Skip to content
Sections
  • Obituaries
  • eEdition
  • Popular Content
  • Submit a Tip
Dispatch Mobile Logo
Share
Subscribe
Login
August 9, 2022
  • QUICK LINKS
  • Obituaries
  • eEdition
  • Popular Content
  • Submit a Tip
  • News
  • Columbus & Lowndes County
  • Starkville & Oktibbeha County
  • West Point & Clay County
  • Area
  • State
  • National
  • Business
  • Sports
  • High School Sports
  • College Sports
  • Local Columns
  • eEdition
  • Opinions
  • Local Columns
  • Letters to the Editor
  • Roses & Thorns
  • Dispatch Editorials
  • Obituaries
  • Lifestyles
  • Columns
  • Entertainment
  • Food
  • Transitions & Announcements
  • Community
  • Religion
  • Classifieds
  • Photo Galleries
  • Public Records
  • Building Permits
  • Marriages & Divorces
August 9, 2022
Dispatch Logo

Open eyes, open minds.

Home » Sports » Local Sports » Johnson selected to play with Notre Dame alumni team

Johnson selected to play with Notre Dame alumni team

By Dispatch Editorial Board • June 17, 2009

 • 3 mins to read

Johnson selected to play with Notre Dame alumni team

Coming out of high school, Jay Johnson was good enough in the eyes of Lou Holtz to play football at Notre Dame.

Johnson signed with Notre Dame after playing on back-to-back undefeated state championship teams at Starkville High School, and went on to letter as a receiver from 1997-2000.

Nine years after donning the gold helmet of the Irish, Johnson again is good enough in the eyes of Holtz to represent Notre Dame on the football field.

The 31-year old Johnson, a 1996 graduate of Starkville High, has been chosen by Holtz as one of 60 former Notre Dame players who will make up an alumni team that will travel to Tokyo, Japan, to play the Japanese National Team.

“It”s a great honor,” Johnson said. “It”s another opportunity for me to put on the gold helmet and go out and represent the tradition of Notre Dame. I”m going to try to help keep the winning tradition going. I know the past couple of years they”ve had some up-and-down seasons, but it”s still Notre Dame, and it”s still the greatest place to play college football in my opinion.”

Holtz will coach the alumni team that will play July 25 at the Tokyo Dome.

The team will conduct training camp July 17-19 and then leave for Tokyo to prepare for the game.

Japan is celebrating its 75th year of football, making the game against Notre Dame an anniversary game.

“They”re going to put together a great team, and we”ve done the same thing, so it should be a good game,” Johnson said.

In addition to Johnson, the Notre Dame legends team will include national championship winning quarterback Tony Rice, Notre Dame all-time leading rusher Autry Denson, and All-America center Tim Ruddy.

Johnson was chosen for the team after participating in a tryout on the Notre Dame campus the weekend of Notre Dame”s spring Blue-Gold game on April 18.

It will be the second time Johnson will go out of the country. The first also was courtesy of Notre Dame when it played Navy in Ireland.

“It will be great to go there and experience their culture and just see a different perspective of life,” Johnson said.

Johnson caught 15 passes for 312 yards and three touchdowns at Notre Dame. He had his best season as a junior in 1999 when he caught six passes for 109 yards and two touchdowns.

“That was one of the best times of my life,” Johnson said of playing at Notre Dame. “All of my memories aren”t the greatest, but like with anything in life there are ups and downs. There”s nothing like the pride you feel when you wear that gold helmet and you”re down in that tunnel ready to come out for a game on Saturday.”

Johnson lives in South Bend, Ind., with his wife, Emily, and sons Tyler, 11, and Jason, 6. His wife is from South Bend.

He teaches at Dickinson Fine Arts Academy, a middle school, and is a football coach at Washington High School in South Bend. He primarily coaches the wide receivers, but also works with the quarterbacks and defensive backs.

“It”s fairly new to me,” Johnson said of coaching. “This will be my second year. Last year we were 7-3 and the year before they were 0-10. We”re trying to change the expectations and raise the standards. We”re trying to develop them into formidable young men.”

Before going to Tokyo, Johnson will return to Starkville on Thursday and help Friday and Saturday at Starkville High”s football camp.

newsletter

The Dispatch delivers the most in-depth, responsible journalism straight to your inbox. Sign up here.

The Dispatch Editorial Board is made up of publisher Peter Imes, columnist Slim Smith, managing editor Zack Plair and senior newsroom staff.

NULL

You can help your community

Quality, in-depth journalism is essential to a healthy community. The Dispatch brings you the most complete reporting and insightful commentary in the Golden Triangle, but we need your help to continue our efforts. Please consider subscribing to our website for only $2.30 per week to help support local journalism and our community.

Subscribe

READER FAVORITES

  • Mississippi State football notebook: Bulldogs don pads Sunday to cap first weekend of camp

    By Theo DeRosa • 24 hours ago

  • Ole Miss football ranked No. 24, Mississippi State receiving votes in first USA TODAY coaches poll

    By Theo DeRosa • 20 hours ago

  • Prep roundup: Oak Hill Academy softball outlasted in extra innings

    Prep roundup: Oak Hill Academy softball outlasted in extra innings

    By Theo DeRosa • 43 mins ago

Popular

LCSD proposed $29.4M budget would cause tax hike

August 8, 2022

Mississippi State football notebook: Bulldogs don pads Sunday to cap first weekend of camp

August 8, 2022

Monday Profile: Adeline Rollins’ recovery from liver transplant surgery has been remarkable

August 8, 2022

Starkville’s run in Little League Southwest Regional ends with walk-off loss

August 8, 2022




On This Day 2021

J. Martin Tucker: Why now is the time to get vaccinated

J. Martin Tucker: Why now is the time to get vaccinated

By J. Martin Tucker

Featured Podcast

The C Dispatch Podcast

Dispatch

Sections

  • News
  • Sports
  • Opinions
  • Lifestyles
  • Obituaries

Info

  • About
  • Contact
  • Submit a Tip
  • Terms & Service
  • Popular Content

Contact

Main Switchboard:

(662) 328-2424

Physical Address:

516 Main Street
Columbus, MS 39701

Mailing Address:

PO Box 511
Columbus, MS 39701

cdispatch.com © 2022 – The Commerical Dispatch

We use cookies on our website to give you the most relevant experience by remembering your preferences and repeat visits. By clicking “Accept”, you consent to the use of ALL the cookies.
Cookie settingsACCEPT
Manage consent

Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.
Necessary
Always Enabled
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. These cookies ensure basic functionalities and security features of the website, anonymously.
CookieDurationDescription
cookielawinfo-checbox-analytics11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Analytics".
cookielawinfo-checbox-functional11 monthsThe cookie is set by GDPR cookie consent to record the user consent for the cookies in the category "Functional".
cookielawinfo-checbox-others11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Other.
cookielawinfo-checkbox-necessary11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookies is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Necessary".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-performance11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Performance".
viewed_cookie_policy11 monthsThe cookie is set by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin and is used to store whether or not user has consented to the use of cookies. It does not store any personal data.
Functional
Functional cookies help to perform certain functionalities like sharing the content of the website on social media platforms, collect feedbacks, and other third-party features.
Performance
Performance cookies are used to understand and analyze the key performance indexes of the website which helps in delivering a better user experience for the visitors.
Analytics
Analytical cookies are used to understand how visitors interact with the website. These cookies help provide information on metrics the number of visitors, bounce rate, traffic source, etc.
Advertisement
Advertisement cookies are used to provide visitors with relevant ads and marketing campaigns. These cookies track visitors across websites and collect information to provide customized ads.
Others
Other uncategorized cookies are those that are being analyzed and have not been classified into a category as yet.
SAVE & ACCEPT