Legendary Halfback Named to State Sports Hall of Fame
3/31/2005 12:00:00 AM | Football
SOUTHFIELD, Mich. -- Ron Johnson, a former University of Michigan football All-American and the Big Ten's Most Valuable Football Player in 1968, was today (Thursday, March 31) named to the Michigan Sports Hall of Fame. He is the 19th former Wolverine football player and 37th U-M sports figure to be enshrined into the state's Hall of Fame.
| | Johnson carried 31 times for 347 yards and five TDs in a 1968 win over Wisconsin. |
Twice voted U-M football captain, Johnson also set Michigan season (1,391) and career (2,440) rushing records. He scored more points in a season (92) and had more touchdowns (5) and points (30) in a game than any player at that point in Big Ten history. He was also named State of Michigan Amateur Athlete of the Year in 1968.
He also received the 1968 U-M Big Ten Conference Medal of Honor for Scholarship and Athletics.
Johnson, a graduate of Detroit Northwestern High School, was drafted in the first round by the Cleveland Browns of the NFL in 1969 and went on to play five more years with the New York Giants. A member of the National Football Foundation and College Hall of Fame in South Bend, Ind., Johnson also was named the Michigan Hall of Honor in 1989.
Johnson currently resides in New Jersey and works with Kentucky Fried Chicken as a business executive and franchise owner.
The group of nine will be inducted Sept. 22 in Detroit (site to be determined). The other members of the class of 2005 are:
Contributor -- Detroit Lions owner William Clay Ford Sr.
Pros -- Paul Krause (NFL), Julie Krone (jockey) and Calvin Peete (golf)
Legends -- Johnny Kline (basketball) and the late Leo Diegel (golf)
Coach -- George Perles, Michigan State football
Media -- Jack Moss, sports editor of the Kalamazoo Gazette
Michigan Sports Hall of Fame Site
Contact: Bruce Madej (734) 763-4423
