Paul Johnson (American football coach)
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| Paul Johnson | ||
|---|---|---|
 Photo by Michael Schneider |
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| Title | Head coach | |
| College | Georgia Tech | |
| Sport | Football | |
| Conference | Atlantic Coast Conference | |
| Team record | 20-6 | |
| Born | August 20, 1957 | |
| Place of birth | Newland, N.C | |
| Career highlights | ||
| Overall | 126–45 | |
| Bowls | 4–6 | |
| Coaching stats | ||
| College Football DataWarehouse | ||
| Championships | ||
| 1999, 2000 NCAA I-AA National Champion | ||
| Awards | ||
| 2009 ACC Coach of the Year 2008 ACC Coach of the Year 2008 CBSSports.com National Coach of the Year 2004 Bobby Dodd Coach of the Year 2000 AFCA NCAA I-AA Coach of the Year 1999 AFCA NCAA I-AA Coach of the Year 1998 Sports Network I-AA Coach of the Year 1998 Eddie Robinson Award 1997, 1998 Southern Conference Coach of the Year |
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| Coaching career (HC unless noted) | ||
| 1981–1982 1983–1984 1985–1986 1987–1994 1995–1996 1997–2001 2002–2007 2008-present |
Lees-McRae (OC) Ga. Southern (DL) Ga. Southern (OC) Hawaiʻi (OC) Navy (OC) Georgia Southern Navy Georgia Tech |
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Paul Johnson (born August 20, 1957 in Newland, North Carolina), is the head coach of football at the Georgia Institute of Technology.[1] He is a Western Carolina University graduate[2] and was previously the head coach of both the United States Naval Academy and Georgia Southern University.
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[edit] Coaching
Prior to becoming a head coach, Johnson spent eight seasons as offensive coordinator at the University of Hawai'i from 1987 to 1994. He helped lead the Rainbow Warriors to their first Western Athletic Conference title and their first major bowl victory, in the 1992 Holiday Bowl. In 1995 and 1996, he served as Navy offensive coordinator and brought his option offense with him. In 1996, Navy recorded its first winning season in 14 years, going 9-3, including a victory at the Aloha Bowl. Johnson has performed well against rivals, including a perfect 6-0 mark against rival Army while head coach at Navy and a 1-1 record against rival UGA while head coach at Georgia Tech.
[edit] Georgia Southern
Johnson formerly served as the head coach at Georgia Southern University. During his time at Georgia Southern, the Eagles captured the NCAA Division I-AA national football championships in 1999 and 2000, and finished as runners-up in 1998. He is also one of only four coaches to ever record 50 wins in their first four seasons as head coach at the Division I level.[3]
[edit]
In 2002, Johnson departed Georgia Southern for Navy. Johnson's initial season saw the Midshipmen win only two of twelve contests, although the season ended on a high note with his first victory over Army. Subsequently, Johnson's teams have enjoyed a high degree of success. The 2003 team completed the regular season with an 8–4 mark, including wins over both Air Force and Army, and earned a berth in the EV1.net Houston Bowl, Navy's first bowl game since 1996. However, the Midshipmen lost to Texas Tech, 38–14. In 2004, Johnson's team posted Navy's best start in over 30 years,[citation needed] finishing the regular season 9-2 and once again earning a bowl berth, this time in the Emerald Bowl. Johnson coached the Mids to a win over New Mexico 34-19, the fifth bowl win in the school's history. That gave Navy 10 wins on the season, tying the record for wins at Navy, which had stood since 1905. As a result, Johnson won the NCAA Coach of the Year honors. The 2005 squad recorded a final mark of 8–4, which was highlighted by victories over Army, Air Force, and Colorado State in the inaugural Poinsettia Bowl. In 2007, Johnson coached the Midshipmen to their first win over rival Notre Dame since 1963, winning 46–44 in triple-overtime.
Coach Johnson has dominated the Commander-in-Chief's Trophy competition, going 11–1 (.917) in his six years, with the only loss against another service academy coming at the hands of Air Force in his first season. He is the only coach in Navy's history to go 6–0 in his first six seasons against Army, and his 2006–07 senior class was the first in Navy history to win the Commander-in-Chief's Trophy for all four years.
Much of Johnson's success has been predicated on his triple option flexbone offense, a run oriented attack that has led NCAA Division I-A/FBS football in rushing yards three of the last four years. Some have criticized the triple option as an antiquated, unbalanced system unfit for major college football, which may explain some BCS teams' reluctance to offer him a position despite his accomplishments at both Georgia Southern and Navy. Johnson has rebutted this argument in numerous press conferences and interviews, asserting that several top teams, including 2005–2006 national champion Texas and 2006–2007 national champion Florida, use various forms of the option. He has repeatedly stated that the superior athletes in power conferences could help the triple option flourish.[citation needed] In 2008, Johnson told ESPN's Mark Schlabach: "If we can run it against Boston College at Navy, why can't we run it against Boston College at Georgia Tech? If we can beat Pitt with this system at Navy, why can't we beat Pitt at Georgia Tech? Are we going to get worse players at Georgia Tech?"
[edit] Georgia Tech
On December 7, 2007, Paul Johnson accepted the head coaching job at Georgia Tech.[1][4] In 2008 he led the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets to a 9-4 record. On December 2, 2008, Paul was tabbed ACC Coach of the Year by the Atlantic Coast Sports Media Association (ACSMA). Georgia Tech, ranked 14th in the BCS standings and 15th in the Associated Press poll, finished the regular season with a 9-3 record, remarkably better than every preseason projection. Sports Illustrated predicted Johnson's first Yellow Jacket team would win just three games, and Tech was picked to finish fourth in the ACC's Coastal Division. With a 5-3 record in ACC play, the Jackets tied Virginia Tech for the Coastal Division title. "This is an honor for the football program at Georgia Tech, the coaching staff and the players," Johnson said today. "There are a lot of great coaches in the ACC, so it's humbling to win such a prestigious honor."
Johnson, who came to Georgia Tech in December after a highly-successful, six-year tenure at Navy, inherited a roster low in scholarship numbers and overloaded with youth. Only 76 players are on scholarship, including three senior walk-ons who were awarded scholarships prior to the start of the season, below the maximum of 85 scholarships. The roster includes 75 freshmen and sophomores, and 16 of 22 starters are either freshmen or sophomores.[1][5] Johnson is (6-1) at home in games played at Bobby Dodd Stadium and is (4-2) against ranked opponents. In 2008, Johnson defeated three Top 25 opponents (#18 Florida State, #23 Miami, #13 Georgia) in November. On December 2, 2008, Johnson was named 2008 National Coach of the year by CBSSports.com. In his first year at Tech, Johnson produced one first team All-American (Michael Johnson), the ACC Player of the Year (Jonathan Dwyer), and eight 1st Team, 2nd Team, and Honorable Mention All-ACC student-athletes. [6]
In 2009, Johnson led the Yellow Jackets to their first win over Florida State in Tallahassee in school history, a 49-44 shootout that featured over 1000 total yards between the two teams. One week later, Johnson defeated #4 Virginia Tech 28-23 at Bobby Dodd Stadium. The win broke an 0-17 losing streak to top five opponents at Grant Field in the past 47 years. The very next week Coach Johnson led the #11 ranked Jackets into Charlottesville, VA where the Yellow Jackets beat the Cavaliers 34-9 in Charlottesville for the first time since 1990.[7]
In 2009, Johnson received ACC Coach of the Year honors for the second consecutive year, becoming the only Tech head coach in history to win the award in his first two seasons. Johnson also added an ACC conference championship to his resume in 2009. Georgia Tech will be paired in the BCS' Orange Bowl against the 10th ranked Iowa Hawkeyes.
[edit] Head coaching record
| Year | Team | Overall | Conference | Standing | Bowl | Coaches# | AP° | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Georgia Southern Eagles (Southern Conference) (1997–2001) | |||||||||
| 1997 | Georgia Southern | 10–3 | 7–1 | 1st | L Div I-AA Quarterfinals | ||||
| 1998 | Georgia Southern | 14–1 | 8–0 | 1st | L Div I-AA Championship | ||||
| 1999 | Georgia Southern | 13–2 | 7–1 | T-1st | W Div I-AA Championship | ||||
| 2000 | Georgia Southern | 13–2 | 7–1 | 1st | W Div I-AA Championship | ||||
| 2001 | Georgia Southern | 12–2 | 7–1 | T-1st | L Div I-AA Semifinals | ||||
| Georgia Southern: | 62–10 | 36–4 | |||||||
| Navy Midshipmen (Independent) (2002–2007) | |||||||||
| 2002 | Navy | 2–10 | |||||||
| 2003 | Navy | 8–5 | L Houston | ||||||
| 2004 | Navy | 10–2 | W Emerald | 24 | |||||
| 2005 | Navy | 8–4 | W Poinsettia | ||||||
| 2006 | Navy | 9–4 | L Meineke Car Care | ||||||
| 2007 | Navy | 8–4* | Invited to Poinsettia* | ||||||
| Navy: | 45–29 | *Departed Navy for Georgia Tech before the Poinsettia Bowl | |||||||
| Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets (Atlantic Coast Conference) (2008–present) | |||||||||
| 2008 | Georgia Tech | 9–4 | 5–3 | T-1st (Coastal Division) | L Chick-Fil-A | 22 | 22 | ||
| 2009 | Georgia Tech | 11–2 | 8-1 | 1st (ACC) | Orange † | 10 | 9 | ||
| Georgia Tech: | 20–6 | 13–4 | |||||||
| Total: | 126–45 | ||||||||
| National Championship Conference Title Conference Division Title | |||||||||
| †Indicates BCS bowl game. #Rankings from final Coaches Poll. °Rankings from final AP Poll. |
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[edit] Personal
Johnson and his wife, Susan, have a daughter named Kaitlyn. He earned his Bachelor of Science in physical education from Western Carolina University in 1979, where he was a member of the Kappa Alpha Order. He also earned a Master of Science in health and physical education from Appalachian State University in 1982.
Johnson regularly attends Second-Ponce de Leon Baptist Church[1] in Buckhead.
[edit] References
- ^ a b c "Paul Johnson Named Georgia Tech's Head Football Coach". Ramblinwreck.com. 2007-12-07. http://ramblinwreck.cstv.com/sports/m-footbl/spec-rel/120707aab.html. Retrieved 2007-12-07.
- ^ "Paul Johnson, Class of ’79, Physical Education". Western Carolina University. 2008. http://www.wcu.edu/306.asp.
- ^ "Coaches Sections of 2006 Navy football Media Guide" (PDF). http://www.fansonly.com/photos/schools/navy/sports/m-footbl/auto_pdf/4-2006-Coaches-fb.pdf.
- ^ Tony Barnhart (2007-12-07). "Tech, Johnson agree to deal". The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. http://www.ajc.com/sports/content/sports/gatech/stories/2007/12/07/gtfoot_1208.html?cxntlid=homepage_tab_newstab. Retrieved 2007-12-07.
- ^ Georgia Tech (2007-12-07). "Paul Johnson named ACC coach of the year". Rivals. http://georgiatech.rivals.com/content.asp?CID=884415. Retrieved 2007-12-07.
- ^ Ken Sugiura (2008-12-19). "Johnson gets 53 percent pay raise". Atlanta Journal Constitution. http://www.ajc.com/services/content/printedition/2008/12/19/techjohnson.html. Retrieved 2008-12-19.
- ^ Associated Press (2009-10-24). "Georgia Tech holds off Virginia, takes charge of ACC Coastal Division". ESPN. http://scores.espn.go.com/ncf/recap?gameId=292970258. Retrieved 2009-10-25.
[edit] External links
| Sporting positions | ||
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| Preceded by Rick Lantz |
Navy Head Football Coach 2002–2007 |
Succeeded by Ken Niumatalolo |
| Preceded by Chan Gailey |
Georgia Tech Head Football Coach 2008–present |
Succeeded by Incumbent |
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