Former Cambridge Wolverine overcomes the odds, sets sights on the NFL
On the cusp of realizing a lifelong dream, Canadian Theo Johnson’s path to the National Football League (NFL) is a story of hardship and triumph.
Johnson is one of the top tight end prospects coming into this week’s NFL Draft. The 23-year-old is coming off his fourth NCAA season at Penn State, but before excelling in the sport of football Johnson was first introduced to the game in Cambridge, Ont.
Johnson grew up with his mother Amy and five brothers. At a young age the family endured a stretch of domestic violence at the hands of Theo’s father.
After her separation, Amy signed the boys up in different recreational activities. For Theo, his outlet was football.
“It was obvious the kid loved football,” said Steve Amis, past president of the Cambridge Minor Football Association. “The whole family was tight-knit.”
Theo played for the Cambridge Wolverines, bouncing between multiple positions.
“He was a bigger kid for sure,” Amis told CTV News. “Always the first kid on the field, didn’t want to ever come off the field.”
Theo continued his football journey in Windsor after Amy was accepted into law school at the University of Windsor.
“Two law schools basically laughed her out of their offices and said 'sorry you have six children, you want to go to law school, don't waste our time,’” TSN football insider Dave Naylor told CTV News. “The third [school] said 'yes' and she was going to make that opportunity pay."
Amy went on to become a family lawyer and founded her own firm.
"Amy Johnson on her own is a story,” Naylor said. “If she never had a son who played football, her family story, her personal story is still a story worth telling.”
Theo went on to play at Holy Names High School in Windsor before moving on to Penn State. With this week’s draft opening in Detroit, some NFL scouts project Johnson to be one of the top prospects at his position.
“You see a player who has all the tools,” said Naylor. “He has speed, he has the athleticism, he has the strength, he has the hands, and he has the blocking. We think he’s going to be in that mix in the 2nd and 3rd rounds.”
Johnson’s talents bringing him closer to the game’s brightest stage. While his family’s success story stretches so far beyond the football field.
"I think a lot of the emotion of that family is going to be released when Theo Johnson is selected in the NFL Draft,” Naylor said. “[This is] on a very short list of the most incredible stories I’ve ever heard."
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Driver, 18, gets $3,000 ticket, 32 demerit points after speeding on Laval boulevard
A young driver received a hefty fine from Laval police after they say he was driving nearly 100 km/h over the posted speed limit.
This type of screen time has the worst effect on kids: experts
According to some experts, there is one type of screen time that is continuously excessive, and it's having a severe effect on our children.
Blaine Higgs 'furious' over sexual education presentation
New Brunswick Premier Blaine Higgs has shared his anger on social media over a presentation in at least four high schools.
Trump confronts repeated boos during raucous Libertarian convention speech
Donald Trump was booed repeatedly while addressing Saturday night’s Libertarian Party National Convention.
Grayson Murray, two-time PGA Tour winner, dead at 30
Two-time PGA Tour winner Grayson Murray died Saturday morning at age 30, one day after he withdrew from the Charles Schwab Cup Challenge at Colonial.
At least 9 dead in Texas, Oklahoma and Arkansas after severe weather roars across region
Powerful storms killed at least nine people and left a wide trail of destruction Sunday across Texas, Oklahoma and Arkansas after obliterating homes and destroying a truck stop where drivers took shelter during the latest deadly weather to strike the central U.S.
As Canada warms, infectious disease risks spread north
Cases of Lyme disease have now increased more than 1,000 per cent in a decade as the warming climate pushes the boundaries of a range of pathogens and risk factors northward.
12 people injured after Qatar Airways plane hits turbulence on way to Dublin
Twelve people were injured when a Qatar Airways plane flying from Doha to Dublin on Sunday hit turbulence, airport authorities said.
Why did the French Open cancel a farewell ceremony for Rafael Nadal? And why is he unseeded?
The French tennis federation put off holding a ceremony to celebrate Rafael Nadal at Roland Garros this year, because he has said this might not necessarily be his final appearance at the tournament he has won a record 14 times.