and high school football. Robles turned to the team’s veteran receivers – Anthony Simpson and George Johnson III – for help.

“They’ve been helping me a lot,” Robles said. “The one big difference between high school and Division I is technique, perfecting technique, and they’ve all got that on lock. They’ve been helping me out with that a lot, making sure my footwork and stuff is on point.”

If there’s been one unit that hasn’t disappointed at some point this year, it’s the wide receivers. Simpson at one point was top 10 in receiving yards in all of FBS, Johnson III has been as reliable a target as anyone, and players like Mark Pope, Shawn Harris Jr., and Christian Wells continue to answer the bell when called upon.

It speaks volumes to Robles’ talent knowing the coaching staff felt he could be a valuable addition to the UMass roster. And he’s been one of the top players on the scout team helping the Minutemen defense prepare for their opponents each week.

“One of the biggest things about him is you can kind of see flashes of his raw athleticism at practice,” Zanellato said. “Week in and week out, our defense has to go against some other talented wide receiving corps, so with him being the age he is – he’s still got a lot of football out in front of him – he does a great job giving the defense a look and helping them get prepared for their upcoming opponent.”

It’s been nearly two months since Robles got the call from Brower, and still the realization of being a member of the team hasn’t hit him yet. Every so often Robles roams around the locker room and sees each player’s name and where they’re from.

Florida, California, South Carolina, Georgia, Ohio – states all across the country. But only one of those tags says Amherst, Mass., and that’s his.

“I’m still not actually realizing how crazy it is,” Robles said. “Because all of my teammates always say it’s crazy when I tell them where I’m from. There’s no other guys [from Amherst], they don’t ever hear about it. They’ve all been surprised. And I look around the locker room and see where everybody else is from, like Florida or Connecticut or California… I’m the only guy from Amherst. I’m starting to realize how odd it is, but also special.”

Robles hasn’t suited up for a game yet, and isn’t on the list of players who travel – so he won’t be traveling for this Saturday’s contest against Army. The weekend after, Nov. 4 against Merrimack, Robles will be dressed in his pads and don his No. 84 jersey for the first time – a feeling he’s longed for since he was a kid.

“I can’t wait, I’ve been wanting this for a long time now,” Robles said. “It’s gonna be nice knowing all that work got me here, and it was worth it. Seeing it all play out is hard to put into words.”

One of Robles’ main goals – aside from earning a spot on the field at some point throughout his career – is to make an impact on the generation coming after him. Being a walk-on who looked at playing for UMass as near-impossible, Robles knows his situation is a blessing and can be viewed as an inspiration for younger kids with big ambitions.

“Just be disciplined, believe in yourself, and keep grinding,” Robles said, referring to a message he would give to the youth. “And now I honestly feel like, if I just work for anything, I can get it. It might not be true most of the time, but after this it’s definitely in my mind.”

In a position group stacked with immense talent, Robles understands playing time might be at a premium – at least in his first few seasons. However, that’s not a concern for him. Being a part of the team he grew up watching and supporting is fulfilling on its own.

Whatever else comes with it is a bonus.

“Everything after this is a blessing, even being on the team is a blessing,” Robles said. “I definitely do have a chip on my shoulder because nobody is gonna look at me and really give me that much of a shot. So I’m just gonna do as much as I can. I’m already at the bottom. I can go up and hopefully by maybe my junior, senior year, get some minutes, maybe start. I mean, obviously, the goal would be to make it to the NFL, but it’s probably a dream.”

But playing for UMass was also a dream for a kid who spent his youth in Amherst. Robles made that dream come true, so who knows what he’s capable of next.