BOB SANSEVERE
GOPHERS WRESTLING COACH J ROBINSON TALKS BOB SANSEVERE LISTENS
After we won the national title in 2001, we went to the White House. Before he came over to us, President Bush talked to the media. He was bumbling and stammering. Then he came to us and asked if we wanted to see the Oval Office. Everybody did. He was a completely different person. He came off as articulate and funny. Don’t get me wrong. There’s a bunch of stuff with Bush I disagree with. But the majority of people can’t relate to what it’s like to have a camera on them. When that camera gets pointed at you, you want to say it’s not going to bother you, but it bothers a lot of people.
If I found Aladdin’s Lamp, one wish would be for world peace. You’d want the world to be a better place. Another wish would be that everybody has health. The third wish would be to be an immortal. With that comes the ability to experience so many different things. In one lifetime, you could be a cop. You could be a fireman. You could be a teacher. You could be a politician. You could be a sports guy. You could be a soldier. I think that would be cool.
If I had a time machine, I think I would go back in time to the birth of Christ. We all believe, but we all have a little doubt. I would like to see the parting of the Red Sea. That would be something to see. Or the burning bush. I’d want to see things that are beyond comprehension and beyond the reality of life.
Growing up, my favorite cartoon was the Roadrunner. It was always lighthearted, and, in the end, you always knew the Roadrunner was going to win. But the beauty of it was, I loved the innovativeness of Wile E. Coyote. He came up with so many ideas to get that Roadrunner and never made it.
I thought I wanted to be Superman at one time. I tried to not scratch myself when I had an itch, so I could get tough. But it didn’t work. I probably was 4 or 5. I had my cape. But Superman’s powers never came.
The worst thing I did as a kid? In high school, I was in auto shop and I took an engine stand home. I don’t know why you take something that’s not yours. The fallout out of it is, you become so embarrassed about being caught that you swear it will never happen again. I brought it back, but I could have been kicked out of school my senior year. The vice principal, George Benson, gave me a second chance. He taught me people make mistakes. And the second chance changed my life. So when people make mistakes, to me, it’s not the end. It’s more about giving them a second chance because a guy gave me one.
Besides being a wrestler, I played football in high school. I was an offensive and defensive guard.
My son, Jeb, played in 42 hockey games as a fourth grader. Marty Morgan won the nationals that year, and he only wrestled 38 times. Something’s wrong. It’s all about games. What we do is play three or four games and no practices. Practices make people better in life and in games. What I see in youth sports a lot is, you don’t improve very much because you continue to make the same mistakes because you don’t practice to fix your mistakes. You’re always playing games. The other thing is, in the big world, you send the wrong message that life is all about games and fun ” as opposed to life being about work and practice, and then you have the game.
I was a captain in the Army for 3,½ years. I loved being a soldier. It’s a lot like wrestling. You’re mission-oriented. And you’re around people that are highly motivated. I liked being in that environment. I like that camaraderie. I don’t need to be the boss. I would be happy to be in a company of 170 guys and be just one of them if we’re all on the same page.
My parents were the biggest influence on my life. Parents give you the core foundation for everything. They instill all the basic building blocks in your life. Family is so important.
Three other people had a huge influence. My high school coach taught me the world was a little bigger than San Diego, California. My college coach told me you’ve got to have a philosophy about wrestling. Taking it one step further, it helped me develop a philosophy for life. And then, there was Major Uswa in the Army, who taught me how to look at the world completely different than most people did. He said, “Most people look at the world with blinders on. I’m going to teach you to look at the world without blinders, and it will give you 90 percent more sight than everybody else.”
The best days of my life were when my kids were born.
I think God gives everybody gifts. I think He gave me the gift to be able to try to help people by transferring my experience to them.
People don’t understand how shy I really am.
Sometimes, it gets old always being the guy that everyone relies on.
It’s a team concept as far as coaching. What you are is, you’re the conductor of the symphony. You can’t do it if you don’t have great strings and great brass. If you don’t have that, it doesn’t work.
I’ve often said my legacy is what I do in the summer (at wrestling camps). I change hundreds of kids’ lives. I put hundreds of kids’ lives on a road. That is cool.
I used to like to race cars, but it’s so time-intensive.
I’ll go home and eat popcorn. We make it the old-fashioned way in a skillet. We use a cast-iron skillet. It makes a different kind of popcorn.
One thing I really enjoy now is hiking and backpacking with my wife. It’s outside and it’s relaxing, but at the same time there is an air of competition. You have to train to get there. So it brings purpose back.
I don’t like hanging on the side of mountains. I did that in Ranger school. Been there, done that.
If my friends needed something, I would always be there for them.
The best book I ever read was “The Death of Common Sense.”
I like all kinds of music. I like country. I like pop. I like older music. About the only thing I don’t like is rap. I like something that has a beat, something that gets you going. My problem is, I might be obsessive-compulsive. I’ll listen to the same music over and over and over.
I like Britney Spears. I like Willie Nelson. I like Alan Jackson. Different songs resonate with you at different times in your life.
My dad liked to sing, so as kids we all sang. In high school, I was in men’s glee club and men’s choir. I like to sing. If Simon Cowell heard me sing, he’d say my voice is terrible. They would do one of those deals where they have the old ring and it goes around your neck and they pull you off.
The TV shows I never miss are “Stargate “and “Stargate Atlantis.” I’m a “24 “guy, too. My wife Sue and I watched “24 “from the very start, when it wasn’t in vogue.
Actors? I like Paul Newman, Robert Redford and Mel Gibson.
My favorite movie is “Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid.”
When my wife is around, I feel completed.
If I could trade places for a day with anyone, I’d like it to be the president. I would have a better understanding of the truth, of what goes on. Finding out about Roswell would be interesting. UFOs would be interesting. I would open up the Kennedy assassination deal. Why is it locked up? There has to be something there. If it wasn’t important, you wouldn’t lock it down.
I want my epitaph to say, “Here lies J Robinson, who made a difference and tried to help people. He tried to make the world a better place. “I think you have an obligation to leave it better than you found it. And that requires you to get involved. You’re not here just to pass through life. You’re not here to be happy. God put you here for a purpose. I was put here to do something. Everybody was.
Wrestling Gear
