While many may know his brother the Olympic silver medalist, Steele Johnson, Race Johnson also leads an exciting life as a student athlete at Purdue. His passion for football and his love for his brother are abundantly clear on social media and even just from speaking to him. The down to earth senior plans to continue to pursue his passions after graduation and inspire others to do the same.
HC at Purdue: Why did you choose to attend Purdue?
Race: I chose to come to Purdue because my brother, Steele, committed to diving here after I had left the United States Air Force Academy.
HC at Purdue: How did you know football was your sport? Did you ever consider diving like Steele?
Race: Steele and I actually started diving together when we were younger. I quit when we were given the option of going to the national scene of diving because I wanted to play football and lacrosse. I was actually a higher level than Steele when I quit diving, but Steele was the better football player.
HC at Purdue: What’s the best part of being a student athlete? The worst?
Race: The best part of being a student athlete is just being able to play the sport I love at the highest level in college. The worst part has to be just the amount of time it takes being a student athlete. There’s not a lot of free time.
HC at Purdue: When you’re not in class or practicing, what do you like to do in your spare time?
Race: If I’m not at class or practicing, I’m usually either sleeping, getting an extra lift in or watching a film.
HC at Purdue: You called your brother your biggest supporter on Instagram, how does he show his support?
Race: Steele shows his support for me by coming to all of my games and cheering me on even when the likelihood of me getting a lot of playing time is low. He’s been at all the games even when we didn’t have the kind of season we wanted as a team.
HC at Purdue: You and Steele seem really close. What would you say is your favorite memory with him?
Race: My favorite memory has to be when Steele qualified for the Olympics this past summer. He came up to the stands right after and we hugged and just cried because it had been such a long and hard journey to get to that point. It was such a surreal moment.
HC at Purdue: What was it like going to the Olympics?!
Race: Going to the Olympics was such a cool experience even though I was only there for a little over 30 hours. I had football camp during the Olympics and told coach Hazell that I would come back as fast as I could. It was such a great experience and the fact that I got to watch my brother win a silver medal was even better.
HC at Purdue: Who inspires you the most?
Race: My brother inspires me the most because of how hard he works and how good he is at his sport. Also, it inspires me how humble he is. There’s no one I know that works harder than him. The fact that he’s 18 months younger than me and years more mature than I am inspires me.
HC at Purdue: What would you say has been your biggest accomplishment in college so far?
Race: My biggest accomplishment is getting to play football in the Big Ten since I grew up dreaming of being able to play in this conference.
HC at Purdue: What do you hope to do after graduation?
Race: I hope to go into coaching football at the college or pro level because I really hate economics.