Thomas Johnson (American football coach)
Thomas Fairfax Johnson (March 10, 1917 – March 21, 2007), nicknamed "Lil Professor", was a Negro league baseball player and American football coach.[1] He served as the head football coach at Howard University from 1953 to 1956.[2]
 | |
| Biographical details | |
|---|---|
| Born | March 10, 1917 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania |
| Died | March 21, 2007 (aged 90) Silver Spring, Maryland |
| Alma mater | Springfield (MA) |
| Playing career | |
| Football | |
| 1946 | New York Brown Bombers |
| Baseball | |
| 1940 | Philadelphia Stars |
| 1950 | Indianapolis Clowns |
| Coaching career (HC unless noted) | |
| Football | |
| 1953–1956 | Howard |
| Baseball | |
| 1949 | Howard |
| 1957–1959 | Howard |
| Administrative career (AD unless noted) | |
| 1963 | Pittsburgh Pirates (scout) |
| Head coaching record | |
| Overall | 12–22–2 (football) 61–35 (baseball) |
A native of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Johnson received his undergraduate degree from Springfield College in 1940, and played for the Philadelphia Stars that summer, posting a 3–4 record over 41.1 innings. After serving in the USO during World War II,[3] Johnson became a coach at Howard in 1946, and received a graduate degree from New York University in 1947. He received his Ph.D. from the University of Maryland in 1967, and served as a professor of physiology at Howard from 1962 to 1978.[4]
Johnson died in Silver Spring, Maryland in 2007 at age 90.
References
- "Thomas Johnson". Baseball-Reference. Retrieved July 10, 2018.
- "Howard Professor Thomas Johnson". Washington Post. March 25, 2007. Retrieved July 10, 2018.
- "Thomas Johnson (college coach)". baseball-reference.com. Retrieved August 4, 2020.
- "Thomas Johnson". nlbemuseum.com. Retrieved August 4, 2020.
External links
- Career statistics and player information from Baseball-Reference (Minors) and Seamheads
- Thomas Johnson at Negro Leagues Baseball Museum
- Thomas Johnson at Find a Grave