Theodore Roosevelt is quoted, "Speak softly and carry a big stick." Port Robertson took that advice to heart. The "big stick" with which he armed every one of his wrestlers was self-discipline.

As coach at the University of Oklahoma for 15 years, he produced three NCAA championship teams and three national runners-up, and firmly established the Sooners as a national power. His wrestlers captured 15 individual NCAA titles and five outstanding wrestler awards.

Port firmly believed that the goal of a wrestler is to win by a fall. Over a span of eight national tournaments, his Sooners pinned 39 opponents, 11 of them in their 1957 championship parade.

In 1960, he coached the U.S. Olympic team to three gold medals, the only such harvest between the Olympiads of 1932 and 1972.

"Port Robertson raised you up to a level higher than you would set for yourself," one of his wrestlers declared. "He never compromised his standards." A stickler for physical conditioning and mental preparation, Port told his wrestlers, "A lean dog is lots hungrier than a fat one," and sent them up another 72 steps of the football stadium.

He spelled out his philosophy bluntly: "First of all, a boy has to want to come here to get an education. If he thinks wrestling is more important than that, he's not going to do well in either. Then he has to realize what it takes to be a good wrestler. It depends on how much of himself he wants to spend. He has to learn to know himself. Once he gets self-discipline in wrestling, he'll have it all his life."

An Oklahoma high school star in football, wrestling and track, he wrestled at OU under coach Paul Keen, winning 20 of 24 bouts and two conference titles. He was a captain of field artillery in World War II, earning a Bronze Star and a Purple Heart in the Normandy invasion.

In recognition of his achievements and leadership as a coach, and his lasting influence on the lives of young men, Port G. Robertson is honored as a Distinguished Member of the National Wrestling Hall of Fame.