by Karl E. McDonald

The Greatest Football Coach?

Recent changes in the careers of Nick Saban, Bill Belichick, and Pete Carroll have sparked a heated debate: Who is the greatest football coach of all time? Each has admirers and reasons to claim the title. However, for many, the greatest coach to ever step on a football field is Eddie Robinson, the former head coach of the famed Grambling State Tigers.

Eddie Robinson’s Historic Achievements

Often overlooked in this conversation, Eddie Robinson’s accomplishments are undeniable. He became the winningest coach in college football history in 1985, retiring in 1997 with 408 career wins. Robinson held the all-time wins record for over a decade and a half, making him the first college football coach to surpass the 400-wins mark. Winning is hard, but Eddie Robinson made it look easy, with few matching his success on the field.

Sustained Success Over Five Decades

Coach Robinson not only won many games but also maintained success over an exceptionally long period. He had nearly half a century of sustained success at Grambling, earning 45 winning seasons and avoiding back-to-back losing campaigns over his first 53 years. Robinson’s teams won or shared National Black College Football championships in five different decades: the 1950s, 60s, 70s, 80s, and 90s. He ended his illustrious career with 9 National Black College Football championships and 17 SWAC conference championships over his 57-year tenure.

Robinson’s Impact on the NFL

Robinson also made a significant impact on the NFL, sending over 200 of his former players to the league. Four of his former Tigers reached immortal status as Pro Football Hall of Famers, with Willie Brown and Willie Davis included among the NFL’s top 100 players of all time. These facts alone place Coach Robinson at the top of his profession.

Overcoming Segregation and Limited Resources

The biggest knock on Robinson is that his teams seldom competed against “major schools,” mainly due to segregation. Despite this, many of Eddie Robinson’s Grambling teams were flush with next-level talent. Robinson and his HBCU coaching colleagues, despite working with limited resources, produced countless NFL players, including around 35 Pro Football Hall of Famers, nearly 10% of the Hall membership. Much of this heavy lifting occurred when African American players weren’t always welcomed in the pros.

Recognition and Honors

Robinson’s remarkable run did not go unnoticed. The National Football Foundation/College Football Hall of Fame inducted him on the first ballot. The Football Writers Association of America named its National College Football Coach of the Year Award after Robinson. Grambling State University named its stadium after him and, along with Louisiana, built a museum in his name. The NFL invited Robinson to perform the ceremonial pre-game coin toss at Super Bowl XXXII, and the NFL Players Association recognized him with its Lifetime Achievement Award.

Tributes from the Football World

Universities like Ohio State, Nebraska, and Notre Dame hosted the Eddie Robinson Football Classic. The Sporting News magazine named Robinson one of its “100 Most Powerful People in the World of Sports for the 20th Century.” Yale University conferred an honorary degree upon Robinson, and when he passed, Louisiana honored him with a state funeral.

The Greatest of All Time

Eddie Robinson rose from the bottom of his profession to the top. He not only became his industry’s pacesetter and all-time wins leader but also rose to become the president of the American Football Coaches Association. For these reasons and many more, Coach Eddie Robinson is not only the greatest college football coach in history but also the greatest football coach in the history of the game.

Muhammad Ali’s Endorsement

If you’re still not convinced, consider this: even Muhammad Ali, the self-proclaimed greatest, thought so. On the back cover of Robinson’s autobiography, “Never Before Never Again,” Ali is quoted as saying, “They call me the greatest. I know that the greatest football coach who ever stepped on the field is Coach Eddie Robinson.” We rest our case!

Karl E. McDonald © 2024