e Famuan eFamuanOnline.

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Wednesday, April 20, 2011 famuansports@gmail.com
Sports 8
Beat Diabetes
Man behind the numbers
A s s i s t a n t
S p o r t s
I nf or mat i on
D i r e c t o r
R o n n i e
Johnson has
no offseason,
he has no
time off and
he plays all
year-round.
Ive been here at Florida A&M
since 2002, Johnson said. I came
here when we started to do this stuff
by hand, now weve moved into the
digital age. We do things on Twitter
and Facebook.
Johnson job is based on the
universitys sports. Everything
that pertains to athletics at FAMU,
Johnson knows about it.
This job is like a doctor being
on call 24/7, Johnson said.
Unfortunately, I missed some
important moments like my
daughters first step, but luckily
Ive had opportunities to bring my
children in my office to spend time
with them.
Having this position, Johnson
knows that he may have to go travel
with different athletic teams for the
school.
Some schools dont have a sports
information department, Johnson
said. That requires me to travel with
the teams and take care of keeping
track of all the information.
Johnson has spent more than 10
years working at various schools
and being a part of their sports
information programs.
I was a student working in sports
information at Alcorn State, then I
built the program up at Talladega
College, Johnson said. Then
Alabama State for two years before
I came to FAMU.
Johnson spends most of the year
watching and recording sports for
FAMU. When he is not working, he
tries to find time to relax.
One thing that relaxes me is when
I am on vacation, Johnson said.
Spending time with my parents
is great. Ill go one week to see my
family then Ill go spend another
week at my wifes family in a two
week span and go see some old
friends.
Johnsons hectic work schedule
makes him miss some of his favorite
pastimes: Watching cartoons,
listening to music and watching old
movies.
When I am not busy with sports
information I am catching up
with my cartoons and some of my
television shows like Supernatural
and the newest G.I. Joe show,
Johnson said, As far as music goes,
I listen to a variety of artists.
Vinson Tatum is a volunteer
that helps Johnson with sports
information. Tatum has known
Johnson for more than 11 years
and met him here at FAMU while
Johnson was working for sports
information. He was hired by
former sports information director,
Alvin Hollins Jr.
I met Ronnie when Alvin hired
him, Tatum said. I dont have any
funny stories about Ronnie, just
more chaos he has to deal with; the
different coaches, the players and
the games.
The time Johnson and Tatum
spent together created a friendship
that has lasted for more than a
decade.
Even though Johnson and Tatum
have found time to laugh and have
a good time, work comes first and
Tatum described Johnson as being
very professional.
His work ethic is very good. He
demands a lot from everybody
and he expects perfection not only
from himself, but from people who
works around him and the student
assistants that works under him,
Tatum said. In order to run a top
quality sports information program,
you have to demand the best out
of yourself and the people you
surround yourself with in order to
make sure you run a smooth ship.
Jenny Bury has volunteered to
help sports information since
2006, and describes her working
relationship with Johnson as a
parental one.
He taught me the basics of all
sports here at FAMU, Bury said.
I learned the correct terms for
basketball, and how to correctly
score baseball and football games.
I know how to prepare for a game
and providing stats for the media.
He is really dedicated to it; he
works beyond the call of duty.
Bury said Johnson is a
workaholic and if there is some
work to be done he might as well
just do it.
He works more than eight
hours; he puts his all into it, Bury
said. He does more than just his
job titles; he goes the extra mile at
work.
Bury thinks of Johnson as being
a responsible, reliable person. She
looks to him for advice outside of
sports information.
He is a mentor to me personally.
He gives me guidance, he is like a
big brother to me, Bury said. I
really like coming and volunteering
my time to help him because I know
he doesnt have a lot of people
out there to help him, but I enjoy
coming out to help him as much as
I can.


LAMONT WILSON
STAFF WRITER
LAMONT WILSON
FAMUANSPORTS@GMAIL.COM
Royal Shepherd The Famuan
FAMU has partnered with the Prince Hall Shriners foundation to host the Third Annual Diabetes Classic. It will be the second home game of the upcoming
sesaon against Deleware State University. Today, FAMU stands ready and commited to partner with the foundation to take the classic to another level,
President James Ammons said.
Courtesy To The Famuan
In the green shirt identied by the arrow, Johnson may be the hardest person
to spot at a sporting event.
Prince Hall Shriners foundation selects FAMU football for new Classic
Ronnie Johnson does the dirty work for FAMU athletics

For more information on
Johnson and all other
sports news check out
thefamuanonline.com/
sports