BLACKSBURG – Having just completed his 5th season as head coach and 15th overall with the program, Virginia Tech wrestling head coach Tony Robie was inducted into the Virginia Chapter of the National Wrestling Hall of Fame for his lifetime of outstanding contributions to the sport of wrestling in the commonwealth of Virginia on Saturday night.
When Virginia Tech head wrestling coach Tony Robie came to Blacksburg in 2006, he was an associate head coach who inherited a barren program that had the potential to be great. He's progressively helped build the Hokies into one of the top programs in the ACC and a mainstay in the top-10 nationally. Five full seasons into his tenure as head coach, Robie is still leading the Hokies into new territory with high aspirations.
In his five years at the helm, Robie has guided the Hokies to the program's first national champion, four top-11 NCAA finishes, four ACC team titles, 19 ACC champions, 18 All-Americans, and being voted the ACC Coach of the Year three times in the past five seasons. Tech is also just one of four programs who have had three or more All-Americans for the past nine-straight seasons, a testament to the consistency of the program.
In addition to his time at the helm of Virginia Tech Wrestling, Robie has propelled the Southeast Regional Training Center (SERTC) into a top-tier Olympic training center. Under Robie's five years of leadership, the SERTC has produced four world medalists – Ty Walz snagging the first world medal at the 2017 U23 World Championships with a bronze medal finish, Mekhi Lewis becoming the SERTC's first world champion when he won gold at the 2018 Junior World Championships, Jenna Burkert winning bronze at the 2021 Senior World Championships, and Bryce Andonian finishing with bronze at the 2021 Junior World Championships. In addition, James Green and David McFadden were also World Team members with Robie at the helm.
A world-class wrestler in his own right, Robie was a two-time All-American at Edinboro and a 1997 NCAA finalist at 158 pounds who turned in a career record of 126-23. A two-time captain for Olympic gold medalist Bruce Baumgartner, Robie was a three-time Eastern Wrestling League Champion and a three-time Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) champion. As a senior, Robie led the Fighting Scots to a sixth-place national finish - the highest in school history at the time. He ranks fourth on the school's all-time wins list and went on to earn a bronze medal at the 1998 U.S. Open Freestyle Championships. In 2008, he was inducted into the Edinboro Sports Hall of Fame.
A native of Erie, Pa., Robie was a Dean's List student at Edinboro and received the school's Academic Achievement Award before graduating with a bachelor's degree in criminal justice in 1997. Robie and his wife, Jennifer, reside in Christiansburg with their three children – Nate, Luke, and Jake.