FULLERTON COLLEGE CENTENNIAL
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ALUMNI STORIES: DON JOHNSON
DON JOHNSON
Don Johnson attended Fullerton College from 1948 to 1950 and was on the first Hornet basketball team that went undefeated in the Eastern Conference. He was named the Team MVP, League MVP, was voted 1st Team All-State, and was the first recipient of the Arthur Nunn Award (1950).
After his playing days at Fullerton College, Johnson attended and played basketball at UCLA from1950 to 1952 where he played under the legendary Coach John Wooden. Johnson was voted 1st Team All-Conference, All-Pacific Coast, and All-American while playing for Wooden’s Bruins.
Johnson’s coaching career began in 1955 when he became a teacher at a brand new high school called El Rancho in Pico Rivera. He coached his varsity basketball teams to six playoff appearances.
In 1966 Johnson left El Rancho to become the head basketball coach at another new school... a community college in Cypress. Johnson quickly made an impact with the Chargers leading them to two state championships and a number of conference championships.
When Johnson retired in 1994, he left the coaching ranks as the winningest basketball coach in California history.
Johnson was inducted into the Orange County Hall of Fame in 1996. In 2009 Cypress College’s gymnasium was dedicated in his name.