Johnny Jones to be inducted in Hall of Fame
By JEREMY HEATH Staff Writer

Johnny 'Lam' Jones

It's almost easy to forget Johnny Jones was one of the most electric high school football players of the 1970s.

That's what happens when an athlete such as Jones sets the track and field world on fire, rewriting the Texas high school record books and a few short months later winning a gold medal in the 1976 Olympics in Montreal.

Luckily for the former Badger - and his high school hometown of Lampasas - The Texas High School Football Hall of Fame didn't forget Jones' accomplishments on the gridiron. The THSFHOF, which is made up of Texas sports writers, high school coaches, members of the Hall and a board of directors, announced Jones' selection as a member.

He will be inducted, along with seven other athletes and coaches, at a banquet scheduled for 6 p.m. May 3 at Baylor University's Ferrell Center in Waco.

"When you consider all the tremendous athletes who have played high school football in Texas, it makes this a great honor that I'll humbly accept," Jones said. "But it's an honor that belongs to every one of my teammates in Lampasas, whether they were starters or secondteamers or what, because you don't accomplish anything like this without your teammates."

Jones

Jones, who was known in high school as the Lampasas Lightning Bolt, scored more than 45 touchdowns as a Badger, playing from 1973-75. He was a second-team All-State selection as a junior and a first-teamer his senior season. He was selected to play in the Texas High School All-Star Game in the Houston Astrodome in May of 1976.

As a freshman running back/ wide receiver at the University of Texas, Jones played for Hall of Fame head coach Darrell K. Royal. For the next three seasons, in which he was primarily used at receiver, he played for Fred Akers, earning All-America honors twice and playing for a national championship after the 1977 season.

It was Royal who gave Jones the nickname by which he is still recognized today. Because there was another Johnny Jones on the Texas roster, Royal used the two players' hometowns to distinguish between them. The other Jones, who was from Hamlin, became Johnny "Ham" Jones and, of course, Jones became Johnny "Lam" Jones.

FILE PHOTOS Running the anchor leg, Johnny "Lam" Jones brought the Badger 1600 relay team from last place to first to capture the Class 3A state title in 1976. From left: Assistant coach Bill Harty, Tom Lancaster, Leon McLendon, head coach Scott Boyd, Mike Perkins, relay alternate Todd Schumann and Jones.

In 1980, the New York Jets selected Jones with the second overall pick of the draft. In five seasons with the Jets, Jones battled injuries and off-the-field issues, but he still caught 138 passes for 2,322 yards and 13 touchdowns. In 1983, he had his most productive season as a pro, catching 43 passes for 743 yards and four touchdowns.

Jones dealt with his off-thefield issues, and today he spends much of his time speaking to youth about how his decisions affected his career.

In 2005, Jones was forced to deal with another non-sports issue when he was diagnosed with multiple myeloma, a rare form of cancer that attacks blood and bone marrow. Though he said the fight took much of his strength, he is in full remission and working to regain that lost strength.

Johnny "Lam" Jones conducted a press conference upon returning from Montreal as an Olympic gold medalist in 1976.

Jones said anything that brings positive light to Lampasas makes him feel good, so the Hall of Fame induction is even more special at this time in his life.

"The entire town has always been so supportive of me, and everyone was there for me," he said. "Lampasas has always been real, real good about supporting the people in the community, and they really get behind the kids.

"When we won the (Class) 3A state track title, it seemed like the whole town went down to Austin, so it was like the whole town won the title. When I won the gold medal, I felt like the whole town was there with me and that whole town won the gold medal. I want to make it clear that I feel like the entire town is being inducted into the Hall of Fame."

Jones was born in Oklahoma, but when his parents split he moved to Lampasas to live with his grandparents. He became a permanent resident right before he started high school.

His prowess in the athletic arena helped him matriculate into the local society. He said coaches such as Scott Boyd served as a teacher and father figure for him on and off the field.

Jones advanced to the state track meet as a junior, and his reputation as a phenomenal talent grew the following football season. After he broke meet records in his first three meets of the track season, the number of Lampasas residents who followed the track team started to grow.

By the time Jones guided the track team to a state title, Boyd believed the athlete had a shot to make the Olympic team. Jones said his coach had mapped out a plan to qualify him. Jones and Boyd would fly to meets in Eugene, Ore., Knoxville, Tenn., and Chicago in preparation for the Olympic Qualifying Meet, which was back in Eugene.

It amounted to four cities in 10 days by plane, and Jones didn't have the money to make it work. Jones said Boyd met with city officials and business owners and convinced them the Badger had what it took to qualify for the Olympics. In turn, those civic leaders put together fund-raisers to make sure Jones and Boyd had the money needed to give it a shot.

Boyd's gamble -- much like the one to take Jones out of the 440- yard dash and move him into the 100-yard dash his senior year -- paid off when Jones qualified for the Olympic relay team.

"Coach Boyd was as smart, as intelligent as any coach I ever played for at any level, and I was blessed to play for some great coaches in my life," Jones said. "He just had this ability to think things through and take care of one thing at a time."

Jones stays busy today. Aside from working with youth in a program that benefits the Texas Special Olympics, he also sells color photographs he took of the University of Texas Tower the night it was lit up after the Longhorn football team won the national title in January 2006.

His latest project is in its infancy. After an extensive search, Jones located a frame that will house his idea. He wants to combine what he thinks are "two of the greatest come-from-behind feats in Central Texas sports history" -- the Longhorns' win over Southern California in the Rose Bowl and the Badgers' 1976 Class 3A state track title.

He plans to use a two-photo, 26x10 frame for side-by-side photographs of the lighted tower and the 1976 LHS 1,600 relay team receiving its gold medal at the state meet. He intends to sell the package and give a portion of the proceeds to the LHS Quarterback Club.