Johnson Earns NFF Bobby Bell Award

MOORHEAD, Minn. (3/29/18)---Concordia senior Chad Johnson has been named this year's Bobby Bell College Impact Player of the Year honoree as awarded by Minnesota Chapter of the National Football Foundation. He will be recognized at the 11th Annual Minnesota Football Honors on April 29 at U.S. Bank Stadium.

Johnson becomes the first Cobber player to earn the National Football Foundation's top college award for the state of Minnesota. He is only the second athlete from the Minnesota Athletic Collegiate Conference (MIAC) to receive the honor since it started in 2012.

The Bobby Bell College Impact Player of the Year Award is named for the Gophers All-American and national champion who went on to star for the Kansas City Chiefs. Bell is a member of both the College and Pro Football Halls of Fame.

The prestigious honor caps a career for Johnson which saw him break the school record for touchdowns in a career, earn All-American honors and be named the Jim Christopherson MIAC Most Valuable Player.  

Johnson was named to the D3football.com All-American Second Team and the D3football.com All-West Region First Team following his senior season in 2017. Johnson also earned MIAC All-Conference for three straight seasons in addition to his 2017 MIAC MVP award.

Johnson scored a program-record 42 touchdowns in his 40 games as a Cobber. He also owns the school record for rushing yards per game in a single season which he set this past fall when he averaged 126.2 yards per game. He is also second on the school's all-time list in rushing yards in a career (2,699), touchdowns in a single season (17) and rushing yards in a single season (1,262).

Johnson was a team captain in 2017 and helped the Cobbers pull off an upset win over six-time national champion Wis.-Whitewater in the home opener. He went on to rush for over 100 yards in eight of the team's 10 games and had a career-high 203 rushing yards against Carleton on Oct. 28.      

The Minnesota Chapter of the National Football Foundation will host the 11th Annual Minnesota Football Honors on Sunday, April 29, 2018 at U.S. Bank Stadium. The event is presented by the Minnesota Vikings and is the largest football awards event in Minnesota. Doors open at 2 p.m. for the 4 p.m. event.

The event is open to the public. Tickets are on sale now. For tickets and additional information about this year's Minnesota Football Honors, please visit www.minnesotafootballhonors.com.

Past Bobby Bell Award Winners
2017 - Peter Bateman (Minn.-Duluth)
2016 - Josh Gordon (Minnesota State)
2015 - David Cobb (University of Minnesota)
2014 - Ra'Shede Hageman (University of Minnesota)
2013 - Rayon Simmons (Winona State)
2012 - Friz Waldvogel (University of St. Thomas)