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Johnson, who played and coached at Amphitheater High School under Vern Friedli, was taking on perhaps the most difficult rebuilding job in Tucson football. The Rangers had just two winning seasons since 1974, but the 29-year-old graduate of NAU had a “bring it on attitude.�

He talked about the lineage of Rincon football coaches, and indeed it was impressive: Former UA football players Bill Lovin, Andy Rumic, Howard Breinig, Lance Prickett, ex-UA assistant coach Jeff Green and former Tucson High all-state running back Art Acosta had been the Rangers’ coaches since Rincon opened in 1958. And now Johnson, a former starting lineman at both Amphi and NAU, was full of energy at a decidedly non-football school. Bring it on.

Alas, Rincon opened 0-5 and later lost 84-12 to state powerhouse Sunnyside. I remember thinking that the first-year head coach had underestimated the challenge he so eagerly attacked.

What happened? Johnson went 7-3, 7-4 and 6-5 in his final three (of four seasons) at Rincon, coach-of-the-year stuff.

Today, Johnson, a high-level survivor, is the dean of high school football coaches in Tucson, beginning his 22nd season in a journey that has taken him from Rincon to Catalina Foothills to Ironwood Ridge and, since 2019, Mountain View. He won a state championship in 2012 at Ironwood Ridge. He even paused his head coaching career in 2007, spending more time at home to help his wife with their two young daughters.

Over the last 22 years, Johnson has seen his 2003 contemporaries — including Hall of Fame coaches Friedli, Dennis Bene, Richard Sanchez, Wayne Jones, Todd Mayfield and soon-to-be Hall of Famers Pat Nugent, Nemer Hassey and Jay Campos — come and go. And in Campos’ case at Mica Mountain, return to coaching after an eight-year hiatus. Johnson has 138 career victories, No. 9 in Tucson history.

I bring this to your attention because the longevity that ruled high school football coaching in Tucson (and elsewhere) in a previous generation is now a rarity. When the Tucson prep football season begins Aug. 22, it will be a time for introductions.

No longer are your neighborhood high school coaches familiar faces with familiar names. For example:

Johnson’s alma mater, Amphi, is led by first-year coach Stanley Richardson, who previously coached in Denver. At the helm of Cholla is first-year coach Roland Youngling, who played for Friedli at Amphi from 2008-10. Tucson High has second-year coach Zachary Neveleff. Catalina Foothills is led by Daniel Sainz, who is back after a two-year stint as head coach from 2021-23. Santa Rita is coached by second-year leader Douglas Smith. Palo Verde is coached by third-year coach Jamal Chatman. Tanque Verde is under the leadership of third-year coach Jeff Bollnow, a former referee, while Pueblo is coached by second-year head man Sly Lewis.

You’re a veteran now if you are in your fourth year as a head coach, as are Flowing Wells’ Brian Hook and Sunnyside’s Thomas Romack.

Yes, there are a few names you might recognize. Sabino High’s Ryan McBrayer, who has won a state championship for his alma mater, is in his eighth year. Desert View’s hard-working Robert Bonillas is in Year 15 at the school and CDO’s Scott McKee, who was successful as the head coach at both Pueblo and Sahuaro, begins his 19th year as a head coach.

But no head football coach in Tucson can match Johnson’s background in the game. His parents, JJ and Jean, worked at the Amphi snack bar when he was finding his way as a young lineman on Friedli’s powerhouse teams of 1988-91. Now, decades later, Johnson is the father figure to Tucson prep football. How time flies.