Pete
Johnson (born in March 2, 1954 in Peach County, Georgia.) is a former
college and professional American football running back. He spent
8 seasons in the NFL, primarily with the Cincinnati
Bengals. Before
his NFL career,
Johnson played for the Ohio
State Buckeyes.
College career
Johnson played fullback for Ohio State from 1973 through 1976.
In 1973,
starting fullback Champ Henson was injured and converted linebacker
Bruce
Elia was named to start in Henson's place. By the end of that season,
however, freshman fullback Pete Johnson had worked his way up the
depth
chart. In 1974, Elia returned to the linebacker corps and Henson
and
Johnson alternated at fullback.
Although tailback Archie Griffin got most of the carries from
1972 to 1975,
the Ohio State fullbacks still got the ball frequently and were
expected to
be major contributors, particularly in short-yardage situations.
In 1972
the teams leading scorer was Henson, and in 1973 it was Elia. Johnson's
best season was in 1975. Even though Griffin led the team with
1,450
rushing yards, Johnson still rushed for 1,059 yards and set single
OSU
single season records for rushing touchdowns (25) and scoring (156
points).
One of Johnson's more notable performances was a game against
the
University of North Carolina in 1974. While Griffin rushed for
157 yards,
Johnson rushed for 148 yards and set a school record with five
touchdowns.
Johnson finished his career at Ohio State with 2,308 rushing yards
and a
school record 58 touchdowns. His 348 points was also a Buckeyes
record
until surpassed by kicker Mike Nugent.'s 356 points in 2004.
In 2000, Johnson was selected for the Ohio State Football All-Century
Team.
On September 8th, 2007, during halftime of the Ohio State vs Akron
Game,
Johnson was inducted into Ohio State's Athletics Hall of Fame.
NFL career
A superb rusher and blocker, Johnson excelled at running back
for the
Bengals. He was the team's leading rusher for all 7 seasons he
played for
them, and scored 12 or more rushing touchdowns in 3 different seasons.
His
best season was in 1981, where he made his only pro bowl selection.
Johnson
set career highs in rushing(1,077 yards), receptions(46), receiving
yards
(320) and touchdowns(16), assisting the team to a 12-4 record.
In the
postseason, Johnson helped the team record their first ever playoff
win by
rushing for 45 yards, catching 3 passes for 23 yards, and scoring
a
touchdown in the team's 28-21 divisional victory over the Buffalo
Bills.
Then in the AFC title game(known in NFL Lore as the Freezer
Bowl),
Johnson
rushed for 80 yards and a touchdown, while also catching a 14-yard
reception as the team defeated the San Diego Chargers 27-7 to earn
their
first ever Super Bowl appearance. However, the team lost Super
Bowl XVI to
the San Francisco 49ers 26-21, and Johnson was limited to just
36 rushing
yards and 8 receiving yards in the game.
In 1984, Johnson was traded to the Chargers in exchange for running
back
James Brooks. He left Cincinnati as their all-time leader in rushing
yards
(5,421), touchdowns(70), and their second all-time leading scorer
with 420
points. Johnson spent the first 3 games of the 1984 season with
Chargers
and spent the final 13 games with Miami before retiring after the
season
ended.
In his 8 NFL seasons, Johnson rushed for 5,626 yards, caught 175
passes for
1,334 yards, and scored 82 touchdowns(76 rushing and 6 receiving).
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