R.C. Johnson

Class of 1960 R.C. Johnson was a standout athlete during his high school years. He was the MVP and Captain of the 1959 football squad coached by Bill Novak that finished 8-0-1. He was also a starter on the 1960 basketball team coached by Gil Love that went to the Elite Eight and finished 31-2, the best record still to date in the history of OTHS basketball. R.C. Johnson competed in five sports at OTHS, was Freshman class president and vice president during his Senior year. He moved on to collegiate football at the University of Iowa. He entered football coaching as an assistant coach at the University of Iowa, Northern Iowa, and Mankato State University, then moved on to coach at Youngstown State University before continuing his career as Director of Athletics at the collegiate level – first at Northern Iowa, then Eastern Illinois University, Miami University, Temple University, and the University of Memphis. At Temple, he directed a program with more than 500 student-athletes competing in 20 men’s and women’s sports, including nationally visible programs in men’s basketball and football. At the University of Memphis he has structured a very successful array of coaching staffs and has brought the athletic program into national prominence. He has lead very successful capital campaigns for the University of Memphis, bringing the programs in excess of $20 million, as well as negotiating lucrative multimedia rights to benefit the school. A strong believer in academic excellence, under his guidance Memphis boasts an 89 percent graduation rate of all student-athletes completing their eligibility, and ranks in the top 30 percent nationally for the NCAA’s Annual Progress Rates measurement of academic performance.