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Ever since two students named Nate Robinson enrolled at the University of Washington two years ago, one has had to field e-mails and phone calls meant for the other.
One Nate Robinson arguably is the biggest man on campus, despite standing only 5 feet, 9 inches. So admired are his exploits on the basketball court that one fan has launched a Web site - www.naterobinson.com - as "an homage to the greatest pure athlete ever to attend the UW."
The other is an unassuming editorial cartoonist for the Daily, the student newspaper, which publishes his work two or three times a week.
Guess which one has to endure the slights of being mistaken for the other?
"The most annoying part of being the other Nate Robinson happens every quarter on the first day of class," cartoonist Nate said. "When the professors are calling roll and they get down to my name, there's this gasping and every person in class turns around to look. Then they realize it's just some white boy sitting there and there's this sigh."
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As athlete Nate takes to the Hec Edmundson Pavilion floor tonight for the start of the UW basketball season, cartoonist Nate is preparing for a full-court press. Heightened attention on the Huskies' acrobatic guard means a ratcheting in the number of misdirected e-mails and phone calls.
The UW publishes an online directory of student names, phone numbers and e-mail addresses. Students can opt out of it. Athlete Nate did. The cartoonist, though, is listed as junior Nathaniel J. Robinson.
"I can take my name off at any time, too, I guess, but I want this charade to continue," said cartoonist Nate, who gets as many as four e-mails a week from the other Nate's fans, detractors, friends, wannabe friends, media folk, solicitors, teachers and tutors.
One fan wanted athlete Nate to sign a jersey. His seventh-grade teacher invited him to speak to her class. Sports Illustrated called the other week to request an interview.
"I get the feeling a lot of teachers simply want to talk to Nate," cartoonist Nate said. "Funny, I've never had a single professor ever e-mail me about anything."
The Nates have never met. Cartoonist Nate never has seen athlete Nate play basketball. Athlete Nate has seen a few of the other Nate's cartoons in the Daily and thinks they're pretty good.
"Everybody asks me on campus if that's me drawing the cartoons," athlete Nate said. "Girls and guys come up to me: 'You're a good artist, too? You're good at everything.' I'm like, 'That's not me!' It's crazy."
Cartoonist Nate, the son of an Army colonel who moved around a lot, was penning a comic strip for the Bellevue High School newspaper about a teenage dork named "Big Ned" at the same time the son of Huskies football legend Jacque Robinson was leading Rainier Beach High School to a Metro League championship in football and the Class 3A state championship in basketball.
Bellevue High jocks knew of the Rainier Beach Nate and kidded their classmate about it.
"Then I read that the other Nate signed a letter-of-intent to play at U-Dub, and I figured this was going to be trouble," cartoonist Nate said. "But I really had no idea what I was in for."
The stats
NATE ROBINSON, ATHLETE
Age: 20
Major: American ethnic studies
Height: 5 feet, 9 inches
Weight: 180 pounds
UW varsity letters: 3
Vertical leap: 43 inches
Praise: "Arguably the most exciting player in college basketball."
- Lorenzo Romar, UW head basketball coach
NATE ROBINSON, CARTOONIST
Age: 20
Major: Political science and communication (journalism)
Height: 5 feet, 9 inches
Weight: 145 pounds
UW varsity letters: 0
Vertical leap: 12 inches
Praise: "Arguably one of the best college cartoonists in the country."
- Heather Cope, UW Daily editor in chief
