Executive Director, Ron Johnson

Coach Johnson started his career at York Catholic High School, where he is a member of the York Catholic Athletic Hall of Fame. He was a Big 33 Nominee and went on to play Defensive End for the Shippensburg University Red Raiders. He earned All-Conference PSAC Honors at Ship 3 out of 4 years and is 3rd on the All-Time sack list.

In 2003 he Graduated from Ship with a B.A. in Speech Communications. That same year he was selected as an Undrafted Rookie Free Agent by the Philadelphia Eagles in the 2003 NFL Draft. He was selected to the practice squad for the first 4 weeks of the season before being promoted to the active roster. That year 4 out of 22 Rookie Free Agents from camp made the Eagles Active Roster, and Ron was one of the 4.

In his 2nd season with the Eagles he suffered a career ending spinal cord injury and was released. He suffered a ruptured disc and nerve damage in his L5 S1. Coach Johnson rehabbed and underwent numerous treatments to try to make a comeback to the league. After rehabbing the injury, he was then selected as the #1 Draft Pick in the 2005 NFL Europe Free Agent Draft and was selected to play for the Hamburg Sea Devils in Germany. Ron officially retired from the NFL in 2005 due to the severity of his spinal injury and other injuries he sustained. Physicians never cleared him to play again.

Upon retiring from the NFL, Ron had a vision to start a football camp for players of all levels to teach advanced techniques and skills to help players take their game to the next level. He also wanted to incorporate a focus on education, leadership and student-athlete development. He wanted to inspire football players to lead by example and succeed in the classroom, on the field and in the community. He wanted to help in the areas of overall development to help his campers succeed in all facets of life.

Now in year 17, the RSFA coaches and staff have helped countless football players advance their games on the field to become better football players, and have also helped our athletes succeed in the classroom, on the field, and in the community. We have had several players go on to play at the FBS Division I, FCS Division I, Division II, Division III, and JUCO collegiate Levels.

Outside of camp, Coach Johnson enjoys speaking to student-athletes around the country and enjoys sharing his story to inspire them about what it takes to succeed in life, overcoming obstacles, never giving up, and the importance of education.

Coach Johnson is entering his 14th year as the Defensive Line Coach at Red Lion High School in York County’s YAIAA in District III. He loves coaching and teaching the game of football, but enjoys helping athletes achieve their academic and athletic goals.

Please contact Coach Johnson at ron@risingstarsfootballacademy.com, 717-434-4558