Gus Johnson, an American sportscaster, currently works for Fox Sports, where he is the lead play-by-play announcer for college football and basketball.
Since 2011, Johnson has been the lead play-by-play voice for Fox Sports’ college football coverage and has also been covering college basketball for the network since 2013.
Throughout nearly three decades of professionalism, he has had an impressive career with notable sports networks such as CBS, Big Ten Network & Turner Sports.
On February 18, 2022, a documentary entitled ‘Back to School with Gus Johnson‘ was released, chronicling his life as a student at Harvard University and his time as a play-by-play announcer.
After graduating from Howard University with a degree in political science, Johnson began his career at local TV stations and ESPN.
He then joined CBS Sports, where he spent most of his time as a play-by-play announcer.
During his time at CBS, he covered a range of sports, including NFL games, college football, track and field, boxing, the Hambletonian, and the bobsled and luge events at the 1998 Olympic Winter Games in Nagano, Japan.
His signature catchphrases, such as “Oh my goodness!“, “From the parking lot!“, “Pure!“, “Rise and Fire… Count it!“, “And the Runner…Bang!“, “BAM!” and “HA-HAAA” are very popular among the viewers.
This article will explore his early life, career, documentary, incidents, and many more.
Quick Facts
| Full Name | Augustus Cornelius Johnson Jr |
| Known As | Gus Johnson |
| Birth Date | August 10, 1967 |
| Age | 48 Years Old |
| Birth Place | Detroit, Michigan |
| Nationality | American |
| Religion | Catholic |
| Education |
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| Father’s Name | Augustus Cornelius Johnson |
| Mother’s Name | B Troy Johnson (late) |
| Marital Status | Unknown |
| Wife’s Name | Unknown |
| Children | One |
| Height | 5 feet 7 inches/ 1.73m/ 173 cm |
| Weight | 68 kg/ 150 lbs |
| Zodiac Sign | Leo |
| Profession | Sports Commentator |
| Commentary on | Basketball, American football, Boxing, Mixed martial arts |
| Career |
|
| Annual Average Salary | $500k |
| Net Worth | $1 Million- $3 Million |
| Social Media | |
| Last Update | March 2024 |
Early Life & Family
Gus Johnson was born in Detroit, Michigan, to Augustus Cornelius Johnson and B Troy Johnson on August 10, 1967.
His father worked as an engineer for a private company. Johnson considered his father a great dancer and a great singer.
His mother, B Troy Johnson (b. September 3, 1942- d. June 7, 2014), was the one who piqued his interest in sports.
B Troy was an athlete as she played softball, field hockey, and basketball. She became a golfer later in her life.
Impact Of Mother’s Death
Gus Johnson’s mother, B Troy, died of ovarian cancer at the age of 71 in mid-2014. The incident would lead him to take a break from his sportscasting career.
He stepped down as Fox’s lead soccer announcer on September 15, 2014, thus dropping off as a potential contender as the lead host of the 2018 FIFA World Cup.
Having joined as a play-by-play radio announcer of MLS in 2012, he elevated to soccer announcer in 2013 with an eye toward the World Cup (2018) but made a leave to mourn his mom’s demise.
Graduate Of Howard University
Gus Johnson attended University of Detroit Jesus High School and Academy and graduated in 1985.
During his high school days, he was a three-sport athlete (football, basketball & baseball) & even co-captain of the school’s football and basketball teams.
He was an all-league quarterback, shooting guard, and a first baseman catcher on the baseball team.
Johnson was elected to the Detroit Jesus High School Hall of Fame’s inaugural class.
Gus Johnson graduated in 1990 from Howard University, majoring in political science.
He played on the baseball team for all four years at college and earned a varsity letter.
Sportscasting Career
In his earlier broadcast career, Gus worked for ESPN as the voice for college hockey and college basketball, Big East basketball on the Big East Network, and Canadian Football League contests for ESPN2.
In 1991, he hosted ESPN’s Black College Sports Today and had several stints on television in Texas, Alabama, North Carolina, and Washington, D.C., from 1991 to 1992.
After two years, he worked for the Madison Square Garden Network from 1994 to 2010 for NBA’s New York Knicks and WNBA’s New York Liberty.
He hosted shows featuring Knicks, Rangers hockey, and the Yankees baseball team for the MSG.
Johnson joined CBS Sports in 1996 and called play-by-play for numerous sports, including the network’s coverage of March Madness until 2011.
He called play-by-play for NBA’s Minnesota Timberwolves in the 1996-97 season.
Having announced preseason television games for several NFL teams, Johnson left MSG Network to spend more time with his son before the 2010-11 NBA season.
On May 5, 2011, CBS Sports released Johnson because of a contract disagreement.
Joined Fox Sports | What Does He Do There?
Johnson joined Fox Sports on May 9, 2011, after four days of release from CBS Sports, to call college football and NFL telecasts.
Johnson teams with analyst Joel Klatt and sideline reporter Jenny Taft on college football to call the Big Noon Saturday game of the week.
On February 13, 2013, he called his first UEFA Champions League match & elevated to lead soccer announcer with the potential to host the 2018 FIFA World Cup.
However, he stepped down as Fox’s lead soccer announcer on September 15, 2014.
The Fox Sports broadcaster received the CoSIDA Jake Ward Award in 2021, awarded annually to an individual in the media who has made an outstanding contribution to intercollegiate athletics.
A Documentary “Back to School with Gus Johnson”
In April 2022, he stated that he would not be calling NFL games as he would be attending Harvard’s Advanced Leadership Initiative program.
This story was chronicled in a documentary produced by Fox and premiered on February 18, 2023.
The Ivy League school’s yearlong program provides accomplished people from many ranges of careers an opportunity to learn in-depth about the critical challenges in society.
This program aims to unleash participants’ potential to solve these issues.
The documentary provides glimpses of Jonson in classrooms and discussion groups.
He describes how quarantining during the COVID-19 pandemic was a rough, depressing period for him and how spending 2022 studying at Harvard was healing.
While balancing his life work and the university’s one-year program, Johnson still called college football and basketball games for Fox Sports.
Gus Johnson’s Wife & Children
There is limited information available regarding Gus Johnson’s dating history or current relationship status.
While there have been reports of him being engaged and planning to wed on August 1, 2014 (which coincides with his parents’ anniversary), details about the woman and their current relationship are not out.
Additionally, there is little public information regarding his son, whose age was revealed in a tweet from April 2012 as being eight years old.
It is uncertain whether his former fiancée is the mother of his child.
Age, Height & Body Measurements
The American sportscaster is 48 years old and stands 5 feet 7 inches/1.73 m tall.
Johnson has dark brown eyes and black hair and weighs 68 kg/150 lbs.
Net Worth Of Gus Johnson
With more than two & a half decades as a sportscaster, Johnson did earn notable fame & so is his income.
As of 2024, Gus Johnson has an estimated net worth in the range of $1-$3 million.
It all came as an attribute as a play-by-play announcer for many notable sports networks.
The Detriot, Michigan-born, currently works for Fox Sports but has kept the financial details of his contract low-key.
Some sources allege that Johnson earns an average annual salary of $500,000, but given that he is a veteran, it’s possible that his yearly income is higher than the reported amount.
In the United States, a Sports Broadcaster makes around $53,600 per year, while those employed in networks like ESPN, Fox & CBS could pocket significantly higher.
Currently, the world’s highest-earning sports commentator is retired NFL QB Tom Brady, with a salary of $37.5 million, signing a $375 million contract with Fox Sports for over 10 years in May 2022.
Gus Johnson’s Battle over Twitter Handle?
Johnson joined Twitter in March 2012 and has amassed 56.7k followers.
However, the sportscaster is inactive on social media and has yet to tweet since May 2012.
Another individual named Gus Johnson (Gustav Emil Johnson), who is an American comedian, filmmaker, musician, and podcaster, shares the same name.
The comedian requested the sportscaster for his Twitter handle, i.e., @gusjohnson, in his YouTube video, as the sportscaster had yet to tweet since 2012.
He comically challenged him to a game of the broadcaster’s choice for the Twitter handle.
However, the Fox Sports broadcaster has yet to respond to him.
Caught Vaping In The Middle of the Match
The longtime sportscaster was caught vaping in the middle of the basketball game between the Arizona Wildcats and the Indiana Hoosiers on December 10, 2022.
The game took place in MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, where E-cigarettes are not listed as prohibited.
But basketball fans had expressed mixed emotions regarding this incident.
This is not the first time he was caught with a vape in games. In 2021, viewers spotted him with a vape in his hand while he was in the Penn State-Wisconsin football game booth.
Interesting Facts
- Gus Johnson briefly appeared as an announcer in the film, “He Got Game,” in 1998.
- Johnson provided the play-by-play commentary for the video games NCAA Basketball 10, Madden NFL 11, and Madden NFL 12.
- He also lent his voice as the play-by-play announcer for the fictional football games in the Buffalo Wild Wings commercial.
Popularity Graph
The graph below shows the search interest of Gus Johnson over the past twelve months.
The graph indicates that the number of searches of Gus Johnson peaked in November 2022.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Did Gus Johnson play any sports?
While attending Detroit Jesus High School, Johnson participated in football, basketball, and baseball. He went on to play baseball for four years at Howard University.
Why did Gus Johnson leave CBS?
He departed from the network in 2011 because the two parties could not agree on a new contract.
