Johnson's mom, Vivian, knew that football would be a way into college, and she drove her old, blue Chevy to pick him up from USC everyday. At that point, Johnson was too young to attend the university, but he enjoyed being at the field to collect footballs for the coach or organize equipment. His mom spent any extra money she had on cleats or other gear so that Johnson could continue to play. She wanted him to be the first person in the family to get a degree and create a stable life for himself.
Johnson's football talent landed him a full-ride scholarship to USC. Once he was at the school, he realized that attending college meant more than just playing football. The degree attached to it became invaluable. "I wanted to get my degree because I knew the league was always going to be there, and at the end of the day, I wanted to have the USC experience and graduate," said Johnson.
Keyshawn Johnson played football for USC for two years, and received the MVP for the 1995 Cotton Bowl Classic game and player of the game in the 1996 Rose Bowl. Johnson's amazing junior and senior seasons at USC led him to be selected first overall in the '96 draft. He went on to sign a multimillion dollar contract, helping the South Central athlete achieve more than he'd ever dreamed of.
After USC, he had a successful NFL career for ten years with the Jets, Buccaneers, Cowboys and Panthers. Near the end of his football career, Johnson pursued an opportunity with ESPN and worked as a sports analyst and radio voice. As he reflected on his achievements, Johnson said, "My success was deemed as don't go to jail, don't get killed and live a successful life."
Although Johnson's story dealt with his career in the late 90s, the idea of football players dealing with financial adversity did not disappear with the decade. As a current freshman on the Trojan team, cornerback Greg Johnson has gone through his own set of tribulations. While the two Johnsons are not related, Greg is also from South Central LA, and grew up in Watts. Greg Johnson was raised by his parents with his three siblings, and dealt with many troubles in his youth. "I came from poverty. I didn't having as much as everyone else. All I had was my family and that's basically it. I didn't have much, and for me to end up in this position is just a blessing," Johnson said.
As a child, Greg didn't know if he would even go to college. Neither of his parents graduated with a degree, and Johnson said it would have been a financial strain on his family to pay for a four-year university. Fortunately, coaches in the area recognized Johnson's talent, and convinced his parents to support his athletic endeavors in hopes of future success. Johnson's parents weren't very involved in his football career, but they knew that football could lead to college scholarships and potentially professional contracts. Combined with school funding provided to athletes with income-based need, the amount of money his family set aside for Greg to attend a few camps and buy equipment was all he needed.
His family's finanical sacrifices for football gave him an opportunity to achieve what might have been unlikely otherwise, and he committed to play football for USC his senior year of high school. On the NCAA signing day of 2017, Johnson tweeted, "I went from eating PB&J on saltine crackers to signing my National Letter of Intent to the University of Southern California." For Johnson, saltine cracker meals were sometimes a reality.
One of Johnson's former high school coaches, Malik James, has known him since he was only nine years old. Even though James is older than Johnson, he said that watching him progress in life and make it to the college level was inspiring. "You don't see kids go to college from this area. He picked up 50 scholarship offers coming out of South Los Angeles. That just doesn't happen around here," James said.
Both Keyshawn and Greg Johnson took advantage of the opportunities football offered, knowing that focusing on the sport had potential benefits. While paying for football was an added expense for both families, in each situation, the possible success the sport offered outweighed the cost.
Different organizations in LA recognize the challenges athletes like Greg and Keyshawn face, and offer programs to help alleviate these problems. LA84, for example, has invested millions in providing and improving youth athletic programs for athletes like the Johnsons throughout LA County. The group offers athletic grants, programs and education to support low-income families. Renata Simril, LA84 President, said the mission of the organization is to, "provide sports opportunities for under-served and under-resourced communities so that kids can experience the transformative power of sports."
LA84's 2016 Youth Sport Survey found that 18.5 percent of LA youth did not participate in a sport last year. Finances, dislike for sports, and previous bad experiences were among the top ten reasons individuals did not participate in 2016. In that same year, Utah State conducted a survey and found that, on average, families in the U.S. spent close to $2,000 each year on youth sports. In a county where the average family income is around $50,000, LA84 recognizes the barrier cost may play in a family's life and athletic participation. "A clear correlation exists between households with a child not participating in the last year and parent income," the survey said. Of those not participating in 2016, over 20 percent had an annual income less than $50,000 a year.
However, in the case of Greg and Keyshawn, their families decision to pay football was not out of the ordinary. Wayne Wilson, LA84's Vice President of Communication, has been working with LA84 for over 20 years and noted that "LA's football participation is higher than the national average by 8 percent". While sports like baseball and soccer are listed in the Youth Sports Survey as having more affluent participators, categorized by having an income over $100,000, in a few sports like track and football, the lowest income bracket, under $50,000, had more participation than the group above it.
Wilson believes the high participation level is due to the minimal cost and numerous programs available for these sports. He also said the idea of a "football culture" among the LA community contributed to the sacrifices parents are willing to make for their children to play the sport. Plus, there is chance that their passion could pay off in a professional contract, although that percentage is around 2 percent, and encourages athletes to get good grades in order to be eligible for sports.
The strong football network available in LA, made even stronger with the relocation of the Rams and Chargers, has also encouraged more youth athletes to join in hopes of one day making it to the professional level like Keyshawn Johnson. "Our goal, however, is not to develop elite athletes, we think that's a by product of providing good programs and facilities," said Wilson. Although famous athletes like tennis stars Venus and Serena Williams as well as basketball standout Russell Westbrook have gone through LA84 funded programs, the organization does not put pressure on youth to become professional athletes. Instead, they hope to give low-income youth a chance to play a sport and experience the benefits it has to offer.
