Coach H. D. “Cotton” Robertson was a renowned championship football coach from Durant. A Native of Sallis, Coach Robertson was an All-Conference guard who graduated from Sallis High in 1963. He was a graduate of Holmes Junior College and Delta State and was named Little All American guard at Delta State where he earned his degree in 1957. He began his 34-year coaching career in 1959 and coached at 7 different high schools including McAdams, St. Martin in Biloxi, Union, Rolling Fork, Pearl, Morton, and Durant. Cotton led Rolling Fork gridiron team to two undefeated seasons and Delta Valley Conference titles in 1966 & 1969. His Rolling Fork teams compiled a record of 34-4-3. He guided the Durant Tigers for 20 seasons with a winning percentage of 75%. His Tigers won 33 games in a row from 1976 through 1978. During his tenure, Durant captured 3 conference championships, 8 division titles, a North State runner-up finish and a record of 164-50-3. At the time of his death, he was the state’s winningest active public school football coach. His overall record as a football coach was 230 wins, 123 losses, and 8 ties. He was named Coach of the Year by the Delta Valley Conference in 1966 and twice by the East Central Conference in 1975 & 1978. He served as head coach in the 1970 Bernard Blackwell All-Star Classic and as an assistant coach in the 1989 MS/AL All-Star game. In 1995, his Mississippi team in the MS/AL game defeated Alabama 38-9, the largest margin of victory in the history of the series at that time. He was a longtime MAC member who served on the Board of Directors and as President in 1996 even though his body was ravaged with cancer. He never missed an MAC event during his term as president. Shortly after his term was completed, he passed away on July 29, 1996, at the age of 60.