Doug Ross @ Journal

Inspirational Story o' The Day

A tribute to the late, legendary Grambling coach Eddie Robinson:

[Cincinnati Bengals] Secondary coach Kevin Coyle told one of the best [Robinson stories]... Coyle, then 26, was in one of his first jobs as a defensive assistant at Holy Cross when he attended the 1982 NCAA coaches convention. He happened to see Robinson honored with the American Football Coaches Association’s Amos Alonzo Stagg Award for services that “have been outstanding in the advancement of the best interests of football,” and when the event broke Coyle headed to a workshop about an interesting defensive topic taught by a junior-college coach. There were about 20 guys huddled in chairs and no one had quite heard of the [presenter], so Coyle was bowled over when Robinson walked into the room with a yellow notepad, sat down, and raised his hand a few times to ask questions. “I’m thinking, ‘That’s Eddie Robinson in this little room asking questions of a junior college coach,’ ” Coyle said. “I just figured here’s a guy who about 20 minutes ago received the highest award in the profession. Wouldn’t he be in his suite, or somewhere, celebrating with his friends? But there he was, trying to learn more about the game.”

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