Inky Johnson Speaks For Maury Middle Athletics

Inky Johnson speaking to students.
Staff Photo by Mike Stanley, Jefferson County Post Sports

Former University of Tennessee football standout, Inquoris “Inky” Johnson, now an inspirational speaker, spoke to benefit Maury Middle School Athletics on Friday night at First Baptist Church in Dandridge.

Inky Johnson has not always been an “inspirational” speaker, but his life story is so inspiring to so many others that it is hard to call him anything but inspirational. Johnson had a very promising career with the Vols’ and seemed poised to become the next NFL player from the University of Tennessee. It was in 2006, during the second game of his junior season, those dreams changed forever. The opponent was Air Force and in Johnson’s word “they weren’t even supposed to be in the game”, but they were, and driving to tie the game. The running back came across middle and caught the ball on Inky’s side of the field. Inky made the tackle but this time it was different, this time things went black for a moment. They carted Johnson off the field and rushed him to UT Medical Hospital, where doctors conducted surgery to save Johnson’s life.

Pretty inspiring right? That’s not even the toughest thing Inky has been through. You see Inky Johnson is from the Kirkwood community of Atlanta, Ga where he was raised in a 2 bedroom, 1 bath house with 14 other siblings. Johnson recalls the first time he slept in a bed by himself, “ I remember the first time I ever got to sleep in a bed by myself was on my official visit to UT.” That would mean Johnson was 17 years old before he ever slept all alone. Johnson described his hometown growing up as “one of the roughest in the world”. It is a community filled with drugs, killings, and alcohol abuse, but Johnson knew from an early age he was going to change that. “I would walk up to the drug dealers and tell them, you see all of this you’re doing? I’m gonna be the one to change all that.” Johnson attended Crim High School in Atlanta, but against the demand of his parents. His parents transferred him to nearby Tucker High School where the crime was lower and the possibilities of getting a scholarship were higher. After his freshman year at Tucker, Johnson pleaded with his parents to allow him to go back to Crim High. “ My thought process was this, I’m going to go back to Crim and I’m going to make it out and I’m going to get a scholarship, so I can show the ones around me and behind me it can be done.” His parents transferred him back to Crim High School.

Johnson recalls sitting in the back of the room when his high school coach introduced, then University of Tennessee Head Football Coach, Phillip Fulmer. He spoke with Inky afterwards and told him he wanted him to be a part of the team, Johnson responded “ I will be there Coach.” He said Fulmer then stated “Inky I don’t think you understand, you have to come up and see the campus, sign a letter , etc.” Johnson replied with “No coach, I don’t think you understand”. Inky Johnson signed with the University of Tennessee and became the first person in his family to graduate from college.

He credits God for having different plans for his future, jokingly saying “ You ever wanna make God laugh, just make plans.”