10 things to know about Jimmy Johnson, including the ex-Cowboys coach's TV ties to Survivor and Duck Dynasty (2024)

Editor's note: This story has been updated since its original publish date.

Here are 10 things to know about Jimmy Johnson, whom you already know played with Cowboys owner Jerry Jones at Arkansas and was the first to coach a Super Bowl winner and college championship team.

1. Famous classmates

Johnson was born in Port Arthur, Texas and went to high school (Port Arthur Jefferson) with Janis Joplin and actor G.W. Bailey (think Captain Thaddeus Harris in the Police Academy movies). Johnson played for the Razorbacks' 1964 national championship team and was nicknamed "Jimmy Jump-up" because he never stayed on the ground for long during football practices or games.

2. His Duck Dynasty tie-in

Johnson began his coaching career as an assistant at Louisiana Tech in 1965. During this time, Phil Robertson of Duck Dynasty was the starting quarterback. Johnson helped recruit Terry Bradshaw, who would go on to quarterback the Pittsburgh Steelers in two Super Bowl wins over the Cowboys. In 1970, Johnson became a defensive line coach at Oklahoma, working alongside Barry Switzer, the coach who replaced him as head coach of the Cowboys.

3. Hall of Fame

Jimmy Johnson might not be in the Pro Football Hall of Fame (yet), but he did make an appearance at the induction ceremony in 2017 to present Jason Taylor, his former defensive end with the Miami Dolphins. He's also a member of the college football hall of fame.

4. Numbers game

While at Miami, Johnson created a controversy by allowing the school to retire Vinny Testaverde's No. 14, but refusedto do the same with Bernie Kosar's No. 20. Kosarled the Hurricanes to a national title under a different head coach.

"Bernie didn't finish the program here (at Miami)," Johnson said at the time.

Kosar graduated a year ahead of his freshman class in 1985 and subsequently entered the NFL's supplemental draft. Testaverde won the school's first Heisman Trophy award and was the first player taken in the 1987 NFL draft.

Johnson later signed Kosar to back up Troy Aikman during Dallas' 1993 Super Bowl run.

5. Survivor and other TV gigs

After his head coaching gig with the Miami Dolphins ended, Johnson became a TV studio analyst again for Fox Sports. He currently is an on-air staff member on Fox NFL Sunday. He has made cameo appearances in television and film (The Shield, The Waterboy).

He even appeared in a series of TV commercials for the male enhancement pill ExtenZe and was cast on Survivor: Nicaragua. The oldest contestant, Johnson was voted out on Day 8.

"I had fun, but I was miserable the whole time," Johnson told the Associated Press. "I still love the game, it's been a great adventure, but this is the most stressful time I've ever gone through in my life. And that includes Super Bowls and collegiate national championships."

6. Check the schedule … your turn to wash

Young Jimmy Johnson was a stickler for organization. Jimmy, older brother Wayne and younger sister Linda were in charge of washing and drying the dinner dishes. When he was eight or nine, Jimmy began posting a schedule over the kitchen sink so there would be no mistake whose turn it was to wash, whose turn it was to dry and who had the night off. The schedule would go up a week in advance. "I wanted to know my responsibilities and fulfill them,"Johnson told SportsDay's Barry Horn in September 1992.

7. Extra money in the cards

While at Arkansas, Johnson played football, studied when he had to and hustled bridge. The summer after his sophom*ore season, he married Linda Kay Cooper. The next year, son Brent was born. His bridge money helpedthe fledgling family. Johnson played mornings instead of going to class.

"Bridge is a game of strategy,"Johnson told SportsDay's Barry Horn, also in 1992. "You have to be analytical, figure out what cards other people have. Even if you have worse cards, you can win. That was part of the attraction for me."

8. Football first

Jimmy Johnson never enjoyed a Thanksgiving meal with his family,never celebrated Christmas, never exchanged gifts with his family. "I don't remember when I stopped really paying attention to thosethings," Johnson told Barry Horn. His son Brent said that "growing up, my mother was always there for us. In order to accomplish what he has, he put everything else aside, including his family. I can understand that now, and Chad understands. My dad and I are friends now, but we didn't know each other for a very long time."

9. Follow a legend, no big deal

The pressure of following one legend is too much for most people. Johnson eagerly followed two. He replaced Tom Landry as the Cowboys' head coach and later Don Shula with the Miami Dolphins. "I didn't pay any attention to it the last time and I'm not paying any attention to it this time," Johnson said in an Aug. 1996 Chicago Tribune story. "I have a job to do. I have great respect for Tom Landry, great respect for Don Shula. That doesn't have any effect on my job. I'm not going to be disrespectful, but I'm not going to be afraid."

10. He's got a sense of humor

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