legelegel
02-17-2007, 05:17 PM
Coach Johnson - What You May Know and What You Should Know
It was the fall of 1998, and Al Johnson was working as a volunteer coach and substitute teacher at Douglass High School in Oklahoma City.
That's when he set his mind on one day becoming a college basketball coach. Less than two years later, Johnson got his first paid coaching job.
At Columbus Elementary.
Coaching girls track.
"I had it backwards,” Johnsonsaid with a laugh. "I was out trying to find elementary-school jobs and telling myself I wanted to be a college basketball coach.”
Today, he returned to Oklahoma as an assistant coach with Texas A&M, which faces the Sooners in Norman.
The journey from that southwest Oklahoma City grade school to the Big 12 Conference wasn't easy, but not much has been for Johnson.
Hampered much of his adult life by medical problems — shingles, ulcers, kidney stones — Johnson, 30, now is battling dermatomyositis, a rare muscular disease in which the immune system attacks the body's healthy tissues and causes inflammation of the muscles and skin.
Johnson began to notice symptoms in early October, though the disease wasn't diagnosed until the end of the month.
Johnson's muscles were so weak at the beginning of the season, he couldn't attend practices. He was on the bench for his first game of the season in mid-January.
"He's not fully recovered, but he's doing a lot better,” A&M head coach Billy Gillispie said.
Johnson says the disease is in remission, though he still faces seven more months of treatment.
It is such a rare disease that doctors don't fully understand what causes it or which long-term medical treatments are best.
Johnson lived parts of his younger days in Dallas and Oklahoma City before graduating from Ardmore High School.
He calls himself "Mr. OKC,” because of all his teaching and coaching stops in the metro area, including Douglass, John Marshall and — of course — Columbus Elementary.
Johnson had stints as an assistant coach in the Moore school district, Bartlesville High School and Northeastern Oklahoma A&M.
He also calls himself "The Starter.”
"Every year, after I left some place, that team had a great year,” he said.
"After I left Douglass, they played for the state title. After I left John Marshall, they won state. I left NEO and they won the conference. After I left Bartlesville they played for state.
"You hire me and I'll help you. But when I leave, it's smooth sailing.”
Talk to anyone who has worked with Johnson and the conversation of his success will gravitate back to one characteristic.
"He has a tremendous work ethic,” said Bartlesville head coach Tim Bart. "He could be at the gym working until 10, 11, midnight, he didn't care.
"He has a passion for the game of basketball and he has a real passion for kids. He wants to give back to the game and be a mentor, help the kids. Make them understand that getting an education is important.”
Johnson achieved his goal of becoming a college coach in 2002, when he was hired as an assistant at NEO. That's where he first met Gillispie.
"When I was at UTEP, I was recruiting one of his kids at NEO and he gave us no help at all,” Gillispie joked. "The kid went to New Mexico.
"But I could tell immediately that he was a hard worker. There were some good players at NEO that he was responsible for getting there. And people in the profession had only good things to say about him.”
Prior to the 2004 season, Gillispie was hired at Texas A&M and soon sought out Johnson.
"I knew he'd be a great recruiter, but we didn't have a position for him like that at the time,” Gillispie said.
So Johnson came on as the video coordinator, a position he held for two seasons.
But Johnson takes little of the credit for the acceleration of his career.
"I'm blessed,” he said. "Truly blessed. I try to take advantage of everything I'm given.”
"There's a lot of people I've got to give credit to. I didn't get here by myself.”
In August 2006, Gillispie promoted him to full assistant — just two months before he became sick.
"Where I've come from, ain't nothing been easy,” Johnson said. "The way you respond to challenges is what defines who you are.
"And I ain't quittin'.”
This is a "Don't ask, don't tell" source of post by legelegel; another "What you don't know won't hurt you". ;)
It was the fall of 1998, and Al Johnson was working as a volunteer coach and substitute teacher at Douglass High School in Oklahoma City.
That's when he set his mind on one day becoming a college basketball coach. Less than two years later, Johnson got his first paid coaching job.
At Columbus Elementary.
Coaching girls track.
"I had it backwards,” Johnsonsaid with a laugh. "I was out trying to find elementary-school jobs and telling myself I wanted to be a college basketball coach.”
Today, he returned to Oklahoma as an assistant coach with Texas A&M, which faces the Sooners in Norman.
The journey from that southwest Oklahoma City grade school to the Big 12 Conference wasn't easy, but not much has been for Johnson.
Hampered much of his adult life by medical problems — shingles, ulcers, kidney stones — Johnson, 30, now is battling dermatomyositis, a rare muscular disease in which the immune system attacks the body's healthy tissues and causes inflammation of the muscles and skin.
Johnson began to notice symptoms in early October, though the disease wasn't diagnosed until the end of the month.
Johnson's muscles were so weak at the beginning of the season, he couldn't attend practices. He was on the bench for his first game of the season in mid-January.
"He's not fully recovered, but he's doing a lot better,” A&M head coach Billy Gillispie said.
Johnson says the disease is in remission, though he still faces seven more months of treatment.
It is such a rare disease that doctors don't fully understand what causes it or which long-term medical treatments are best.
Johnson lived parts of his younger days in Dallas and Oklahoma City before graduating from Ardmore High School.
He calls himself "Mr. OKC,” because of all his teaching and coaching stops in the metro area, including Douglass, John Marshall and — of course — Columbus Elementary.
Johnson had stints as an assistant coach in the Moore school district, Bartlesville High School and Northeastern Oklahoma A&M.
He also calls himself "The Starter.”
"Every year, after I left some place, that team had a great year,” he said.
"After I left Douglass, they played for the state title. After I left John Marshall, they won state. I left NEO and they won the conference. After I left Bartlesville they played for state.
"You hire me and I'll help you. But when I leave, it's smooth sailing.”
Talk to anyone who has worked with Johnson and the conversation of his success will gravitate back to one characteristic.
"He has a tremendous work ethic,” said Bartlesville head coach Tim Bart. "He could be at the gym working until 10, 11, midnight, he didn't care.
"He has a passion for the game of basketball and he has a real passion for kids. He wants to give back to the game and be a mentor, help the kids. Make them understand that getting an education is important.”
Johnson achieved his goal of becoming a college coach in 2002, when he was hired as an assistant at NEO. That's where he first met Gillispie.
"When I was at UTEP, I was recruiting one of his kids at NEO and he gave us no help at all,” Gillispie joked. "The kid went to New Mexico.
"But I could tell immediately that he was a hard worker. There were some good players at NEO that he was responsible for getting there. And people in the profession had only good things to say about him.”
Prior to the 2004 season, Gillispie was hired at Texas A&M and soon sought out Johnson.
"I knew he'd be a great recruiter, but we didn't have a position for him like that at the time,” Gillispie said.
So Johnson came on as the video coordinator, a position he held for two seasons.
But Johnson takes little of the credit for the acceleration of his career.
"I'm blessed,” he said. "Truly blessed. I try to take advantage of everything I'm given.”
"There's a lot of people I've got to give credit to. I didn't get here by myself.”
In August 2006, Gillispie promoted him to full assistant — just two months before he became sick.
"Where I've come from, ain't nothing been easy,” Johnson said. "The way you respond to challenges is what defines who you are.
"And I ain't quittin'.”
This is a "Don't ask, don't tell" source of post by legelegel; another "What you don't know won't hurt you". ;)