Steve Johnson – Hector – Nicollet

Steve Johnson, son of Roland and Phyllis Johnson, was born and raised in Hector, Minnesota, along with older brothers Dennis and Galen and younger brother Jay. Dennis was a wrestler and talked Steve into going out for wrestling as a seventh grader instead of playing Junior High Basketball. It was a good move, as Steve made the varsity wrestling squad at 95 pounds. Even though Brother Galen was a basketball player, he wrote several letters to local newspapers pointing out the unfair disparity in coverage between basketball and wrestling. Galen went on to be an outstanding college baseball player. Younger brother Jay wrestled side by side with Steve at Hector as well as Morningside College and Mankato State. Both Steve and Jay served as Head Wrestling Coaches for more than 35 years.

Steve is indebted to a number of outstanding coaches throughout his wrestling career. Dean Means, Hector’s Head Wrestling Coach, was a big man with a bigger heart. Arnie Brandt at Morningside put together an undefeated season in 1968. The legendary Rummy Macias at Mankato State was a master teacher of wrestling technique. He would often conclude his technique sessions on the feet, knowing that Steve had two bad knees, with the qualifier, “Just don’t do it like Johnson does.”

Knee surgeries in High School curtailed some of Steve’s success, but when Steve gave up a defensive pin while cradling his opponent in his final match at Hector, he decided then and there that he was not going to finish his wrestling career that way, and college wrestling was a must. In addition to being a member of the 1968 undefeated Morningside Team, Johnson went on to be an NCC Conference Champion and an NCAA All-American at Mankato State in 1971.

After graduating from Mankato State with a Major in Mathematics, Johnson was hired to teach Mathematics and served as the Head Wrestling Coach at Ogilvie in their inaugural wrestling season. From there, Johnson was hired to teach Mathematics and coach Wrestling at Nicollet, where he remained for the next 34 years. Steve is indebted to a couple of great friends and fellow coaches who helped him get the Nicollet program going in the early days. Johnson cites Don Lawrence and Judd Hendryks as tremendous TEAM Coaches, helping with the Elementary, Junior High, and Varsity programs and, in Steve’s words, “covering my deficiencies.”

Sons Chad and Ross both wrestled for Steve at Nicollet and went on to wrestle at Mankato State. Both kids enjoyed considerable success and made their dad proud. Besides having the opportunity to coach both sons, Steve had the privilege of coaching beside both of his boys at Nicollet for a number of years. Steve is also blessed to have his wife, Judy, and daughter, Lori, who provided constant, abundant, and unwavering support for Steve, Chad, and Ross.

Looking back, Steve remembers having one of the area’s first elementary wrestling programs and hosting the first Valley Conference Elementary Wrestling Tournament in the early 1970s.

Johnson compiled an overall record of 323-204-6 with two undefeated seasons and over 50 tournament team championships at one of the smallest schools in the State of Minnesota. One of Steve’s season highlights was hosting the annual Johnson Pentangular (Math reference) featuring Teams coached by Steve, brother Jay, sons Chad and Ross, and St. Paul Johnson. The Johnson clan (Steve, Jay, Chad, and Ross) amassed over 1,000 coaching wins between them.

Johnson also has fond memories of the Southern Minnesota Adult Wrestling League that he helped establish and participated in as a wrestler in the ’70s and ’80s, proving that wrestling can be a lifetime sport. Johnson was a key member of the Mankato Team that won the Adult State Team Championship in 1979. Steve continued wrestling into his mid-fifties, bad knees and all.

As Steve reflects on his lifelong commitment to the sport of Wrestling, he is firmly convinced that there is no other sport on the planet that builds character like the sport of wrestling.