John Robinson, who led the USC Trojans to a 1978 national title and was until recently the winningest coach in Los Angeles Rams history, has died at the age of 89.
Per USC, the legendary coach died Monday in Baton Rouge, La. due to complications from pneumonia.
The Chicago native took over as head coach at USC in 1976 and amassed a record of 67–14–2 over seven seasons, winning four Rose Bowls and a national title.
John Robinson, one of USC’s most popular and successful football coaches, died today (Monday, Nov. 11) in Baton Rouge, Louisiana of complications from pneumonia. He was 89.#FightOnForever pic.twitter.com/tPvQVFBcIO
— USC Football ✌️ (@uscfb) November 12, 2024
He left to lead the LA Rams for nine seasons, leading them to six playoff berths and finishing with a 75-68 record.
In 1993, he returned to USC and led them back to a Rose Bowl in 1995, finishing that five-year stint with a 37–21–2 record.
Robinson ended his head coaching career at UNLV, though the team only went to one bowl game in six seasons.
In between and after those coaching stints, Robinson worked in broadcasting on both television and radio. He worked as an analyst for Sports USA Radio Network across 30 years.
“I think the thing that I’ll remember about Coach Robinson is that the bar was very, very high in terms of expectations, and he was right in the middle of it,” Former USC star Paul McDonald told The Athletic. “He wasn’t one of these guys who stood in the tower. He was in the middle of the action, demonstrating how to block, how to tackle, how to move. He really loved the physicality of the game. That’s what he was drawn to, and because of that, we were an incredibly physical team. He instilled this whole philosophy of wearing the other guys down, and that was really smart, because you don’t win games with flash. You win games with punching people in the mouth.”
