Will Robinson Biography - Struggles Of A Black Athlete, The Road To Detroit, First Black To Coach Division I

school basketball scout

1911—

Basketball coach, talent scout

Will Robinson made history in 1970 as the first African American to coach at a Division I school when he was hired as the head basketball coach by Illinois State University. Prior to joining the Redbirds, Robinson coached for 26 years in the Detroit public school system. In 1975 he became a scout for the Detroit Pistons, a position he held until 2003, when he retired at the age of 92.

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Will Robinson - Struggles Of A Black Athlete

Robinson was born in the small town of Wadesboro, North Carolina, on June 3, 1911. Neither of his very young parents had reached their 15th birthday when he was born, and both had died before they turned 30. He was raised by his grandparents, who moved to Pennsylvania and then to Steubenville, Ohio, where Robinson attended junior high and high school. At the age of 12 he began to caddie at the Riv…

Will Robinson - The Road To Detroit

After earning his college degree in 1937, Robinson took a coaching job at the Central Avenue Recreation Center in Pittsburgh. He coached basketball in the YMCA league, taking his team to the national championship. He also arranged practices for the New York Rens, a hall-of-fame, all-black professional basketball team that barnstormed around the country (no professional league would accept an al…

Will Robinson - First Black To Coach Division I

In 1970 Robinson became the first black to coach at a Division I school when he was hired by Illinois State University to head up the school's men's basketball program. At the time, Doug Collins, an All-American player who would be selected as the number one pick in the 1972 National Basketball Association draft, was a sophomore at Illinois State. "The first time I met him, I …

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