Generations of Pride

The Robnett family and their North Texas legacy
Mike Robnett (’78) and his family’s relationship with the University of North Texas runs deep — spanning two generations of alumni, countless memories and a shared bond that keeps the university close to their hearts.
Growing up in Commerce, Texas, Mike was more familiar with the traditions of East Texas State University — now East Texas A&M University — where his grandmother, father and brothers had all attended. Mike took a different path, choosing what was then North Texas State University in Denton, Texas.
“I was the black sheep,” he says. “I wanted to be different, or I wanted something different, and I came over to Denton. I liked what I saw, it looked like a fun place to me. It was 1974, there was music everywhere at the time.”
Denton captivated him and he quickly found his niche in banking and finance, taking on a part-time job at a local bank in addition to his coursework.
Mike graduated with a Bachelor of Business Administration in Finance in 1978 and stepped directly into his successful career. Shortly after, he married and had two sons, Daniel and William.
He started his career at Bank One in Plano, serving as the North Dallas area manager. In 1999, he joined Texas Capital Bank-Plano, serving as president for 19 years and currently working as a managing director.
In the first couple decades out of school, Mike says he wasn’t involved as an active alum of UNT, focusing on raising his children and excelling in his career. But that changed when his son Daniel expressed interest in attending UNT, also to study finance.
Just as everything seemed to be falling into place with Daniel’s studies, the world changed.
“And then 9/11 happened,” Mike says. “And Daniel said, ‘Dad, I’m 19, this is my generation, and I’m quitting college to join the military.’ This is like the day or two after 9/11 and I’m like, ‘No, you’re not.’”
After further discussion, Mike says they agreed on the Marine Reserves and Daniel went to the Marine Corps boot camp about 60 days after the attacks. After that, Daniel received orders to serve at a Marine Corps Reserve Unit in Fort Worth. He then enrolled and started his classwork at UNT, reporting to his Reserve Unit once a month.
Within a year, the call came asking for Infantry Volunteers to serve in Iraq, and Daniel volunteered. One day, Mike received a call no parent wants: Daniel had been involved in an explosion in Iraq, sustaining a concussion and serious injuries.
“He wouldn’t come home. I think he had the option, and he just wouldn’t,” Mike says. “He wasn’t going to leave his friends. There’s a lot of stories like that.”
Despite the injuries, Daniel recovered, earning a Purple Heart and rising to the rank of Sergeant. Once back in North Texas, he enrolled at UNT, balancing school and reserves.
“And then he came back to North Texas, rolled right in and went back to school,” Mike says. “The teachers at UNT were awesome, working with him on different things or when he had to go to Marine Corps trainings.”
Mike’s son William also followed a path into the military, and later, to UNT.
“Will was 17, a senior at Plano Senior High, when 9/11 happened. Will signed up for the Air Force just days after 9/11 joining the military like his brother. He then graduated early from high school, and so he skipped the prom and all that,” Mike says. “He was stationed at Rhein-Main Air Force Base in Frankfurt, Germany. When he got out, he enrolled at UNT himself. Daniel was still here, so they were both here together for a little while.”
Will now has a successful career in IT, and lives in Aspen, Colorado.
The family’s connection to UNT deepens further: Jared, Mike’s stepson who is currently a captain in the Marine Corps serving as a pilot, his wife Marissa and Daniel’s wife Stephanie are also UNT alumni.
Daniel and Jared were both sworn in as officers in the Marine Corps immediately after their UNT graduations — taking their Marine Corps officer oaths under the flagpole on the east side of the Super Pit on UNT’s campus.
Mike later served on the UNT Alumni Association Board of Directors, making it his “personal mission” to tell UNT’s story and increase its community presence. During his six years on the board, he helped develop county chapters, increase ring sales, and advocate for UNT at local organizations.
Mike and his wife, Alycia, are long-term season ticket holders for UNT football, men’s and women’s basketball.
The Robnett family’s pride in their connection to UNT culminated in a special moment in 2022. Daniel was up for promotion to lieutenant colonel and thought the UNT campus would be the perfect location for the promotion ceremony, which was ultimately held at the UNT Alumni Association in Gateway Center.
“Daniel wanted to do it, because he could have done it anywhere, literally, and he said, ‘I want to do it at the North Texas campus,’” Mike says.
In July 2022, a group of Robnett family members, friends and colleagues gathered in the UNT Alumni Association to honor and celebrate Daniel Robnett’s distinguished career in the Marine Corps with the pinning performed by retired Col. William Dwiggins, a decorated veteran who currently serves with the Texas Veterans Commission as the veteran’s education regional coordinator for DFW.

For Mike, North Texas isn’t just a university. It’s part of his family’s story.
“I was proud that he wanted to do that. That was his memory, and that’s what he wanted to do,” Mike says. “And we had our family here, and it was fun, very special — although everything I’ve described here is fun. To me, North Texas is fun.”
