On Tuesday, the world lost one of the most important sports figures of the twentieth century, Eddie Robinson. Eddie Robinson coached Grambling State University from 1941 to 1997, and when he retired, he was the winningest football coach in NCAA history, having won a staggering 408 games. In 57 years as a head coach, Robinson only had 8 losing seasons. He was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 1997.
Despite having coached his entire career at Grambling State, a historically black college, Robinson should also be remembered for his quiet contribution in helping to fully integrate the National Football League. It’s somewhat ironic that Eddie Robinson, a man whose name was unfamiliar to most sports fans in the U.S., died in the same month that we remember another Robinson, Jackie Robinson, for breaking the race barrier in Major League Baseball. (more…)