Former Owl Drew Peterson honors the legacy of late Temple great Tre' Johnson
When former Temple and NFL offensive lineman Tre Johnson passed away suddenly back in February at the age of 54, his family, friends, former teammates and the students he taught at the Landon School in Bethesda, Maryland lost someone who was just as impactful off the field as he was on it.
After a career that included three all-Big East honors and third-team All-American recognition as a senior in 1993, Johnson went on to become a second-round selection of the Washington Redskins in the 1994 NFL Draft as the 31stoverall pick. After a nine-year NFL career that included a 1999 Pro Bowl selection and second team All-Pro honors, the Temple Athletics Hall of Fame inducted Johnson in his first year of eligibility in 2004.
“Tre was an icon amongst some of the most iconic athletic years at Temple University,” his close friend and former teammate, Drew Peterson, said.
Beyond Johnson’s wife, Irene and his four children in Chloe, EJ, EZ and Eden, few knew one of the best players in the history of the Temple football program better than Peterson, who found in Johnson a mentor, a neighbor on the 11th floor of Johnson Hall, and an eventual lifelong friend.
The two, Peterson said, took joy in challenging each other intellectually as well as on the football field. Johnson, who earned a master’s degree in social work from Temple in 1994, enjoyed accompanying Peterson on frequent trips to South Street to buy the latest music. They would come back to talk about it and analyze topics beyond anything that existed in their playbook.
“I want the world to know that he was a premier scholar-athlete,” Peterson said. “He embodied both sides of that hyphenate.”
Peterson, who earned two master’s degrees from Temple and is currently the Vice President for Applications and Support at Audacy, shared his memories of Johnson in an interview with OwlScoop.com that you can listen to here.
