April 23, 2001

LAS VEGAS - UNLV football head coach John Robinson will patrol the Rebel sidelines for at least another half-decade as his contract has been extended five years, the school announced Monday.

Robinson's new deal includes an annual base salary of $150,000 and is worth a total of $500,000 per year. The contract, which runs through the 2005 season, was officially approved by Nevada's State Board of Regents at its meeting this past weekend in Reno.

The 2000 Mountain West Conference Coach of the Year is the eighth-winningest active coach in college football with a career record of 115-48-4 (.701), including a mark of 11-13 at UNLV. He also is the most successful post-season bowl coach in college football history with a record of 8-1 (.889).

Robinson, who will turn 66 on July 25, enters his third season at UNLV. He has directed the Rebels, who were 0-11 the year before he arrived, to records of 3-8 in 1999 and 8-5 in 2000, which included a 31-14 victory over Arkansas in the Las Vegas Bowl. Last year's five-victory improvement tied for the third-best turnaround in the nation and the eight wins, which included a 6-0 mark at home, were the most for the Rebels since 1984.

Before coming to UNLV, Robinson spent 12 seasons in two stints leading Southern California (1976-82 & 1993-97) and nine years coaching the NFL's Los Angeles Rams (1983-91).