Jalen Robinson had a long, lanky frame when he signed with the University of Dayton basketball team last fall, and he had visions of being a small forward in college to make himself more attractive as a pro prospect.

But the 6-foot-9 Columbus Northland product has beefed up in the last year and has turned into a candidate to play center for the Flyers.

“When we recruited Jalen — we knew him for a while because he participated in our team camp — he was 217. And when Jalen showed up on our campus this summer, he was around the mid-240s,” UD coach Archie Miller said. “He had almost put on 30 pounds — and not all of it good.

“His body has taken a huge transformation. He went from being a guy I looked at like, boy, he’s going to have a chance to be skilled (on the perimeter) to a guy that, quite frankly, is now a big, big body. But he’s got a great skill set. The biggest challenge will now be to take that weight and move it around. He’s done a fabulous job. It’s a credit to him for hanging in there. He’s come a long way.”

Robinson has spent time in the UD strength and conditioning program under coach Paul Ivkovich and has dropped to 235 pounds while lowering his body fat from 17 percent to 11.5.

“He used to say, ‘Coach, do you think I can be a 3?’ Now I hope he can be a 4,” Miller said. “But I do think because of his game, he has a chance to play with a ‘big’ or without a ‘big’ because he’s gifted inside and very, very mobile. He’s got a unique game that I think will translate well for him.”

Flyer fans will get their first look at Robinson and the other freshmen during the Red & Blue intrasquad scrimmage at noon Saturday at UD Arena. The women’s team will scrimmage at 10:30 a.m. Admission is free.

Here are some early impressions of the newcomers:

Robinson: Relentless. Doesn’t back down from battles on the block. He wears dread locks like former Flyers London Warren and Rob Lowery, and his hair goes flying as he mixes it up inside.

Devon Scott (6-9, 215): The Flyers’ strongest player, at least in the weight-lifting department. He bench-pressed 185 pounds a team-high 21 times. Might be the most game-ready of all the freshmen.

Dyshawn Pierre (6-6, 210): He doesn’t have textbook shooting form, but the Canandian is athletic and a banger and could play multiple positions.

Khari Price (5-11, 170): Top candidate to become a crowd favorite. Quick and competitive. He’ll play meaningful minutes while subbing for senior point guard Kevin Dillard, and he’s a guy the coaches can trust with the ball against Atlantic 10-caliber pressure.

Jordan Sibert (6-4, 187): OK, he’s not eligible until next season, but the Ohio State transfer looks to be a pure shooter, and you never can have too many of those.

No Flyer made the preseason A-10 all-rookie team, but Miller has assembled a class that will be counted on to make significant contributions.

“Preseason all-freshman team is great, but at the end of the season, there will be five guys (in the A-10) that impacted their team greatly. And I think all of our guys will have a chance to be on the floor, which gives them a chance to be recognized as one of the better freshmen in our conference,” Miller said.

“They have to get through the bumps of being a freshman. But in watching us working out in August and watching us work out in September and now moving into October, I think each one of those guys will have an unbelievable opportunity to have a great career for Dayton.”