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twitterRON KANTOWSKI:
UNLV feats are John Robinson’s footnotes
Tuesday, May 5, 2009 | 2 a.m.
Sam Morris
In a 2003 UNLV loss to Colorado State, then-head coach John Robinson argues a call. He was recently inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame for a career that included a national title at USC.
Sun Archives
- Former UNLV coach John Robinson elected to college football HOF (4-30-2009)
- Where credit is due (5-12-2008)
- Robinson as A.D. not a lock (8-15-2001)
- John Robinson: Let the era begin (8-31-1999)
Sun Coverage
On the same day John Robinson was elected to the College Football Hall of Fame, one Las Vegas icon died, another was being memorialized and anybody not wearing black and shedding tears of sadness was gearing up for this year’s Fight of the Century at the MGM Grand.
Timing is everything, which might explain why Robinson ran all those off tackle plays. With guys like Anthony Munoz flattening everything that moved, pinpoint precision wasn’t of the utmost when Robinson’s USC teams had the ball.
But timing also is why nobody around here blew trumpets when he became the first player or coach associated with the UNLV football program to be voted into the Hall of Fame.
Is it too late to get Wynton Marsalis on the phone or to Twitter Herb Alpert? What about that Chuck Mangione guy? I’m sure he could use the gig.
Robinson made it to South Bend, Ind. (the Cooperstown of college football), in his second year on the ballot. Last year, when he got bypassed for John Cooper, the former Arizona State and Ohio State coach, I wrote that Robinson should have gotten the nod instead of Cooper because Robinson didn’t get to play Indiana every year. And Cooper didn’t have to coach UNLV.
I seriously doubt Robinson’s 28-42 record in six years as Rebels coach (with a 17-month gig as athletic director) will be mentioned very often, if at all, by those attending the National Football Foundation’s induction dinner Dec. 8 at the Waldorf-Astoria in New York City, or the official enshrinement ceremony in Indiana next summer. But it should.
It’s never easy to win a national championship, which Robinson did at USC in 1978. But the degree of difficulty is reduced when you’ve got Anthony Munoz and a bunch of refrigerators for offensive linemen. Try winning a bowl game with Pete Tramontanas leading interference.
That’s what Robinson did. Under his guidance, the Rebels went from zero wins to eight wins in just two seasons. Robinson turned Pete Tramontanas into a pretty good football player. He taught a lot of guys just like him how to block and tackle, at least for a little while.
On Dec. 21, 2000, on an evening suited to roasting chestnuts, Robinson’s Rebels routed Arkansas of the Southeastern Conference 31-14 in the Las Vegas Bowl. I can still see Jason Thomas scrambling around like the staff at H&R Block on April 15, then firing a majestic 54-yard touchdown strike to Troy Mason that broke a 14-14 tie. It was a thing of beauty, that pass.
There were 29,113 witnesses to this minor miracle at Sam Boyd Stadium. After the postgame press conference, Robinson fed them all with seven loaves of a bread and a few small fish.
Everybody around here got excited last season when Mike Sanford’s UNLV team won five games. And well they should. But it took him four years to win five. It took Robinson just two years to win eight.
UNLV won five more games in Robinson’s first 24 games than the team had won in the previous four seasons combined. Before he arrived, the Rebels had lost 16 in a row overall, 26 straight on the road. In his first game as coach, they won 26-3 at North Texas. In his second game as coach, they won 27-24 at Baylor. On a 100-yard fumble return on the game’s final play.
More bread and fish, please.
Robinson won more football games at UNLV than any other coach not named Tony Knap. In his first season, the Rebels lost to UNR. Somebody told him that game was a pretty big deal around here, like when USC played UCLA or the Rams (whom he also coached) played the 49ers.
Robinson’s Rebels never lost another game to UNR. They possessed the Fremont Cannon for five consecutive years when he was coach. Now the Rebels just look at the pictures in the UNR media guide.
Eventually, of course, the Rebels started losing again, because that is their destiny when leaves fall from trees. Then Rebels fans started crying for Robinson’s scalp. When the team started 0-4 in 2004 and his wife got sick, Robinson’s heart didn’t seem it in anymore. He announced his resignation. Then on Saturday, his Rebels went out and beat UNR, 48-13.
As I wrote last year, Robinson brought something to the football program that can’t be measured in wins and losses and luxury boxes on the 50-yard line, although his arrival justified spending money on those — along with a new press box tower and a state-of-the-art artificial turf playing field, complete with those towering yellow goal posts they use in the NFL, with the little orange wind socks on top.
He brought instant recognition and credibility to a program accustomed to neither.
Discussion: 10 comments so far…
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We were so excited to have Coach Robinson come to UNLV. We were so excited that we went out and got season tickets. We still have those season tickets thinking that someday (this year?) the Rebel's football tickets would be a hard ticket to get. We enjoy going to every game and the barbeque pregame ritual we enjoy. Thanks Coach. You are a class act.
University of Nevada Coach Chris Ault is in the hall of fame and coach Chris is a former Rebel assistant coach
Your right toomanybongs, except.....that's what we call a traitor.
I wanna say Ault (who is a football God) is merely a member of the Nevada Hall of Fame, not the NCAA Hall. I could be wrong.
All;
My bad. The Little General is in the Hall of Fame. He's in for what he accomplished at The School Up North but that doesn't change the fact he once was an assistant at The School Down South.
Coach Chris Ault is in both the Nevada and NCAA Hall of Fame.
Quit attacking me fast Camron.
I'm not nor ever was a pot head
gotcha. posted before doing a quick 10 second search. still stand behind my words though, Ault=Football God
Anyone here is fair game if they comment, especially you. And I will attack you with impunity as long as you come on UNLV sites and try to stir up trouble. You may not have in this article but you have made enough a-hole comments that irritate people to earn you a lifetime of criticism. If you can't stand the heat.....get out of the kitchen.
Fast Camron I can take the heat and for your information this is not a U. N. L. V. Site
This is a Las Vegas Sun posting.
I have reported you to Sun Management for calling me a pot head and they are not pleased with you. Perhaps you better read their posting rules that state no personal attacks
If you can take the heat than why are acting like a second grade girl that when her sensitive feelings get hurt goes to tell the teacher?
Go to the top of the page where it says 'UNLV REBELS'. That should give you some clue as to who and what this site is about. The Sun created, runs and produces it, but....it is dedicated to UNLV athletics and it's fans. Call it what you wish: a Rebel fan site, forum, comment section, etc.....whatever.
If they weren't pleased with me, they'd have responded to my comments or even deleted them by now. 'toomanybongs' or 'toomanybeers' is in reference to your awful and untimely comments about our teams, players, coaches and sometimes those who post here. In other words, your opinions 95% of the time here are to act like an internet troll and stir up trouble. Most other loyal fans that post here can't stand you either, I'm just the most outspoken one.
I've been attacked on this site by fellow Rebel fans much worse than what you're getting from me and without me going to tell on them. I'll let those who run the site dictate what is out of line. And based on that, I believe that The Sun operates based on the spirit of the rule ILO hardline policy. If you want police action, go to unr's web sites and whine there.