Before Tim Tebow, before Danny Werrful, before Steve Spurier there was this guy....

From the Florida Times -Union

by Mark Woods

With the University of Florida kicking off another football season Saturday, it seemed like the perfect time to catch up with a former Gator player. Local kid. Played his high school ball in St. Augustine. Did a little bit of everything in Gainesville, creating a thick scrapbook full of memories, then moved on to even bigger things.

No, this isn't another Tim Tebow story.

Long before Tebow was born - long before Tebow's parents were born - the Jacksonville Journal ran a photo of this local kid. The caption said:

St. Augustine has never provided any superior football material for the University of Florida eleven than it sent to Gainesville in the person of Bobby Johnson.

That was 1939, the start of Johnson's junior season at UF. And if you think it was impressive that Tebow could pass and run his way to a Heisman Trophy and the NFL draft, consider what Bob Johnson did at UF and beyond.

He was a tailback. But he didn't just carry the football. He kicked it and returned it. He led the Gators in yards and scoring his sophomore season. And his best sport, or at least the one that led to talk about him becoming a pro player, was baseball.

But after he graduated in 1941, he didn't go into a draft. He joined the Marine Corps and became part of "The Fighting Corsairs," a squadron that in World War II shot down 137 enemy aircraft, fourth most in Marine Corps aviation history.

"Flying and the Gators," said Shirley Johnson, his wife of 55 years. "Those are his first loves. It's a tie."

Bob Johnson turned 91 last month. He and Shirley live in south Jacksonville Beach. And one of their neighbors, Cyndi Briggs, suggested we do a story about Johnson, partly because he's such a fascinating man and partly because he's the oldest living Gator football player.

After spending some time at the Johnsons' house, I can confirm the first part of that. He is fascinating. The second part is harder to confirm. Norm Carlson, UF assistant athletic director and historian, says he hesitates to call anyone the oldest living player, for fear that the second you make such a statement you're bound to hear from someone older.

So put it this way: Bob Johnson certainly is one of the oldest living Gator football players.

When he greets me at his front door, the first thing I think is he looks great for 91. The second is that he looks small to be a former Gator player. And when he extends his hand, he makes a quip about how I shouldn't be intimidated by his size.

As a college freshman, he was 5-foot-6 and 160 pounds. And 70 years later, that hasn't changed much. The game, of course, has. When he played, offensive linemen weighed less than 200 pounds. And, yes, they all wore leather helmets.

"This was my face mask," he says, tapping his nose.

He shows me a scrapbook full of brittle, yellowed newspaper clippings. His mother kept it for him. Some of the clips are from his days playing for St. Augustine Ketterlinus. Many are from his days at UF.

A victory over undefeated Boston College. An Atlanta Journal sports section that previewed the start of one college football season and featured photos of three Southern stars, including one Bobby Johnson. A headline from one of the local papers that said, "Johnson Draws Most of Cheers of Gators Fans."

When I pointed to that last one, Johnson said: "I had a good roommate. He got the crowd chanting, 'We want Johnson! We want Johnson!' "

Maybe so. But when they got Johnson, the story says he delivered.

Most of the cheers were for Bobby Johnson, a hard-driving little back who never seemed to stop trying. Even with three or four Sewanee players hanging (on) to him, Johnson would wriggle forward for a few more yards.

His sophomore season turned out to be his best. There was a coaching change and, he says, the new coach wanted bigger running backs. So it's safe to say that some other kids who came out of St. Augustine, including one named Tebow, might have become slightly more famous during their UF careers.

Johnson tells the story of signing an autograph for someone a few years ago - and adds with a laugh that he wanted to keep the autograph because it was the only one he's ever signed.

But he certainly created his share of memories. And not just in the Marine Corps. After retiring from the military, he spent more than 20 years as a social studies teacher and athletic director at Landon Junior High.

"People still stop him in public and thank him," said Briggs, his neighbor. "He's a wonderful role model for my two sons. You'll never hear him or Shirley say anything negative about anybody."

OK, maybe there is some gentle ribbing of a Georgia fan.

After all, he is still a Gator. Until a few years ago, he and Shirley went to all the Gator home games. But 70 years after his final game at UF, he has slowed down a bit. So on Saturday, they'll be watching at home.

Another college football season is here. And Bobby Johnson is ready for it.

"When the national championship game ends, I always have a letdown," he said. "I need football."