Elliot Johnson begins his fourth season at the helm of the Crimson Storm baseball program and his 30th overall. He posted his third straight 30-win season for SNU and his 11th in his career as SNU went 32-20 last season. Johnson guided SNU to a 37-15 record in his second season as skipper and led Southern Nazarene to the program's first-ever NAIA National Tournament appearance in the 2009 season. Johnson went 32-25 in his first year at SNU in 2008.
Johnson had two players drafted in the spring of 2008 in the Major League Baseball draft and guided SNU to a No. 22 final ranking in the NAIA national poll.
Johnson came to SNU in the fall of 2007 after stints at Olivet Nazarene (Ill.), Trevecca Nazarene (Tenn.), and LeTourneau (Texas). In 29 years as a college head coach, Johnson is 925-465, and his teams have appeared in 18 NAIA district or regional tournaments, winning eleven conference, district, or national titles.
While at Olivet, Johnson was 303-115. His Trevecca teams gave him the 15th best NAIA winning percentage during the 1980’s, and he has been named coach of the year six times. In 1992, he assisted at Middle Tennessee State where he earned a doctoral degree in physical education. The MTSU team won the Ohio Valley Conference Championship. That success continued at Olivet, as the Tigers won one NCCAA National Championship (2000) and four regular season Chicagoland Collegiate Athletic Conference Championships (2000, 2001, 2003, 2004), and had two NAIA World Series appearances (2002, 2003).
Coach Johnson comes from a baseball family. His father was a semi-pro catcher and a cousin of Darrell Johnson, former major-league player and manager of the Boston Red Sox and Seattle Mariners. Johnson was an all-conference pitcher and shortstop as a collegian. He attended Trinity College and earned a B.A. from the University of Northern Colorado and an M.A. from Chadron State College (Neb.). Dr. Johnson has an extensive background in semi-pro baseball, having played on a 1968 team that finished seventh in the NBC National Tournament in Wichita, Kan. He coached future major-leaguers Pete Ladd, Brett Butler and Jeff Calhoun on the Hutchinson (Kan.) Broncs in 1977 and 1978 (No. 4 and No. 7 nationally, respectively).
In 1984 and 1987, Johnson coached for Athletes in Action (AIA). Wayne Edwards (future White Sox player) played on the 1984 team. Johnson’s 1987 AIA pitching staff included future major-leaguers Tim Mauser, Randy Tomlin and Greg McMichael. Teams coached by Johnson have toured the South Pacific, Alaska, Taiwan, Korea. and Mexico, as well as the central United States.
Dr. Johnson is especially interested in youth baseball; his master’s thesis included research on the motivation of boys at three age levels, and his doctoral dissertation researched the philosophy of a sound youth baseball program. Dr. Johnson’s video, “The Building of a Baseball Player,” is required viewing by the National Youth Sports Coaches Association and by Kids Sports Network for certification of youth baseball coaches. He has produced a total of six videos on coaching techniques and player development.
Coach Johnson has worked for the Doyle Brothers Baseball Camp in Florida and has instructed hundreds of kids at his own camps and clinics. He is active in the Fellowship of Christian Athletes (FCA), AIA and other sports ministries. He also has written 25 inspirational books and numerous baseball articles and is a frequent speaker for a variety of groups. Coach Johnson’s “Stride Guide” is a top seller as a baseball training aid for hitters. It has been marketed by the Schutt Company for a number of years.
Johnson is married to his wife, Judy, an avid fan and loyal supporter, who teaches kindergarten at John Glenn Elementary School. Johnson has two sons, Todd and Ben, who both played for their father at LeTourneau.
