The Robinson Rams are the athletic teams of Robinson Secondary School of Fairfax, Virginia, a suburb southwest of Washington, D.C. The school's athletic program includes 18 VHSL 6A varsity sports which compete in the Patriot District of Occoquan Region 6C, formerly the Group 6A North Region, and originally the AAA Northern Region.
Championship teams
Football
The varsity football team plays at Coffey Stadium, and its helmet is currently similar to that of the Los Angeles Rams of the NFL. Given the team's popularity, long-time success, and sizable student body, the Rams regularly attract 1000 fans a game.
Robinson has appeared in the state championship game of Virginia's largest football classification (AAA Division 6) four times (1988, 1997, 2001, 2004); winning twice (1997, 2001). Robinson has won the Northern Region title six times: 1977, 1988, 1992, 1997, 2001, and 2004, and the district title (Northern ('72–'92), then Patriot ('93–'04)) in 1977, 1979, 1988, 1991, 1992, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005 and 2009. Robinson was moved to the Concorde district in the fall of 2005.
In 2004, the Rams were undefeated through the regular season and three playoff games, but met another undefeated team, Landstown of Virginia Beach in the state finals in Richmond. Landstown won 47–20, and Robinson finished as state runner-up with a record of 13–1. Landstown featured stand out offensive and defensive player Percy Harvin who has since gone on to stardom at the University of Florida and with the Minnesota Vikings.
In 2005, the Rams went 9–1 during the regular season, but lost in the first round of the playoffs to new rival Westfield of Chantilly. In 2006, Robinson was 6–4, losing four very close games. In 2007, Robinson had an up and down 6–6 season, highlighted with a 41–14 win over Stone Bridge, the eventual 2007 AAA Division 5 state champions. The Rams made a return to the playoffs which started with a 17–14 upset over Chantilly, the 2006 AAA Division 6 Runner-up, in the first round. However, their season ended with a 30–28 loss to West Springfield in the semi-finals, when West Springfield made a field goal with only 15 seconds left in the game.
Robinson alumni who have played in the NFL include running back Chris Warren ('85) and offensive lineman Joel Patten ('76), a tight end in high school and college.
Head coaches Gerry Pannoni was introduced in early 2026 as Robinson's new head football coach, beginning in the 2026-27 school year. Pannoni is the ninth varsity head coach at Robinson. He was preceded by Kurt Lindstrom, Ed Henry, Nick Hilgert, Mark Bendorf, Trey Taylor, Dan Meier, Scott Vossler, and Shaun Blair. Head coach Varsityseasons Firstseason Finalseason Wins Losses Ties Winningpercentage Best resultsKurt Lindstrom319721974121808–2 in 1973Ed Henry81975198243355State semi-finals – 1977Nick Hilgert1419831996101520State finals – 1988Mark Bendorf1419972010130350State champions – 1997, 2001Trey Taylor 2 201120129130two playoff berthsDan Meier ^1 20132013840playoff winScott Vossler9 2014202258400Region Final/Final 8 2015, 2020Shaun Blair320232025102004 - 6 regular season record in 2025Gerry Pannoni2026TOTAL533672115.635 Robinson did not field a varsity team the first football season; it had two JV teams in 1971.Robinson Rams football – 1971 season – accessed – 2011-08-29 ^ Former principal Meier was the interim head coach for the 2013 season.
Ed Henry, Robinson's second head coach, arrived in 1975, following a 1–9 season in 1974. After a rebuilding year in 1975 with two wins, the 1976 team improved to 5–2–3 (), and an 8–2 regular season in 1977, with two playoff victories and district and regional titles to finish at 10–3 (). Henry was the first to take the team to the postseason, in 1977 (state semi-finals) and 1979. He was a head coach in Fairfax County for over 25 years (159–82–14, ) and was inducted into the VHSL Hall of Fame in 1997. Before coming to Robinson, he led a strong program at Marshall (44–17–1, ) for six seasons (portrayed by Tom Nowicki in the 2000 film Remember the Titans). Before Marshall, Henry was the head coach at Annandale for 9 years (60–22–6, ), and won a state championship in 1965. He departed Robinson after 8 seasons (43–35–5, ) following the 1982 season to become an assistant coach at the University of Virginia.
Nick Hilgert and Mark Bendorf were former assistant coaches at Robinson, promoted from within. Hilgert, a former captain in the Marines (with two tours in Vietnam in the 1960s), was an assistant under Ed Henry for a decade at both Marshall and Robinson, initially coaching the defensive backs. He was at Robinson for a total of 21 seasons (1976–96), the final 14 years as head coach (101–52, ). Nick Hilgert was the first head coach to take Robinson to the state finals in football (1988); he retired from teaching and coaching in the spring of 1997.Elizabeth City (NC) High School – Nick Hilgert – accessed 2009-10-02
During Hilgert's tenure, Robinson produced its most famous player, running back Chris Warren (class of 1985). Warren played for the NFL Seattle Seahawks and Dallas Cowboys in the 1990s. He rushed for over in the NFL, including 4 consecutive seasons over while with the Seahawks (1992–95). Warren led the AFC in rushing in 1994 with in 333 attempts.
Mark Bendorf was a former head coach at Chantilly before joining the Robinson staff as defensive coordinator under Hilgert. Bendorf was the first coach to lead the school to a state title in football, which he did in his first season of 1997, with a perfect 14–0 record. In total, he has led the team to three state title games, winning twice (1997 & 2001) and runner-up (2004) once. Coach Bendorf also helped produce running back Mike Imoh (class of 2002), who went on to star for Virginia Tech (2002–05). Robinson's regular season records under Bendorf were impressive, specifically from 1999 to 2005, when the Rams lost only four regular season games in seven seasons. Bendorf is a 1974 graduate of Marshall High School, where he played under head coach Ed Henry,The Washington Post – A Sort of Homecoming – 2009–09 – accessed 2009-10-02 with Nick Hilgert on staff.
In his first ten seasons (1997–2006) as head coach of the Rams, Bendorf went 86–13 (.869) in the regular season (which included a 5–5 season in 1998 and 6–4 record in 2006), and was 14–6 (.700) in the postseason for an overall record of 100–19 (.840). Bendorf retired as head coach at age 55 following the 2010 season, in which the Rams went 9–3 and advanced to the regional finals (a one-point loss to Lake Braddock). His overall record in fourteen seasons was 130–35 (.788),The Washington Post – Robinson's Mark Bendorf to retire – 2011-02-02 the most wins and highest winning percentage in school history.fairfaxstation.patch.com – Robinson Coach Says Farewell in Style – 2011-05-15
Bendorf was succeeded in March 2011 by Trey Taylor, 38, the head coach for five seasons (2006–10) at nearby W.T. Woodson.fairfaxstation.patch.com – 2011 Robinson football preview – 2011-08-25 Taylor led the Cavaliers to a 31–23 record and to the post-season in 2008 and 2009. His 2009 Woodson team was 9–1 in the regular season and advanced to the regional finals.The Washington Post – Robinson tabs Taylor as football coach – 2011-03-23 His first season resulted in a 4–6 regular season and a playoff berth. The 2012 Rams were 5–5 in the regular season and again made the playoffs.
Taylor was dismissed in November 2012, replaced in April by interim coach Dan Meier, recently the school's principal. The Rams were 7–3 in the regular season and won their first playoff game in 2013. Meier stepped down after the season and was succeeded by his defensive coordinator and associate head coach, Scott Vossler.
Following Vossler's nine seasons as head coach, during which he compiled a W-L record of 58-40, he went to Westfield High School to become their head football coach beginning in 2024.
After Vossler's departure, Shaun Blair was promoted to head coach in 2023. Blair had previously been an assistant coach at Robinson for six years under head coach Mark Bendorf. He had also been an assistant coach at Lake Braddock Secondary for three years, head coach at McLean High School for five years, and a defensive assistant coach at Westfield High School.
Wrestling Since the opening of Robinson in 1971, the wrestling team has excelled. The team has won 29 district titles, 21 Regional titles and 10 state titles. Their State titles came in 1980, 1981, 1985, 2011, 2013, 2014, 2019, 2021, 2022, and 2023. The team was also state runner-up in 1974, 1975, 1984, 1987, 2010, 2012, 2017 and 2018.
Individually, as of 2022, athletes in the program had earned 221 district titles, 128 Regional titles and 32 wrestlers have earned 47 state titles. 192 athletes had earned all-state honors as of 2022.
Many Robinson wrestlers have earned All-American status while in high school and many others have gone on to college and competed at the NCAA, NAIA or JUCO levels with success including one NCAA all-American (John Epperly Jr.) a JUCO all-american (Mark Terrill) and a NAIA all-american (Jack Bass).
Robinson's boys' wrestling team has had only four head coaches in the 54 years of the school. +Head CoachesHead CoachVarsity SeasonsWins LossesTiesDistrict TitlesRegion TitlesState TitlesJohn Epperly1972–199122030214123Bill Hildbold1991–1996592612Bryan Hazard1996–2024310115114107Greg Flournoy2024 - present More detailed information about wrestlers, teams and coaches can be found at https://robinsonrams.com/sites/robinsonrams.com/files/files/Private_User/bthazard/WRESTLING%20CHAMPIONS%202021.pdf
Track and field Alumnus Robert Muzzio ('82) represented the United States in the decathlon at the 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona. The men's Indoor Track & Field team won the District Title in 2009 while the Outdoor Track & Field team won district and regional team titles in 2006.
Cross country In addition to the state champion teams listed above, the teams also won regional championships in 1981, 1991, 1992, 2000, and 2002, and district titles in 1972, 1981, 1982, 1983, 1990, 1991, 1997, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2006, 2008 and 2010.
Swim and dive The men's team has won seven consecutive state championships from 2003 to 2009 and has been one of the dominant swim teams in the state of Virginia. The women's team has also done exceptionally well, winning multiple district titles as well as achieving high rankings in the northern region and winning the 2009 state championship. The head coach during the first 3 years of State Champion success, and several years before this was Tracey Blaine Phillips, who is currently Robinson's principal. After Ms. Blaine (Philips) left for Hayfield, Rich Gordon was appointed head coach. Gordon resigned from the position after the 2008 season. The Robinson Swim and Dive Coach for the 2009 season was Tom Koucheravy, who led the boys and girls to state titles. Tom resigned after the 2009 season. The new coach is Clayton Joiner, assisted by Kevin Nolan. In 2010, the girls won the state title and the boys, despite having lost numerous All-Mets, managed fourth place at states.
The swim and dive team has had multiple All-Met and All-Met honorable mention swimmers and divers as well as numerous automatic All-Americans.
Tennis