Stillwater’s Johnson giving back to adopted hometown
STILLWATER — Charlie Johnson needed a year to recover.
A nine-year NFL career takes a toll on a body, and Johnson had earned a break. But for only one year. It’s all he could take. It’s all his family could handle.
“It was time to come out,” Johnson said as he laughed.
Two years later, Johnson has found a pretty good second life on a football field as the offensive line coach for Stillwater High School.
A former Oklahoma State standout who would later win a Super Bowl as a rookie with Indianapolis, Johnson is like several other former OSU and Oklahoma players in the state. He’s giving back at a grassroots level to the sport that gave him so much.
And he's doing it in his adopted hometown.
“I know my situation was rare,” Johnson said. “There’s going to be maybe one or two kids that move on and do what I did.
“I just remember my experience growing up from youth football to high school, so many people who helped me out and influenced me. They didn’t know what I was going to turn out to be. They were just there to influence me and give me the tools. That’s what I try to be.”
Johnson grew up in Sherman, Texas, before coming to OSU.
It was there that he fell in love with Stillwater. He met his wife. The plan after the NFL was to return to the community either way.
“It’s just been so good,” Johnson said.
And Johnson has never been happier. He’s near his alma mater raising two young sons with his wife. Life after the NFL is good.
“I’ve been blessed to be in this situation to where I was able to retire young and healthy and have an awesome family,” Johnson said. “I’m truly blessed. When you have the blessings I have, it would be foolish not to enjoy it.”