By Tony Williams
UT Sports Information
When Inky Johnson fell to the ground after tackling Air Force’s Justin Handley in Tennessee’s second game last season, very little was immediately known about his injury. Tennessee’s medical staff and those at the University of Tennessee Medical Center worked through the night to properly diagnose and care for the fallen football star.
If there was one thing that his coaches, teammates and family thought they could be sure of, it was that Johnson would no longer make an impact on Tennessee football.
“It was scary,” Johnson said. “I was out for a minute and then to see everything going on at the hospital, it kind of hit me. I was pretty seriously hurt. But I had a lot of support from teammates and coaches. I knew I could fight through it.”
In the months that followed, it was determined that Johnson had suffered nerve damage in his right shoulder and arm and that he would likely never play football again. Johnson went through two surgeries, one early the morning after the Air Force game and another three months later in Rochester, Minn.
“I was thinking a lot about things,” Johnson said. “I have always believed that you can't just look at your current situation in life, you have to look to your destination.”
The destination he looked to in the days between his surgeries is still a good distance down the road, but Johnson is making the most of his journey.
He is now more than a year removed from the injury, back in the locker room and on the practice field with the Vols. He is visibly weaker on the right side of his upper body, and a black brace still adorns his right arm and shoulder. He has not played a single down of football, but he is still making Tennessee a better team.
“I developed relationships with a lot of the guys that will last a long time,” Johnson said. “We talk about being totally committed. I felt like if I didn't stick around the program that I wouldn't be totally committed to them or to myself. Even if all I can do is stand around and encourage them, then that’s what I should be doing.”
Johnson currently serves as a player-coach of sorts, except that he doesn't play. He can be found daily in the film room helping the defensive backs scout opponents. He spends his weekday afternoons on the practice field pulling players aside and instructing them on pass coverages and techniques. He is often overheard at the training table asking a young player if he needs help with school, football or the demands associated with juggling both.
Johnson promised himself and his family that he would get his degree when he signed with Tennessee in 2004. He has always loved the game of football, so it was an easy decision for him to stay in school and continue to be a part of the football program.
“I couldn't turn my back on football,” Johnson said. “What would I have become? It goes both ways. I am hopefully a help to the team, but getting to stay around the game has been a help for me.”
Make no mistake though; the injury has been hard on Johnson. He talks very little about it, but he will say where he goes to find his strength. He named his mother, Ruby Lewis, and his uncle, Thurmon Clark, as two people who have helped him deal with the emotions of a career-ending injury.
“I think there are days when it is very hard on him,” Lewis said. “He gets frustrated. I can hear it in his voice when he calls. But he knows what he has to do. Inky doesn't ever spend much time thinking about Inky. He is always more concerned with helping the people around him.”
“He is a warrior,” Clark said. “I think anybody that has gone through what he has gone through would get down about the situation every now and then. But he turns that into a positive influence on the other guys and the things they go through.”
The Tennessee program and its fans have a played a special role in Johnson’s recovery as well. College football fans can be a what-have-you-done-for-me-lately crowd, but Johnson found out that even though he was doing nothing on the football field, he was still in the hearts and minds of the Tennessee football family.
“It means more to me than they could ever imagine,” Johnson said. “I want to thank them for their support. I had no idea I would get that kind of support after my injury. Fans stop me and ask me how I’m doing every day, and I appreciate that very much.”
Johnson is slowly rebuilding strength in his upper body. He recently returned to Rochester and was told by doctors there that his rehabilitation is on schedule and going well. He expects to be out of the shoulder brace sometime in the next six months.
His right arm should be plenty strong enough to reach out and accept his diploma in May. Johnson will graduate with a degree in political science and a minor in health studies.
“He wanted a diploma more than anything when he signed with Tennessee,” Lewis said. “We always told him to concentrate on his school work first because football can be taken away from you, but your education is with you forever.”
Johnson agreed with his parents’ sentiments, but he has planned for a future in football as well. He will enroll in graduate school at Tennessee next year and serve in a more official coaching capacity as a graduate assistant in 2008.
“I've talked to the coaches about it and decided that is what I want to do,” Johnson said. “I love football, and I love it here at Tennessee. I want to continue to be a positive influence for the guys and work toward a coaching career.”
As it turns out, Johnson’s injury in the Air Force game was nowhere near the end of his impact on Tennessee football.
“People ask about Inky all the time,” Lewis said. “They ask me if it’s over for him. I tell them exactly what he told me. ‘No, this is just the beginning.’”
(E-mail Stan Crawley at wscrawley@earthlink.net)