New Mexico State University chemical engineering professor. NFL quarterback. Entrepreneur. Football coach. Those titles are just some that Charles Lane “Charley” Johnson held during his luminary career. The beloved Aggie passed away at the age of 85 on Sept. 3 at his home in Las Cruces.
“I admire Dr. Charley Johnson’s lasting impact on NMSU. From NFL star to professor and department head, his dedication to education and our NMSU community at large will always inspire. Dr. Johnson will be greatly missed, but his legacy will certainly continue,” interim Dean of Engineering David Jauregui said.
Johnson once described his decision to pursue engineering while digging ditches one summer.
“A man pulled up in a pickup truck and he got out and wrote a few things down,” Johnson said. “When he left, I asked my friend ‘what was that,’ and he told me that was an engineer. I said, ‘That’s what I want to be.’”
Johnson, a native of Big Spring, Texas, indeed accomplished that goal when he graduated from NMSU with a bachelor’s degree in chemical engineering in 1961. That same year he was drafted by the St. Louis Cardinals to play NFL football.
Rather than just focusing his efforts on the NFL, Johnson also found time to pursue his master’s and doctoral degrees at Washington University in St. Louis. Studying and attending class in the morning and evening and going to football practice in the afternoon, leading to a 15-year career in professional football. Along with the Cardinals, Johnson played for the Houston Oilers and Denver Broncos.
A member of NMSU’s Army ROTC, Johnson was called to duty in 1967 and was stationed to work with NASA as a second lieutenant in the United States Army Reserve. Following his military service and storied football career, Johnson returned to NMSU to teach chemical engineering and later served as department head of chemical engineering from 2000 to 2004.
His fondest NMSU memory, Johnson has said, is the undefeated 1960 football season, which included a win against University of Texas at El Paso. As an Aggies quarterback, Johnson led his team to the Sun Bowl in 1959 and 1960.
Despite his football persona, few of Johnson’s students were aware of his NFL background.
Johnson also offered advice for students who were focusing on their education, but had other aspirations, such as an NFL career: “Stay in school and get your degree. An education will come in handy.”
Current NMSU Chemical Engineering faculty member Associate Professor Paul Andersen remembers Johnson: “He didn’t bring the football rah-rah leadership to academia, but he provided steady low-key leadership for the department.”
“Charley touched my life first in childhood as a football idol, next as a young professional as my boss and colleague, and finally in retirement as a friend and confidante,” said former Chemical and Materials Engineering Department Head David Rockstraw. “When I interviewed Charley for the department head position in 1999, I handed him a football and a sharpie and asked for his autograph in case he did not get the job.
“Charley lived his dream and spent the later years of his life, helping others to make theirs come true. He struggled to say no to anyone’s request for a block of his time, even when his mobility had been lost,” Rockstraw continued. “Charley was a big part of my personal and professional lives, and his presence will persist in my mind and my heart for the rest of my days.”
Johnson retired from NMSU in May 2012, and during the spring 2016 NMSU Commencement, Johnson received an Honorary Doctorate. He continued to be a loyal Aggie supporter and will be fondly remembered as a kind and caring person by those who had the privilege of knowing him.
To learn more about Johnson’s legendary football career, visit https://nmstatesports.com/news/2024/9/4/football-aggie-legend-charley-johnson-passes-at-85-years-old.aspx.
To read Johnson’s obituary, visit https://www.lcsun-news.com/obituaries/paco0934276.
