I was so saddened to hear this morning that Eddie Robinson, who was head coach at Grambling State University , had passed away after a long bout with Alzheimer’s Disease.

Robinson was the coach at Grambling, a historically black college, for 56 years. In that time he amassed more than 400 victories. To put it in perspective, coach Robinson started at Grambling five years before Jackie Robinson broke baseball’s color barrier.

It is clear that Robinson was a great football coach. But his impact on young people went way past the Xs and Os. There’s no doubt he knew the game inside and out, but he was a positive influence to many, many young men.

In that respect he has always reminded me of Woody Hayes. Woody was a great football coach, but he was also a father figure who really cared about people as players. Coach Robinson was the same way. You can tell by the way player after player speaks about how he helped them become better people.

I had a few opportunities to meet Coach Robinson and always enjoyed his company. I most recently saw him when we hosted the Eddie Robinson Classic here at Ohio State . He gave a speech at the Fawcett Center and I was thoroughly impressed with the insight and humor he had that day. He will be truly missed.

I also hope his passing allows us to refocus on the battle to beat this terrible disease. I was at the Jim Tressel Spring Preview on Wednesday, and that event is sponsored by the Alzheimer’s Association of Central Ohio. The folks at the Alzheimer’s Association are doing wonderful work. I encourage you to visit their Web site at www.alzheimerscentralohio.org to find a way you can help join the fight to beat Alzheimer’s.

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