Robinson suffered from the degenerative brain disease Alzheimer's since shortly after his retirement in 1997. He died late last night after being admitted to Lincoln General Hospital in Ruston, Louisiana, the Associated Press said, citing Doug Williams, one of Robinson's former players and his successor as coach.

Robinson coached 20 NAIA All-Americans spanning from 1956-73.

Players he coached who went on to the NFL included Williams, who was voted the 1988 Super Bowl Most Valuable Player, and Hall-of-Fame inductees Buck Buchanan, Willie Davis, Willie Brown and Charlie Joiner.

Robinson had a 408-165-15 record at Grambling and turned down opportunities to follow his players to professional football. In 1978, he rejected offers to become coach of the Los Angeles Rams and an assistant with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

`Job, Wife'

All his accomplishments and accolades didn't diminish Robinson's modesty.

``All it means is that I've been around a long time,'' he said after breaking Bryant's record. ``The real record I have set for over 50 years is the fact that I have had one job and one wife.''

Edward Gay Robinson was born in Jackson, Louisiana, and played quarterback for now-defunct Leland College in nearby Baker. After graduating, he took a job in a feed mill because he couldn't get a job as an assistant coach.

In 1941, at the age of 22, he was hired as coach at Louisiana Negro Normal and Industrial Institute, a small, poorly funded school that later became Grambling State.

Robinson made $63.75 a month when he was hired, and he did much more than run the football team. He also coached the school's basketball and baseball teams, lined the football field before games, led the school's halftime drill team and wrote the game story for the local newspaper.

Bell Ringer

He built a reputation as a perfectionist, working his players through long practices until they ran a play precisely. Robinson was just as demanding off the field, using a bell to wake his players to ensure they'd be on time for class and practice, and supervising other areas of their lives.

``He stressed the importance of being responsible and assisted all of us in developing into manhood,'' said Albert Dennis, a former NFL offensive lineman who played for Grambling and was once the school's athletic director.

Emerson Walls, a former Grambling player who became a standout defensive back for the Dallas Cowboys, said Robinson ``taught us the confidence to go up against anybody.''

``He transcended football. He was respected by everybody on every level,'' Walls said. ``He never left Grambling even though he had a couple of opportunities to do so. He realized that that wasn't his path.''

When Robinson retired following three straight losing seasons, Grambling hired Williams as his replacement. Williams was the first black quarterback to start a Super Bowl and was named MVP of the 1988 game after leading the Washington Redskins to a 42-10 victory over the Denver Broncos.

There was no immediate word on Robinson's survivors or scheduled services.