Eddie Gay Robinson Sr. (February 13, 1919 – April 3, 2007) was an American football coach. For 56 years, from 1941 to 1942 and again from 1945 to 1997, he was the head coach at Grambling State University, a historically black university (HBCU) in Grambling, Louisiana. During a period in college football history when black players were not allowed to play for southern college programs, Robinson built Grambling State into a "small" college football powerhouse. He retired in 1997 with a record of 408–165–15.
Robinson began his coaching career at Louisiana Negro Normal and Industrial Institute (now Grambling State University).[2] He applied for the job and was hired by the school's president and baseball coach, Ralph Waldo Emerson Jones. In his first year the team went 3–5–1, but the following season—during which he recruited new players and dismissed those who did not live up to his expectations—the Tigers had a perfect 9–0 season, going unbeaten, untied, and unscored upon.[3]
Robinson returned to the field in 1945, and remained at the school, which became Grambling College in 1946 and Grambling State University in 1973, until his retirement in 1997.[4]
Enormous publicity attended Robinson's record-breaking win with Grambling State in 1985. Some observers feared that the coach would become the target of white hatred, much as Henry Aaron had when he broke Babe Ruth's home run record. Instead Robinson reported that he did not receive a single hate letter, even from the legion of southern fans who worshipped Bear Bryant. When asked if his record was somehow tarnished by the fact that his team played most of its games against Division I-AA caliber competition, Robinson told Sports Illustrated: "I grew up in the South. I was told where to attend elementary school, where to attend junior high school, where to attend high school. When I became a coach, I was told who I could recruit, who I could play, where I could play and when I could play. I did what I could within the system." He added that his philosophy had always been "whatever league you're in, whatever level, win there."
Eddie Robinson held several jobs other than football coach, including teaching at Grambling High School, and coaching the girls basketball team during World War II. His girls team lost the state championship by 1 point. He also coached boys basketball, baseball, directed the band, and was in charge of the cheerleaders—with a budget of $46.
In the days of segregation, Robinson had the pick of most of the good black high school football players in Louisiana, usually dividing them with Southern–a major reason why the game between the two schools was a major in-state rivalry long before it was moved to New Orleans as the Bayou Classic in 1974. He was able to maintain his success for much of the time after integration, recording just one losing season between 1960 and 1990. However, after three consecutive losing seasons in the mid-1990s, pressure mounted for the now 78-year old coach to resign. Fellow college coach Joe Paterno is quoted in the Grambling State press guide as saying, "Nobody has ever done or ever will do what Eddie Robinson has done for the game... Our profession will never, ever be able to repay Eddie Robinson for what he has done for the country and the profession of football."
In 1997 news escaped that Grambling was planning to dismiss him in mid-season. Public outcry—including condemnation from Louisiana elected officials like then-Gov. Mike Foster[6]—led Grambling to retain Robinson's services through the remainder of the season.
Robinson developed Alzheimer's disease after his retirement.[7] He died on April 3, 2007, at Lincoln General Hospital in Ruston, Louisiana, after having been admitted earlier in the day.[8]
Robinson and his wife, Doris, who died at the age of ninety-six in September 2015,[9] had two children; Eddie, Jr. and Lillian Rose Robinson.
Awards and honors
In 1979 the Black College All Star Bowl committee named its award for outstanding NFL rookies from HBCUs the "Eddie G. Robinson Trophy;" its inaugural winner was Doug Williams.[10] Grambling named its football facility, built in 1983, Eddie Robinson Stadium. A street on GSU's campus is also named for him.[11] In 1985 South 13th Street in Baton Rouge was renamed for him.[12] The Los Angeles Football Classic Foundation's HBCU championship award was called the "Eddie G. Robinson Trophy" in 1988.[13] Beginning in 1994, a different Eddie Robinson Trophy was awarded in Atlanta to the top HBCU player of the year.[14] In 1997 the Football Writers Association of America's Eddie Robinson Award was renamed for him.[12] The Eddie Robinson Classic (held from 1997 to 2002) was named for him. The American Urban Radio Networks has sponsored an award for HBCU coaches called the "SBN Eddie Robinson Coach of the Year;" it was won by Grambling's own Broderick Fobbs in 2014.[15] The Eddie G. Robinson Classic series of high school football games, begun in 2015, was also named after him.[16]
In 2010, the Eddie G. Robinson Museum opened on GSU's campus.[19] The museum chronicles and celebrates the major accomplishments of the G-Men football program and former head coach Eddie Robinson.[20] The museum is 18,000 square feet and cost approximately $3.3 million to complete.[21]
In media
In the 1981 TV movie Grambling's White Tiger set in the 1960s, about the true story of Jim Gregory, the first white quarterback at Grambling, Robinson is played by Harry Belafonte.
