Gus Johnson (born August 10, 1993) is an

American football American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team with ...

running back A running back (RB) is a member of the offensive backfield in gridiron football. The primary roles of a running back are to receive American football plays#Offensive terminology, handoffs from the quarterback to Rush (American football)#Offen ...

currently a free agent. He played

college football College football (french: Football universitaire) refers to gridiron football played by teams of student athletes. It was through college football play that American football rules first gained popularity in the United States. Unlike most ...

at Stephen F. Austin State University.

Early years

Johnson attended

Gilmer High School Gilmer High School is located in North Georgia in the city of Ellijay, Georgia, United States. It serves Gilmer County. It was established in August 1956 and enrolls about 1182 students in grades 9-12. It is a public high school of the State of ...

, before moving on to Stephen F. Austin State University, where he was a three-year starter at

. As a senior, he set the school's and conference single-season rushing record rushing record with 1,683 yards. With his 23 rushing

touchdown A touchdown (abbreviated as TD) is a scoring play in gridiron football. Whether running, passing, returning a kickoff or punt, or recovering a turnover, a team scores a touchdown by advancing the ball into the opponent's end zone. In Ameri ...

s, he tied the single-game school record with 4 rushing touchdowns against Incarnate Word and set the school single-season record for points in a season (138). He also left as the school's record in career rushing yards (3,907), career rushing touchdowns (51) and career total touchdowns (52).

Professional career

Oakland Raiders

After going undrafted in the

2015 NFL Draft The 2015 NFL Draft was the 80th annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible football players. It took place in Chicago at the Auditorium Theatre and in Grant Park, from April 30 to May 2. The previous ...

, Johnson signed with the

Oakland Raiders The Oakland Raiders were a professional American football team that played in Oakland from its founding in 1960 to 1981 and again from 1995 to 2019 before relocating to the Las Vegas metropolitan area where they now play as the Las Vegas Raide ...

on May 8, 2015. On May 11, 2015, he was waived by the Raiders.

Dallas Cowboys

Johnson received a tryout invitation for the

Dallas Cowboys The Dallas Cowboys are a professional American football team based in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. The Cowboys compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East divisi ...

minicamp. On July 28, 2015, he was signed to improve the team's depth, after

Ryan Williams was released. Because of injuries to top

Joseph Randle Joseph David Randle (born December 29, 1991) is a former American football running back in the National Football League for the Dallas Cowboys. He was drafted by the Dallas Cowboys in the fifth round of the 2013 NFL Draft. He played college foot ...

Darren McFadden Darren McFadden (born August 27, 1987) is a former American football running back. He played college football for the Arkansas Razorbacks and was selected by the Oakland Raiders in the first round with the fourth overall pick of the 2008 NFL Dra ...

and

Lance Dunbar Lance Dunbar, Jr. (born January 25, 1990) is a former American football running back. He played college football at University of North Texas and was signed by the Dallas Cowboys as an undrafted free agent in 2012. Early years Dunbar was born in ...

, he was forced into taking the majority of the reps in practice and in games. He had a good preseason, starting the first and fourth games, finishing as the team's rushing leader (37 carries for 139 yards and 2 touchdowns) and earning the nickname "Gus the Bus". On September 5, he was waived and signed to the

practice squad In sports, the practice squad, also called the taxi squad or practice roster, is a group of players signed by a team but not part of their main roster. Frequently used in gridiron football, they serve as extra players during the team's practices, ...

three days later. He was cut on September 17, only to be re-signed to the practice squad five days later. He was released on October 20.

Atlanta Falcons

On October 27, 2015, the

Atlanta Falcons The Atlanta Falcons are a professional American football team based in Atlanta. The Falcons compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) South division. The Falcons joined th ...

signed Johnson to the practice squad. On August 27, 2016, Johnson was waived by the Falcons.

San Diego Chargers

On August 29, 2016, the

San Diego Chargers The San Diego Chargers were a professional American football team that played in San Diego from 1961 until the end of the 2016 season, before relocating to Los Angeles, where the franchise had played its inaugural 1960 season. The team is now ...

claimed Johnson off waivers to replace

Branden Oliver Branden Oliver (born May 7, 1991) is a former American football running back. He played college football at Buffalo and signed with the San Diego Chargers of the National Football League (NFL) as an undrafted free agent in 2014. He played in ...

, who tore his Achilles tendon in the third preseason game. On September 3, 2016, he was released by the Chargers.

Second stint with the Falcons

On September 5, 2016, the

signed Johnson to their practice squad. On September 13, he was released from their practice squad.

Second stint with the Chargers

On December 27, 2016, Johnson was signed to the Chargers' practice squad.

Pittsburgh Steelers

On January 11, 2017, Johnson was signed to the Steelers' practice squad. He signed a reserve/future contract with the Steelers on January 24, 2017. He was released by the Steelers on May 2, 2017.

References

External links

Former Tryout Gus Johnson Tries To Seize Opportunity With RBs Injured
{{DEFAULTSORT:Johnson, Gus 1993 births Living people Players of American football from Texas People from Gilmer, Texas Stephen F. Austin Lumberjacks football players American football running backs Atlanta Falcons players Dallas Cowboys players San Diego Chargers players Pittsburgh Steelers players