The Pittsburgh Steelers selected Robin Cole in the first round of the 1977 NFL Draft with the 21st pick overall as the heir apparent to the recently retired Andy Russell. He proved himself to be a leader at the collegiate level on and off the field. During his time at the University of New Mexico, Cole and several other African American players organized and participated in a boycott against Coach Bob Leigh’s baseball program. They were dismissed from the football team by head coach Bill Mondt, but he did not revoke the players' scholarships. When the boycott failed, Cole and his teammates who had participated in the boycott returned to the team. He was the first University of New Mexico player ever drafted in the first round and he earned Third Team All-American Honors in his senior season.
Cole was the only linebacker ever drafted in the first round by a Chuck Noll coached Steeler team. He was supposed to be not only the replacement for Russell, but the heir apparent to the Steeler linebacker legacy. The Steel Curtain’s early linebacking crew had been Jack Ham, Jack Lambert, and Russell. In 1977, the Steelers selected Cole and Dennis “Dirt” Winston to start learning the trade. The Steelers had selected in the first round of NFL Drafts under Noll a string of future NFL Hall of Famers during the period of 1969-1974 starting with Joe Greene, Terry Bradshaw, Franco Harris, and Lynn Swann. The other rounds were extremely kind to the Steelers as well including the ridiculous 1974 draft where the Black and Gold selected four future Hall of Famers and signed and undrafted free agent in the class who made the Hall of Fame as well. However, starting in 1975, the Steelers lost their Hall of Fame draft touch temporarily.
The fruits of those years were blooming, and Pittsburgh would go on to win four of the next six Super Bowls. The second half of the 1970’s Steeler draft picks would become a series of quality role players and starters, but the franchise and Noll paid the price during the next decade. The loan lasting bright spot from those late 70’s first rounders was Cole. Cole and Lauren Toews battled for playing time next to Lambert and Ham in 1978-79, but during the latter half of the season, Cole cemented himself as the starter for the Steelers and played so well during the run, he was actually the runner up to Bradshaw in the MVP voting of Super Bowl XIV. It seemed the Steelers had found their next dominant defender and Cole would occupy a starting linebacker spot for the rest of his career for the Steelers.
(Photo by Focus on Sport/Getty Images)
The 1980’s Steelers did make one championship game and made the playoffs a few times, but compared to the 1970’s, it was a tough time for the fan base adjusting to the fact that Pittsburgh was no longer the City of Champions. Cole above all players on the defense seemed to suffer from the perception that the Steelers were down and that he was not the player that Ham and Lambert were for the defense. He did make a Pro Bowl in 1984, but he suffered in comparison to sack machine Lawrence Taylor and "Samurai" Mike Singletary who were staking their claim as the best linebackers of the decade. Cole did yeoman’s work for the Steelers' defense. He was a good coverage linebacker, but didn’t have Lambert’s penchant for coming up with big interceptions. He was steadily above average, but not consistently great like Ham. Like the teams he played for, he was good, just never quite good enough for league wide recognition. This is not to say that teams didn’t know how good Cole was or did not factor him in while game planning for those defenses, but they didn’t fear him like Greene, Mel Blount, Lambert or Ham.
I was in high school from 1983-1986, and I saw Cole play every chance I got. I remember arguing with my Raider and Cowboy friends that Cole was every bit as good as anyone on their team’s defense. However, I went to high school in New Jersey and when Lawrence Taylor was brought up by dozens of Giants fans, a true Steeler fan knows great linebackers when they see them -- arguing Cole over LT, can’t do it. I couldn’t even put him over Harry Carson, although I often argued it. However, if I kept it limited to Brad Van Pelt, they had nothing to say.
The Steelers of my middle school years were Super Bowl Champions. In high school, they were still my heroes and no player symbolized doing the hard work and the right thing consistently like Cole. It prepared me for the US Navy and everything I have done since. One of my favorite quotes is:
“A professional is someone who does the right thing whether anyone is paying attention or not.” - Pat Riley
Robin Cole was not a Hall of Famer, and he was overlooked most of his career. He was a professional and in my opinion, that is high praise indeed.
What do you think, Steeler Nation? Who was your favorite childhood Steeler? Please comment below or follow me on Twitter @thebubbasq.
