Larry Johnson (football player)

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Larry Johnson
Larry Johnson at the 2006 Xbox Fall Showcase promotional event
Date of birth	November 19, 1979 (age 27)
Place of birth	La Plata, Maryland
Height	6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)
Weight	230 lb (105 kg)
Position(s)	Running Back
College	Penn State
NFL Draft	2003 / Round 1 / Pick 27
Career Highlights
Pro Bowls	2005, 2006
Awards	2002 Doak Walker Award 2002 Maxwell Award 2002 Walter Camp Award
Stats
Statistics	Pro Football Reference CBS.com DatabaseFootball
Team(s)
2003-present	Kansas City Chiefs

Larry Alphonso Johnson, Jr. (born November 19, 1979 in La Plata, Maryland), often nicknamed as L.J., is an American football running back who plays for the Kansas City Chiefs of the National Football League.

Contents 1 Family 2 Pound Ball and high school career 3 Penn State career 4 NFL career 5 Touchdown celebration/endorsement deal 6 Records 6.1 NFL 7 Career statistics 8 References 9 Further reading 10 External links

[edit] Family

Johnson is the oldest of three children, born to Christine and Larry Johnson, Sr. His parents emphasized academic excellence before athletic greatness. His father, Larry Johnson, Sr., is a former high school vice-principal, and the current defensive line coach at Penn State University. A legendary prep coach in the state of Maryland, the elder Johnson is a six-time Coach-of-the-Year, and architect of the winningest football program in the Maryland public school system during the 1980s. Johnson, Sr's. teams at Maurice J. McDonough High School were ranked every year among the top scholastic squads in the Washington, DC metropolitan area from 1983-91. In his final eight years, the Ram dynasty amassed an 82-10 record, made eight consecutive appearances in the state playoffs, was 8-2 overall in championship action and captured three Division 3A state championships. His overall record as head coach is 139-36.

Johnson and his father maintain a very close relationship; he has referred to his father as his 'best friend' in several interviews. Johnson's brother, Tony, was a starting wide receiver for Penn State.

[edit] Pound Ball and high school career

Johnson showed promise at a young age. Growing up in Charles County, Maryland, he was a standout linebacker/defensive end and running back for the La Plata Blue Knights. At State College Area High School in State College, Pennsylvania, he rushed for 2,159 yards. As a defensive end for the Little Lions, he recorded seven sacks and 31.0 tackles.

[edit] Penn State career

In 2002, Johnson rushed for over 2,000 yards in a season without winning the Heisman Trophy, despite doing so with fewer carries than any other running back in the exclusive 2,000 yard club. Johnson's 8.02 yards per carry broke 1983 Heisman Trophy winner Mike Rozier's NCAA record for highest average per carry over the course of the regular season. Remarkably, Johnson broke the Penn State record for rushing yards in a game three times in 2002. His 257 yards in a 49-0 home thrashing of Northwestern broke Curt Warner's previous record of 256 yards set against Syracuse in 1981. Johnson then went on to rack up 279 yards in an 18-7 home win against Illinois and 327 yards in a 58-25 road win against Indiana. Johnson surpassed the 2,000 mark by gaining 279 yards on just 19 attempts in the Nittany Lions' final Big Ten conference game against Michigan State. Fans in attendance at Beaver Stadium that day were mesmerized as Johnson gained all 279 of his rushing yards in the first half; he was kept on the bench for the entire second half of the game out of respect for the over-matched opponent.

Penn State fans were outraged when Johnson did not win the 2002 Heisman Trophy, leading many of them to believe that the snubbing of the undefeated 1994 team in the national championship balloting and Johnson in 2002 evidenced a media-bias against Penn State. Others believe that Penn State's failure to hype and promote Johnson's Heisman campaign in 2002 had more to do with his failure to take home the Heisman Trophy than any media bias against Penn State. Penn State coach Joe Paterno emphasises the team over individual players and does not allow Penn State to engage in Heisman Trophy marketing campaigns for his players.

Johnson, however, did win the Doak Walker Award (top running back), the Maxwell Award (top college player), and Walter Camp Award (top college player) after his impressive 2002 season.

He earned a Bachelor of Arts in Integrative Arts from Penn State in 2002.

[edit] NFL career

Johnson was originally drafted as insurance for the Chiefs, who were not sure if Priest Holmes would be healthy or even sign a contract extension. Johnson was drafted over the objection of coach Dick Vermeil, who wanted to select a defensive player.

The conflicts between Johnson and Vermeil grew, and in 2004 Vermeil said that Johnson needed to grow up and "take the diapers off."[1] Johnson took great offense to this comment, and the public estrangement led to rumors that he would be traded. However, towards the end of the 2004 season, Johnson got an opportunity to start after injuries to Holmes and Derrick Blaylock. He became the first player to begin his career rushing for 150 yards in each of his first three games. He would probably have started for most NFL teams, but had the misfortune of playing behind one of the NFL's best running backs.

Facing the same situation in 2005, with Blaylock gone and Holmes having gone down with a season-ending neck injury in early November, Johnson stepped up, and on November 20 against the Houston Texans ran for a Chiefs' record 211 rushing yards and two touchdowns. He led the league in rushing yards and touchdowns after the injury to Holmes.

At the end of the 2005 regular season, Johnson had nine consecutive games with 100+ rushing yards, passing the 100 yard mark in every start for the Chiefs that season and earning a Pro Bowl berth.[2] During the final game of the 2005 regular season, Johnson set a new franchise record of 1750 rushing yards in one season, despite not starting 7 games during the season. He eclipsed the mark previously held by Holmes. In addition to his running ability, Johnson was an adept receiver. In 2005, Johnson caught 33 balls for 343 yards, averaging over 10 yards per reception.

Johnson was also named the 2005 MVP of the Kansas City Chiefs. The Chiefs' record in 2005 was 10-6, not making the playoffs in spite of a winning record.

With injuries limiting Holmes during the last two seasons, coupled with Johnson's ascent to the level of elite NFL backs, Johnson began the 2006 season as Kansas City's featured back.

[edit] Touchdown celebration/endorsement deal

Johnson is known for flashing "The Roc" symbol also known as the "Diamond Cutter" whenever he scores a rushing touchdown. This symbol is made with both palms facing out and touching both thumbs together and both index fingers together. Recently Johnson signed a contract with the Team Roc clothing line founded by Jay-Z.[3] The first appearance of that was after he scored a touchdown in a game on December 4, 2005 (which happens to be Jay-Z's birthday).

“Some people have Nike contracts, Reebok contracts, I don’t have either or,” Johnson said. “I’ve got Team Roc, that’s Jay-Z, Damon Dash... That’s their Nike or Reebok. I’m signed under that.” [4]

There was speculation that in the near future Johnson may put the symbol "on hold" due to the fact that Jay-Z is currently being sued by professional wrestler Diamond Dallas Page who accuses Jay-Z of copyright infringement, also due to the fact that the NFL has recently strengthened enforcement on endzone celebrations for the 2006 NFL Season. The speculation was put to rest when Johnson resumed using the celebration when he scored his first touchdown in week four of the 2006 season.

[edit] Records

[edit] NFL

• Holds the all-time NFL record for single season rushing attempts (416).^[1]
• Holds the all-time NFL record for most consecutive rushing touchdowns for a team without a teammate scoring a rushing touchdown (34).

[edit] Career statistics

¹Led league ²Second place ³Third place †Tied Rushing Receiving Total Year Team G Att Yds Avg TD Rec Yds Avg TD Yds TD 2003 Kansas City 6 20 85 4.3 1 1 2 2.0 0 87 1 2004 Kansas City 10 120 581 4.8 9 22 278 12.6 2 859 11 2005 Kansas City 16 336 1,750³ 5.2 20² 33 343 10.4 1 2,092² 21² 2006 Kansas City 16 416¹ 1,789² 4.3 17² 41 410 10 2 2199³ 19² Total 48 823 3,618 4.65 43 86 972 11.3 5 4,589 48

Abbreviations: G = Games played Att = Attempts Rec = Receptions Yds = Yards Avg = Average yards per attempt TD = Touchdowns

[edit] References

1. ^ Chiefs Make Surprising Run To Playoffs from NBC5.com

[edit] Further reading

• "RB Larry Johnson a Work of Art On and Off the Field", Kansas City Chiefs, December 7, 2005. Retrieved on November 19, 2006.
• Dillon, Dennis. "Johnson is so old school, he's new school", SportingNews, August 15, 2006. Retrieved on November 19, 2006.

[edit] External links

Profiles

• NFL.com
• KCChiefs.com
• NFLPlayers.com
• Yahoo! Sports

Preceded by Ken Dorsey	Maxwell Award 2002	Succeeded by Eli Manning
Preceded by Luke Staley	Doak Walker Award 2002	Succeeded by Chris Perry
Preceded by Eric Crouch	Walter Camp Award 2002	Succeeded by Larry Fitzgerald
Preceded by Priest Holmes	Kansas City Chiefs running back 2005-present	Succeeded by incumbent