Luke Andrew Johnsos Sr. (December 9, 1905 – December 10, 1984) was an

American football American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team wi ...

player,

assistant coach A sports coach is a person coaching in sport, involved in the direction, instruction and training of a sports team or athlete. History The original sense of the word ''coach'' is that of a horse-drawn carriage, deriving ultimately from the Hung ...

, and

head coach A head coach, senior coach or manager is a professional at training and developing athletes. They typically hold a more public profile and are paid more than other coaches. In some sports, the head coach is instead called the "manager", as in asso ...

for the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the majo ...

Chicago Bears The Chicago Bears are a professional American football team based in Chicago. The Bears compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) North division. The Bears have won nine ...

franchise. He started with the Bears in 1929 at the age of 23 as an

end End, END, Ending, or variation, may refer to: End *In mathematics: ** End (category theory) ** End (topology) **End (graph theory) ** End (group theory) (a subcase of the previous) **End (endomorphism) *In sports and games **End (gridiron footbal ...

. He played eight NFL seasons in Chicago finishing his playing career in 1936. He then spent 32 years as a Bears coach, including three as co-head coach during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

Playing career

Johnsos graduated from

Schurz High School Carl Schurz High School is a public 4–year high school located in the Irving Park neighborhood on the northwest side of Chicago, Illinois, United States. The school is named after German–American Carl Schurz, a statesman, soldier, and advocat ...

in Chicago in 1924, while there he played

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly ...

and

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding t ...

. After graduation, he went to

Northwestern University Northwestern University is a private research university in Evanston, Illinois. Founded in 1851, Northwestern is the oldest chartered university in Illinois and is ranked among the most prestigious academic institutions in the world. Charte ...

and lettered in

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appr ...

, baseball, and

, earning nine letters in total. In 1929, he was signed by the Bears when Northwestern teammate Walter Holmer insisted he be part of the conditions; while Holmer was paid $5,000 as a salary, Johnsos received only $100 upon joining the team, which he commented was because

George Halas George Stanley Halas Sr. (; February 2, 1895October 31, 1983), nicknamed "Papa Bear" and "Mr. Everything", was an American professional football player, coach, and team owner. He was the founder and owner of the National Football League's Chi ...

felt he "wasn't worth higher pay" Johnsos also signed a baseball contract with the

Cincinnati Reds The Cincinnati Reds are an American professional baseball team based in Cincinnati. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) National League Central, Central division and were a charter member of ...

, but did not play due to eyesight problems. As a player for the Bears, he was named

All-Pro All-Pro is an honor bestowed upon professional American football players that designates the best player at each position during a given season. All-Pro players are typically selected by press organizations, who select an "All-Pro team," a list t ...

twice. Nicknamed "Professor" and the "Bears' Brain Trust", Johnsos was praised by his peers for his knowledge of the game. Teammate

Red Grange Harold Edward "Red" Grange (June 13, 1903 – January 28, 1991), nicknamed "the Galloping Ghost" and "the Wheaton Iceman", was an American football halfback for the University of Illinois, the Chicago Bears, and the short-lived New York Yankees ...

also called him "one of the best ends in the league and a great pass receiver."

Coaching career

In 1937, with his playing career now over, Johnsos became an assistant coach for the Bears. Following the October 25, 1942 victory over the

Philadelphia Eagles The Philadelphia Eagles are a professional American football team based in Philadelphia. The Eagles compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East division. The team play ...

, the Bears' twelfth victory in a row, Halas turned his team over to Johnsos and fellow assistant

Heartley Anderson Heartley William "Hunk" Anderson (September 22, 1898 – April 24, 1978) was an American football player and coach. He served as the head football coach at the Saint Louis University (1928–1929), University of Notre Dame (1931–1933), and N ...

as he left to serve in

. With Anderson and Johnsos leading the team, the Bears won the

1943 NFL Championship Game The 1943 NFL Championship Game was the 11th annual title game of the National Football League (NFL), held at Wrigley Field in Chicago on December 26 with an attendance of 34,320. In a rematch of the previous year's game, the Western Division ...

. Before the 1945 season, Johnsos received an offer to take over as head coach of the

Cleveland Rams The Cleveland Rams were a professional American football team that played in Cleveland from 1936 to 1945. The Rams competed in the second American Football League (AFL) for the 1936 season and the National Football League (NFL) from 1937 to 19 ...

, but declined as he wished to stay in Chicago. Halas re-assumed head coaching duties in 1946 and Johnsos returned to his assistant role. In 1949, rumors surfaced of Johnsos becoming head coach of the

Chicago Cardinals The professional American football team now known as the Arizona Cardinals previously played in Chicago, Illinois, as the Chicago Cardinals from 1898 to 1959 before relocating to St. Louis, Missouri, for the 1960 through 1987 seasons. Roots ...

, though Halas denied it and Johnsos said he had not received an offer. The Bears won the

1963 NFL Championship Game The 1963 NFL Championship Game was the 31st annual championship game, played on December 29 at Wrigley Field in Chicago, Illinois. The game pitted the visiting New York Giants (11–3) of the Eastern Conference against the Chicago Bears (11–1� ...

over the

New York Giants The New York Giants are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Giants compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East divisio ...

with the help of a play designed by Johnsos nicknamed the "Ditka Special"; on third down late in the game, tight end

Mike Ditka Michael Keller Ditka (born Michael Dyczko; October 18, 1939) is an American former football player, coach, and television commentator. A member of both the College (1986) and the Pro (1988) Football Halls of Fame, he was UPI NFL Rookie of Year i ...

caught a pass that placed the Bears on the Giants' one-yard line. Quarterback

Bill Wade William James Wade (October 4, 1930 – March 9, 2016) was an American football quarterback who played professionally in the National Football League (NFL). He is considered one of the greatest athletes in Nashville and Vanderbilt University hi ...

scored the game-winning touchdown on the next play. Johnsos retired after the 1969 season, ending 40 years at field level with the Bears.

Personal life

Johnsos was a former owner of the printing company Johnsos-Coppock Printing, which he later sold to Bagcraft Corp. of America but remained as an executive until late 1984. Two weeks after departing the company, he died on December 10 at the age of 79. He was survived by his wife Rosemary, four daughters, a son, and 15 grandchildren.

Head coaching record

NFL

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Johnsos, Luke 1905 births 1984 deaths American football ends Chicago Bears coaches Chicago Bears players Northwestern Wildcats baseball players Northwestern Wildcats football players Northwestern Wildcats men's basketball players Sportspeople from Chicago Players of American football from Chicago American men's basketball players Chicago Bears head coaches Carl Schurz High School alumni