Jeff Robinson is still pulling double duty in the athletic department at Chilhowie High School, but he’s relinquishing one of the jobs he’s held since 2013.
Robinson has stepped down as the head football coach at Chilhowie and informed his players of the decision during a team meeting at 3 p.m. on Monday. He remains the head baseball coach and athletic director at the Smyth County school.
“It’s been a long thought-out process,” Robinson said. “From the time I accepted the job as AD in August, this moment has weighed on my mind. No one pressured me into making a decision either way, it was just something I arrived at after many months of thinking.
“I have served as a head coach for 32 seasons now, the last 20 seasons/10 years as head coach of two programs. I told myself 10 years ago I would do both as long as I never sacrificed one for the other and gave 100 percent to baseball and football. I feel confident I have done that, but if you add athletic director to the mix it certainly complicates things.”
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Robinson compiled a 63-50 record in his 10 seasons leading the Warriors on the gridiron and that run included three Hogoheegee District titles, two Region 1D championships and VHSL Class 1 state runner-up finishes in 2017 and 2018.
Chilhowie did not win a game in the fall of 2022.
“Last season had absolutely nothing to do with this decision,” Robinson said. “Although I have never been through anything like that before, it was not the dumpster fire that others have described when dealing with a winless season.
“Our players were fun to coach. We started with 42 players on the roster and ended with 42 players on the roster. We treated them well and they played hard for us each week. We had several chances to win games early, but were just not good enough at that point in the season. The second half of the season were our toughest games, but we went to Holston for Game 10 and gave an eight-win team all they wanted for most of the game. That says a lot about our kids and their attitudes.”
His young squad gained valuable varsity experience and whoever takes over calling the shots for the Warriors will have a strong nucleus to build around.
“If last season had to happen, I was glad it was me that was there to lead the team and not a new coach,” Robinson said. “The morale and culture of the program is still very strong. Weight room participation is still very high. Players are still excited about football. We may have been down, but we are not going to stay down for long. Whoever steps in will have something to work with. We will return eight starters on offense and nine on defense, we had a freshman quarterback [Asher Chapman] last season, our JV team was undefeated [7-0] and our middle school team had good numbers and a solid six-win season as well.”
Robinson took over as head coach after Larry Russell retired following the 2012 season and won the district championship in his first year at the helm. There were ups and downs, but the Warriors were always competitive.
Those back-to-back state finals appearances featured semifinal wins over Galax both years and defeats at the hands of powerful Riverheads in the title game both times. Chilhowie finished 14-1 in 2018.
“The wins were great, but what stands out the most to me are the players that I was privileged to coach and mentor,” Robinson said. “I’m reminded of the coach who was asked how he did last season. His response was, ‘I’m not sure, I’ll tell you 10 or 20 years from now.’ As coaches our true legacy lies in what kind of husbands, fathers and men of character we are producing. I have been doing this long enough to see some of those things realized in my former players and it is very rewarding.”
Robinson is known for his tireless work ethic and fiery competitiveness.
Zack Cale, the quarterback for those state runner-up squads, can vouch for that.
“What impressed me most about Coach Robinson was his determination to win,” Cale said. “He taught us to give our all in all that we did. That’s why we were so successful. He not only taught us to be good football players, but he also taught us to be good men and to carry those values into our lives past high school football.”
Robinson has been the head baseball coach at Chilhowie since 2002 and is closing in on 300 career victories. His team won the Region 1D title last spring and the Warriors open the season on Wednesday at home against Grayson County.
Chilhowie finished as state runner-up on the diamond in 2012.
Robinson and John Kuczko are the only two head coaches in far Southwest Virginia history to guide baseball and football teams to VHSL state finals appearances. Kuczko did so while leading Abingdon’s baseball team in 1984 and J.I. Burton’s football squad in 1990, both runner-up finishes.
Robinson did both while leading Chilhowie.
“It is time to pass the torch of leading this football program on to the next head coach,” Robinson said. “I’m not getting out of coaching. I still love it and have a passion for it. I’ve coached football for the last 25 years, longer in my life than I haven’t coached football, it is in my blood. I have two sons currently in the football program. I’ll continue to serve as head baseball coach and I would like to be involved with football in some capacity, but I’m ready to turn over the day-to-day operations of running the football program to someone else.”
As athletic director, Robinson will have a hand in picking his successor. What is the timetable on a potential hire?
“We hope to have a new head coach in place as soon as possible,” Robinson said. “There is lots of work to be done in preparation for next season and it is my wish that we have someone hired before school is dismissed for the summer.”
A former quarterback for the Warriors, Robinson relished the opportunity to lead the team at his alma mater on those fall Friday nights.
“It was one of the honors of my life to represent this school and community as its head football coach for the past decade,” Robinson said.
