1st Forgetten Ones Poster

Coach Jerry Johnson

Morreco Colemen, Director

Watch the Story of Jerry Johnson, One of the Most Winning Basketball Coaches of All Time

MEMPHIS, TENNESSEE, UNITED STATES, February 28, 2022 /EINPresswire.com/ -- The public can now view an important part of NCAA sports history anytime, anywhere! “1st Forgotten Champions: The Legacy of Jerry Johnson,” directed by Morreco Coleman, is a documentary about the late Coach Jerry C. Johnson and how while serving as the head coach of LeMoyne-Owen College’s men’s basketball team they became the first HBCU to win an NCAA Division III Championship in 1975. This feat made Johnson the first African American coach to win the championship and LOC the first HBCU. Decades later, LOC has the distinction of being the only men’s college basketball team in Memphis and the state of Tennessee to earn an NCAA title. “1st Forgotten Champions: The Legacy of Jerry Johnson” chronicles Johnson’s life and that historic moment. Johnson is regarded as one of the most successful coaches in college basketball history, winning 821 games and receiving numerous awards. Johnson spent 46 years with LOC, retiring in 2005, and he passed away in January of 2021 at the age of 102. However, his legacy lives on through his family, the thousands of students he coached and mentored, and this documentary. It can be found at https://www.ffcmovie.com. Viewing this piece of awe-inspiring story is a perfect way to close out Black History Month and usher in March Madness!

The documentary did very well after it was released and received much critical acclaim. In 2020, it was featured in the Burbank International Film Festival where it won the Audience Choice Award and the Black International Film Festival in Nashville, where it won the Best of Tennessee Award. It was also featured in the Indie Memphis Film Festival. Coleman hopes Johnson’s story will make it to the big screen one day but until then the documentary is available for all to enjoy.

Morreco Coleman is a Memphis native and he decided to make the documentary available for everyone to see because Johnson’s story deserves to be told. “Directing this documentary was an honor. It’s a wonderful story about an amazing coach who inspired greatness in African American college students for almost 50 years. What Coach Johnson was able to accomplish during his career is nothing short of phenomenal but because he wasn’t at a more renowned institution he didn’t receive the level of recognition he deserved. Everyone in the South knew if you wanted to talk to one of the best coaches to ever do it, you had to meet Coach Jerry Johnson. I, along with all who knew and loved him, want his story to continue being told for generations to come.”

“1st Forgotten Champions: The Legacy of Jerry Johnson” documentary is a testament to what can be accomplished with hard work and determination during a time when racial tensions were high and the safety of African American teams while traveling was a major concern. It contains interviews with Johnson, some of his former players, and other head college basketball coaches such as Anfernee “Penny” Hardaway (University of Memphis), John Calipari (University of Kentucky), Josh Pastner (Georgia Tech), and William Anderson (LeMoyne-Owen). The late Ben Jobe, award-winning coach of several college basketball teams appears as well. Former Memphis Mayor Willie Herenton and Tennessee Congressman Steve Cohen also share their thoughts on Johnson and his rigorous basketball program.

Anyone who loves sports is encouraged to watch this film and learn about a giant in the game and a little-known but important moment in college sports history. Groups that want to get a little more in-depth and discuss many of the important issues addressed in the documentary can request a private screening that includes an in-person or virtual conversation with Coleman, several of Coach Johnson’s former players, and other key players in the documentary’s production. For more information and to stream the film, visit https://www.ffcmovie.com.

Jean Arnetta Henderson
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