Jimmy Johnson ROH Appreciation - What are your favorite memories?

Captain Late said:
2 moments stand out:

1991 at 11-0 Washington,the approach he took into that football game.Aggressive and having faith in his Young Team.How he had that team ready to go after it sent a message that this team was on the way.

"When You go up against a Gorilla, You hit him with everything You've Got!"

The 1992 NFC Championship Game at SF-he had that team ready to take that step to become Champions that day with strong poised physical football.
Told Troy Aikman that punting isn't a bad thing as long as they didn't risk turnovers or field position.Made sure to tell his Defense that Tackling well was imperative.And with the momentum changing with 4:25 left told Norv Turner to call the "896 F Flat" pass that will forever be known by:

"Harper Off to the Races!"
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Jimmy loved talking about taking down gorillas. LOL

92 play you talking about.… like I wrote earlier, dude had an uncanny ability to call the right play at the right time.
 
My first inkling that Jimmy was a stone cold killer was watching him in The Big House in front of about 106,000 Michigan faithful....still furiously clapping away on the sideline down 30-14 with 7:16 left....start at 2:20...they came back to win in regulation. I told my next door neighbor after that game, "We gotta somehow get this guy"....when it happened I went crazy. I was one of the very few....put me on a lie detector...that still trusted him 100% after 1-15.

 
Definitely the radio call-in. My favorite.

"We will win the ballgame... and you can put it in 3 inch headlines."

Just absolute brass balls. They would've won 4 straight SBs if he stayed put.
 
For m, it’s gotta be the Buddy Ryan post game after bounty bowl I

I would have loved to see that go down
 
All I can say is I still occasionally weep uncontrollably:)
 
There was also the time Jimmy called Jerry Jones "Michael Jackson" on a Fox telecast...
 
I was a lot younger when Jimmy was HC. My biggest regret is not paying closer attention to what he was doing. Too interested in girls and learning to drive/cars. I appreciate pretty much all he did even more now especially after 3 decades of futility and embarrassment after he left.

Love the "We're not Houston" statement and the "We're winning the game."...not sure any coach has been like that since him.
 
VaqueroTD said:
In appreciation for Jimmy‘s upcoming ROH induction this weekend, and hopefully breaking the curse - what are your best memories of Coach?

I recently read his autobiography Swagger and would encourage every fan to check it out. Hearing his story… what makes me appreciate him more than anything is how much Jimmy revolutionized football. So many things that did not exist in Dallas or the NFL when Jimmy took over:
  • Created the first draft value chart. Jimmy would purposefully find teams that always traded too much and take advantage of them.
  • Created the Dallas Cowboys TV Network and Production Team with his former University of Miami crew. Cowboys were making squat on that with Landry and Schramm.
  • Stopped using the Wonderlic to weigh a player’s intelligence. Psychology major and understood emotional and behavioral intelligence and used it in recruiting and drafting.
  • Created the monster offensive lines that we see everywhere in NFL now. Biggest decade weight gain for average O-Lineman was 80’s to 90’s: +30 lb. Increase and due to teams trying to copy ‘The Great Wall of Dallas’ concept that created a dynasty.
  • Miami 4-3 which he brought to Dallas. Revolutionized Landry and other’s old 4-3 concepts. Simplified the 4-3. Defensive lineman generate more pressure and don’t read first. LBs further back. Faster players at all levels. League started going back to 4-3 with his innovations which spawned the Tampa Cover 2, and one could say even the godfather of DQ’s defense.
Acording to all his ex-players, a master motivator. Knew how to push the right buttons, and get his team ready. Here is a great example. This is from 10 years ago at Fox sports. Just an off-the-cuff team speech he gave on TV to show how he would motivate the Jags, but shows you what it must have been like in those Cowboys locker rooms and meetings in the days before everything was on social media or reality TV.

​
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To me you can make a case that he is the great coach of all time. He came from the college game when the NFL really despised those guys. At least in the present all the innovative play and offensive design comes from that level.
He completely turned over the roster, they went 1-15 in year one, 1990 : 7-9 with Aikman getting hurt against the Eagles, they probably make the playoffs that year.
1991 was the breakout year. What a team that was. They almost beat Washington on opening night, if Emmit does not get dehydrated they win that game. They ended the Skins undefeated season later that year. Aikman to Harper before halftime, Beurlein comes in relief as Aikman hurt his knee from what I remember.
Jimmy was such an innovator, from going for it on 4th down, throwing out of the endzone.
His greatest call was being up 24-20 in the championship game against the Niners, all teams back then and even 99% of the teams now would just run the ball try to get a first down and then punt it away. Jimmy took the bull by the horns, 4 minutes to play, first down from their own 20. Aikman to Harper slant that goes for 70 yards and puts them in the Super Bowl.
He was the team, his swagger, confidence. They could not lose when he was on his game. That team wins 4 SB's in a row, I really believe that. I don't think he stays for 20 years like Bill, Landry or Shula. But for him to leave after back to back titles and FA coming up. That is when Jerry actually wanted to spend money, he actually have a damn.
What a sliding door moment in sports history, maybe one of the greatest.
 
dckid said:
To me you can make a case that he is the great coach of all time. He came from the college game when the NFL really despised those guys. At least in the present all the innovative play and offensive design comes from that level.
He completely turned over the roster, they went 1-15 in year one, 1990 : 7-9 with Aikman getting hurt against the Eagles, they probably make the playoffs that year.
1991 was the breakout year. What a team that was. They almost beat Washington on opening night, if Emmit does not get dehydrated they win that game. They ended the Skins undefeated season later that year. Aikman to Harper before halftime, Beurlein comes in relief as Aikman hurt his knee from what I remember.
Jimmy was such an innovator, from going for it on 4th down, throwing out of the endzone.
His greatest call was being up 24-20 in the championship game against the Niners, all teams back then and even 99% of the teams now would just run the ball try to get a first down and then punt it away. Jimmy took the bull by the horns, 4 minutes to play, first down from their own 20. Aikman to Harper slant that goes for 70 yards and puts them in the Super Bowl.
He was the team, his swagger, confidence. They could not lose when he was on his game. That team wins 4 SB's in a row, I really believe that. I don't think he stays for 20 years like Bill, Landry or Shula. But for him to leave after back to back titles and FA coming up. That is when Jerry actually wanted to spend money, he actually have a damn.
What a sliding door moment in sports history, maybe one of the greatest.
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Completely forgot to put that point. But for its time, it was revolutionary to be the first one to win both a college and NFL championship. This was back when you had the Nebraskas of the world without NFL systems and unfair recruiting advantages.

Barry then became the next man to do it WITH Jimmy's peeps. And Pete Carroll of course the only guy since. We have seen college coaching legends from Steve Spurrier to Urban Meyer crash and burn in the NFL. Truly impressive.
 
Here are some good and short 'Jimmy Talk' videos I found that aren't in main searches.

They have his A Football Life episode, HOF Speech, and all the big stuff on Youtube for free too.








 
The day Jimmy was hired to replace an icon without any apologies or agonizing over having done so.
His swagger and enthusiasm
Player motivation - Let the mind control the body
His fresh knowledge of college players
His drive to get his coaching staff to stay late and give their all for the betterment of the team- except that one time Wanny told him he wasn't staying over so he could attend his own Childs school program across the road from Valley Ranch
The hair- yea it was a part of the deal
Jimmy was bigger than life and we as fans greatly benefitted from him passing through Dallas
Ring Of Honor FINALLY!!!!!
 
Mannix said:
My first inkling that Jimmy was a stone cold killer was watching him in The Big House in front of about 106,000 Michigan faithful....still furiously clapping away on the sideline down 30-14 with 7:16 left....start at 2:20...they came back to win in regulation. I told my next door neighbor after that game, "We gotta somehow get this guy"....when it happened I went crazy. I was one of the very few....put me on a lie detector...that still trusted him 100% after 1-15.

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Not only our Boys, I loved watching those Hurricanes too. College football needs a villain too.
 
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