Home grown Calvin Johnson gets inducted into NFL Hall of Fame

CANTON, Oh. — He dominated at Sandy Creek High School and was a Collegiate All-American at Georgia Tech and only got better once he made it to the NFL.

Newnan’s own Calvin Johnson is now known as NFL Hall of Fame wide receiver Calvin Johnson. He will be one of several stars inducted during Sunday night’s ceremony at the NFL Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio.

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The 35-year old Johnson only played in the NFL for nine seasons, retiring from Detroit Lions after the 2015 season at the relatively young age of 30.

During those seasons, he was a nearly unstoppable force for the Lions. Johnson was named first team All-Pro three times in his career and was voted into the Pro Bowl six times.

He holds the NFL record for most yards receiving in a season with 1,964 and most consecutive 100-yard receiving games with eight.

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A star athlete in high school, Johnson lettered in football, baseball AND basketball at Sandy Creek. He was highly recruited and a consensus Top 10 wide receiver nationally during his senior football season. Sandy Creek retired Johnson’s #81 jersey in 2010.

With offers from almost every major college in America, Johnson settled on nearby Georgia Tech and played for then football coach Chan Gailey from 2004-2006.

During his time on the flats, Johnson set a slew of school records including most career yards, most touchdown receptions and career 100-yard receiving games with 13.

He was honored as the Most Valuable Player in the ACC Conference during his final season at Tech in 2006. Johnson was also given the Fred Biletnikoff award as the best wide receiver in College Football that same year.

Calvin Johnson was named to the Georgia Tech Hall of Fame in 2016, in 2018 he was voted into the College Football Hall of Fame.

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The Detroit Lions jumped at the chance to draft the man known as “Megatron” to football fans with the second pick of the 2007 NFL draft.

During his career he established no fewer than 16 different franchise records for the Lions. While the team struggled for success during his tenure, Johnson was a model of consistency for them catching at least 67 passes in eight of his nine NFL seasons.

Calvin Johnson was universally respected by his peers and was unanimously voted into the NFL Hall of Fame in his first year of eligibility.

He and his wife maintain an Atlanta area residence and own several businesses in the Detroit area.

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