Whereas Eddie G. Robinson, the former coach of the
Grambling State University Tigers, was born on February 13, 1919, in Jackson,
Louisiana;
Whereas after graduating from high school, Eddie G.
Robinson attended Leland College in Baker, Louisiana, where he played
quarterback on the college's football team and graduated with a baccalaureate
of arts degree;
Whereas in 1941, Eddie G. Robinson accepted a football
coaching position at Grambling State University, which, at the time, was known
as the Louisiana Negro Normal and Industrial Institute;
Whereas during his 57-year tenure as the Grambling State
University football coach, Eddie G. Robinson established himself as a legend in
the world of sports and a Louisiana hero;
Whereas Eddie G. Robinson broke through the glass ceiling
that had always undermined the true potential of African-American players and
coaches;
Whereas Eddie G. Robinson won 408 games, which was more
games won than any coach before him;
Whereas Eddie G. Robinson won 17 championships in the
Southwestern Athletic Conference;
Whereas Eddie G. Robinson held the championship title 9
times for Historically Black Colleges and Universities;
Whereas Eddie G. Robinson sent more than 200 players into
the National Football League (NFL), including Paul Tank
Younger,
who was the first NFL player from a predominantly African-American college and,
from then on, Coach Robinson was personally responsible for paving the way for
all African-American players to have opportunities in the NFL and others to
play at majority White schools;
Whereas Eddie G. Robinson's achievements are not limited
to his athletic victories;
Whereas Eddie G. Robinson taught his players the meaning
of teamwork and patriotism, providing them lessons that extended far beyond the
football field;
Whereas his contributions have also provided for one of
the most exciting match-ups in college sports—the Bayou Classic football game,
which Eddie G. Robinson and his sports information director, the late Collie J.
Nicholson, created; and
Whereas Eddie G. Robinson was able to serve Grambling
State University with such great distinction in large part because of the
continuing support of his wife Doris, his two children, Eddie Jr. and Lillian
Rose Watkins, his grandchildren, and his great-grandchildren: Now, therefore,
be it
That the Senate—
(1)notes with deep
sorrow and solemn mourning the death of Coach Eddie G. Robinson, a Louisiana
hero and a great American;
(2)extends its
heartfelt sympathy to Mrs. Doris Robinson and the family of Eddie G. Robinson;
and
(3)honors and, on
behalf of the Nation, expresses deep appreciation for Coach Eddie G. Robinson's
outstanding service to Grambling State University, to Louisiana, and to his
country.