FLOWERY BRANCH, Ga. -- Terry Robiskie used to get socks for Father's Day. Then the Falcons wide receivers coach and father of three boys watched as his gifts evolved.
"I'd get the shirt from one, the shorts from the other and the socks from the other," he said. "Another time I'd get a tie from one, a belt from the other and shoes from the other. You always got the outfit."
As his children hit high school, the day became less practical and more sentimental.
"Now that they're off and in college, they say 'We're college kids and have no money," Robiskie said. "Now I get the card."
This year is the beginning of something new, however, as Robiskie's oldest son, Brian, begins his rookie campaign with the Cleveland Browns.
"He did emphasize to me that it is Father's Day," Robiskie said with a chuckle. "He said 'I'm in the NFL. I've got a job. But I haven't signed my contract.' I think that was a way of letting me know that, once again, I'll probably be getting a card.
"He's got about another month that I'll pay his rent and car payment. Then, hopefully, he signs his contract, finds success and takes off on his own."
Rarely has Brian been on his own in regards to football.
The elder Robiskie has spent more than two decades coaching in the NFL. He's taught his son the same as his players, but with more focus on passion and hustle.
"He's done so much for me," Brian, a wide receiver and former Ohio State star, said just before the NFL Draft. "He's always been there for me and he continues to do so much... He sees some things not a lot of people can see and to have him there and comment on it, it's helped out a lot."
The coach was asked to evaluate his son's game before the draft -- a task he does with every wide receiver on the board. He said it wasn't hard and, in the end, the Falcons got a great picture of Brian Robiskie without the need to spend extra time on a personal background check.
Where other receivers were viewed over two or three months, Brian was watched for more than 20 years.
"I looked at him and evaluated him and compared him to all the other guys in the draft," Robiskie said. "Did I think he was the best player in the draft? No. But I knew he was good as most of the guys that were in the draft. Looking at him I felt like he was good as most of the guys that went in the first round and I thought he was good enough to go in the first round."
The Browns picked up the young receiver in the second round of April's draft, keeping him in Ohio and giving him a chance in a town his family called home from 2001-2006. The elder Robiskie served in a variety of roles with the Browns, including interim head coach for the final five games of the 2004 season.
At the close of Falcons organized team activities, the coach and his family made plans to visit the new NFL name in the group.
The trip will include some coaching.
That continues regardless of age, location or Father's Day gift price.
"He'll tell you when I'm 90 I'll still be telling him to run fast," Robiskie said. "I may not tell him (specifics) but he knows I'm going to tell him to put his foot in the ground and run fast. I'll do that to the day I die."
