Winnipeg, MB– Brent Johnson’s path to the Canadian Football Hall of Fame doesn’t quite trace back to the time he could first compose a coherent sentence. This despite the fact, as a member of the Ohio State Buckeyes, he once sacked a Michigan quarterback named Tom Brady during one of their ferocious rivalry games. After that, we all remember how he established himself as likely one of the best Canadian defensive ends this league has ever seen.
Yet the one-time youth hockey star freely admits he never saw the call to the hall coming.
“It was never even on my radar until I started playing football more seriously. It was later on in life, sixteen years old when I started playing,” recalled the pride of Kingston, Ontario.
“And then through university and finally the pro ranks. When you start any sort of journey you don’t necessarily assume that the accolades are going to be bestowed upon you as much as you want to go out and just do a good job. I wanted to win games with my teammates. You don’t really have an idea of where this all leads too and that’s a good thing because it leads to a lot of surprises.
“I grew up playing hockey. When I decided to change from hockey to football this avenue was here for me and it provided me with an outlet to do something different. It was football I was interested in and the fact you have to use education to go into the higher ranks is a pretty special component too.”
Knowing him the way we do, it probably wouldn’t have been surprising to see him emerge right up there with Doug Gilmour as one of the top hockey players to come out of Kingston.
But perhaps his best attribute is his humbleness. When speaking about the pending induction, Johnson couldn’t help but list off and give credit to those teammates who helped him become the player he was for most of his eleven seasons in orange and black, including fellow 2018 inductee Barron Miles. The stocky defensive lineman agreed none of it would have been possible without his head coach Wally Buono.
“I think more in the terms of people that gave me an opportunity,” explained the former Buckeye.
“That chance to go perform and what I did with that was kind of up to me. I’m very grateful for guys like Wally that came in and gave me the opportunity to go perform. It was then up to me to go perform.”
And perform he did. Johnson retired as the club’s all-time leader in sacks (89), won back-to-back Most Outstanding Canadian Awards (2005 and 2006) and of course was the anchor on a defensive line that played a pivotal role in two Grey Cup championships. He also admits entering the Hall of Fame will come with a different type of excitement than when he actually strapped on the pads and fought his tail off for four quarters.
“When you’re playing you’re thinking about winning championships, and the type of team you have each year,” stated Johnson.
“Each year is a different campaign. That era and that part of my life (football) are drastically different than what my mindset is now. When you’re retired you’ve removed yourself from that part of your earlier life. It’s very nostalgic when you look back at your body of work and all of the people that helped you along the way to succeed. That, I think for me, is where my head is at.”
Not many can say they retired a champion and Johnson admits it is still pretty surreal to think he walked off the stage for good as he was hoisting the Cup in 2011.
“Now that I have some space and distance from it, it really is. That night when it occurred I think I probably knew it was going to be my last game and the moment was right. It was the right time to go. You always remember the last game and the way you felt. I have nothing but fantastic feelings about the last time I played football.”
Nowadays, Johnson devotes most of his time to wife Lara, six-year-old son Brent, who was born weeks before that 2011 Grey Cup win, and his post-football career as an investment advisor at CIBC Wood Gundy. Although his induction speech will not be required until September, he already knows his family will take up a big portion of those he will thank.
“They have been on this journey just as much as I have; whether it’s my father, my sisters, aunts and uncles, my wife and my son, you think about all of the support that they gave you and the opportunities they provided so you could go out and perform,” said Johnson.
Above all, number 97 says the best part of entering the hall is the reminder he was able to excel in something that he still believes is an important piece of Canadian culture. Although removed from the game for nearly seven years, Johnson understands the importance of the league maintaining a healthy state for years to come.
“It should be cherished and I think it is but it’s also something that we probably as Canadians don’t think enough about just how special it is,” said Johnson.
“It’s one of those bonding things that unite our country. Teams in big cities across Canada are going to be battling it out every Friday, Saturday and Sunday for the right to hoist the Grey Cup, that’s something that is uniquely Canadian and something we should be uniquely proud of.
You feel the warmth, you feel the pride that each city has. To me, that is uniquely Canadian.”
Not a bad mindset for a red-blooded pond hockey player from Kingston.
Barron Miles Talks HOF Nod
Despite Johnson’s presence, there was a sense the BC Lions’ defence needed one more key piece to reach the ultimate goal of winning a Grey Cup in the middle of the previous decade. The addition of Miles in 2005 gave the ‘Lockdown U’ secondary some more veteran experience and swagger. Never at a loss for words, Miles spoke on Wednesday night from Winnipeg and says going in with Johnson indeed makes the call more special.
“He has a special place in my heart because he’s a d-lineman, ” said Miles to a group of reporters.
“I love d-linemen. Those guys put in work and put pressure on the quarterback to allow me to be able to do my job. To be able to play with him for five years was awesome. It’s the best of both worlds: Montreal and BC. Who can ask for more?”
During his time in orange, Miles earned five consecutive Western Division All-Star nods, three league All-star selections, recorded 37 interceptions, six blocked kicks and played a big role in helping the squad get to the top of the Grey Cup Mountain in 2006.
For an era of Lions football that was memorable on offence, Johnson and Miles made sure the defence more than held up to its end of the bargain. It will no doubt be a memorable induction ceremony in Hamilton this September.
Rounding out the 2018 HOF class are punter Hank Ilesic, who spent a portion of the 1998 season in BC, another former teammate of Miles’ Scott Flory and the late Tommy Hugo. Former Canadian quarterback and two-time Grey Cup champion Frank Cosentino goes in as a builder, while Paul Brule is being honoured for his amateur career.
Matt Baker: mbaker@bclions.comÂ