Outside Linebackers, Special Teams Coordinator

Lyndon Johnson is in his 10th year as a member of the Connecticut football coaching staff. A versatile staff member, Johnson will coach the UConn outside linebackers (a role he has held since 2001) while coordinating the Huskies’ special teams. For the first two years of his return engagement in Storrs, the UConn alumnus coached the squad’s tight ends and special teams unit.

The quality of the student-athletes recruited to the University of Connecticut increased dramatically the past under Johnson’s watch, an increase that mirrors the play of the team on the field. Johnson’s linebackers have contributed heavily to this and continued to be a strength of the UConn defense.

This past fall, strongside linebacker Scott Lutrus was a first-team Freshman All-America selection. Meanwhile, UConn’s special teams bolstered its run to the 2007 BIG EAST Championship. The team returned two punts for touchdowns and also returned two kickoffs for touchdowns. The season saw Tony Ciaravino score an even 100 points, a record for a UConn kicker, and punter Desi Cullen record a 40.7 yard average, fifth-best in UConn history.

In 2005, “Husky” linebacker James Hargrave led the Huskies with his 13.5 tackles for loss and five sacks.

Johnson returned to his alma mater in 1999 following a one-year stint as the defensive line coach at Fordham. Johnson began his coaching career with four seasons coaching at Brien McMahon High School in Norwalk, Conn., the final two seasons as defensive coordinator. He then made his collegiate coaching debut at Sacred Heart in Bridgeport, Conn., where he served as defensive coordinator in 1997 before moving on to Fordham.

Johnson, a four-year letter winner for UConn from 1989-1992, started all 33 games over his final three seasons on the offensive line. He served as team captain in 1991 and was named the team’s Most Valuable Offensive Player that season. He was a second team All-Yankee Conference pick in 1989 and a second team All-ECAC selection in 1990. Johnson received his degree in sociology from UConn in 1992.

A native of Norwalk, Conn., Johnson was born on Jan. 1, 1968, in Kingston, Jamaica. He is married to the former Cynthia Schreyer and the couple resides in Ellington, Conn., with their seven-year-old son, Taren and three-year-old son Trace.