Ian Johnson
From NCAA College Football Information & Resource
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Ian Johnson (born September 25, 1985 in San Dimas, California) plays running back for the Boise State Broncos in the NCAA college football tournament. Johnson first caught the attention of nationwide audience through a televised (ESPN) game on September 7, 2006, leading the Broncos with 240 rushing yards on 22 carries to go along with five scores in a 42-14 win over Oregon State. That victory gave the Broncos credibility after the Beavers later went on to defeat 3rd ranked USC on October 28, 2006. After turning out a splendid 2006 season, Johnson was considered as a contender for the Heisman trophy, with Boise State promoting him through this website: IanForHeisman.com.
Contents |
[edit] Personal Life
Ian is one of three children of Sterling, a Los Angeles firefighter, and Colleen, a special-education teacher. Ian, a management major who learned crocheting from his mother, made the skill as his source of income when he sold crocheted beanies to teammates, fans, and fellow students. His small-time business however had to stop later on as the NCAA ruled that he could not profit from his growing celebrity status, nor could he donate the proceeds to charity. Ian, who proposed to cheerleader Chrissy Popadics after scoring the winning points against Oklahoma in the Fiesta Bowl, married his fiancée at Cathedral of the Rockies First United Methodist Church in July with six police officers in attendance because of a barrage of racist threats from people who were against their mixed-race marriage.
[edit] High School
Ian Johnson attended Damien High School in San Dimas, California and played under the reigns of coach Scott Morrison. Johnson was a versatile athlete as he also lettered in track where he was an All-Sierra League and All-CIF pick while competing in the 100-meters, 200-meters, and 4x100-meter relay. However, Johnson's talent was undeniably seen on the football field, playing for three seasons in high school. As a sophomore, Johnson rushed for 479 yards on 98 carries (4.9 per carry) and 13 catches for 194 yards enroute to being named CIF Division II second team. He elevated his game a year later, rushing for 1,397 yards on 225 carries (6.2 yards per carry) with 18 touchdowns and was named CIF Division II first-team all-league, All-San Gabriel Valley first team, All-Inland Valley team, L.A. Times All-Area Team, and San Gabriel Valley Tribune All-Area team. His efforts on the defensive end was also recognized as he was named CIF Division II All-CIF as a strong safety. During his senior season, the Damien HS team captain set school records in rushing yards and point scored with 1,751 yards and 282 points, respectively. He had 220 carries during his final year and reached the endzone 23 times. As a defender, Johnson tallied 66 tackles, two interceptions, four fumble recoveries and six sacks. Johnson also took home several honors as a senior, which includes individual awards like the Inland Valley Offensive Player of the Year award and the All-Sierra League MVP award, as well as team awards such as a spot at the L.A. Times All-San Gabriel Valley first team, San Gabriel Valley Tribune All-Area first team, Daily Bulletin Inland Valley All-Area Team, and the CIF Division II first-team all-league. For three years, Johnson has accumulated 3,627 rushing yards and 45 touchdowns to complete an impressive high school career.
[edit] College
Johnson signed with Boise State in February 2004.
[edit] 2004
Redshirted.
[edit] 2005
Johnson was part of Boise State’s tailback by committee during his redshirt freshman year. He led the Broncos in rushing in their first five games, and in seven of Boise State's 13 games. He also turned in a lone 100-yard game for the season, registering 103 yards to go with one touchdown against Lousiana Tech. He finished his first collegiate playing year with 663 rushing yards, good for second in the team and fourth-most in school history as a freshman (behind Cedric Minter's 877, Chris Thomas' 818 and Terry Zahner's 724). He also had four touchdown runs and caught four passes for 21 yards.
[edit] 2006
Johnson moved quickly unto the spotlight during his sophomore year after being named into The Sporting News Preseason All-WAC Team and one of the 10 "Players to Watch" for the 2006 Walter Camp Player of the Year Award. After producing just 89 rushing yards on season-low 13 carries in the opener against Sacramento State, Johnson returned strong the following week on a televised game against Oregon state wherein he tore the Beaver defense for 240 rush yards (third most in school history) on 22 carries with 5 touchdowns (tied a school record and was the most in a single game by any player that season) to lead Boise State to a 42-14 win. He also averaged 10.9 yards per carry (school's 8th most all-time for a single game), collected 261 all-purpose yards (tied for 9th in school records) and had one catch for 21 yards against the Beavers. His efforts won him the Walter Camp Football Foundation National 1-A Offensive Player of the Week, CollegeSportReport.com 1-A Performer of the Week and WAC Offensive Player of the Week honors. In a game against Hawai'i, Johnson earned another Offensive Player of the Week recognition after rushing for 178 yards and two touchdowns to lead the Broncos to a 41-34 win. In Boise State's back-to-back wins over New Mexico State and Idaho, Johnson scored 4 touchdowns apiece (4 scores tied for third most in a single game) while registering his 4th and 5th of nine 100-plus rush yard games for the season. In a November game against San Jose State, Johnson rushed for 149 yards on 29 attempts with two touchdowns despite suffering a partially collapsed lung early in the second quarter. After missing the following game, Johnson came back against Nevada and registered 147 yards and three TDs on the ground to help Boise State clinch a BCS bowl berth in the season finale. Johnson's impressive showing in his sophomore year was capped by the Broncos' 43-42 Tostitos Fiesta Bowl victory over Oklahoma where he carried 24 times for 100 yards and one score.
Johnson was named first-team All-America by SI.com and CBS SportsLine.com, 2nd team All-America by the Sporting News, third-team All-America by the Associated Press, and first-team All-WAC. He also finished eighth in the Heisman Trophy voting and was named a semifinalist for the Doak Walker Award. Johnson also led the nation in scoring (12.67 ppg) and touchdowns (25) and was second in rushing (142.83 ypg), and fifth in all-purpose rushing (147.42 ypg). He also led the league in rushing and scoring, while finishing second in all-purpose yards and ninth in total offense (142.83 ypg). His 1,713 rushing yards (277 carries) for the season was a school single-season record and was fourth in the nation.
[edit] 2007
Johnson's third year was all-hyped after a remarkable sophomore season. He was named preseason third-team All-America by Nationalchamps.net and was picked as a member of the preseason All-WAC team by the Sporting News, Blue Ribbon Yearbook and CollegeFootballNews.com. He entered his junior year as third in the nation among active players in career rushing touchdowns with 26 and fourth in career total touchdowns with 26.
[edit] Highlights
| Ian Johnson talks about his upcoming wedding (clip was taken on Tuesday, July 24, 2007) and about Boise State football. |
[edit] Achievements
[edit] 2006
- First-team All-America by SI.com and CBS SportsLine.com
- Second-team All-America by the Sporting News
- Third-team All-America by the Associated Press
- First-team All-WAC
- Finished eighth in the Heisman Trophy voting
- Doak Walker Award Semifinalist
- One of 10 "Players to Watch" for the Walter Camp Player of the Year Award
- One-time Walter Camp Football Foundation National 1-A Offensive Player of the Week
- One-time CollegeSportReport.com 1-A Performer of the Week
- Two-time WAC Offensive Player of the Week
- Sporting News Preseason All-WAC Team
[edit] References
- Boise State's Ian Johnson returns for another run
- Ian Johnson Boise State Profile
- Ian Johnson Wikipedia
