CHESTERFIELD COUNTY, Va. — Rudi Johnson, a graduate of Thomas Dale High School who went on to play for the Cincinnati Bengals, has died at age 45, as first reported by TMZ.
Johnson had just been inducted into the Chesterfield Sports Hall of Fame, although he did not attend the ceremony in person.
According to his Hall of Fame inductee biography, Johnson's football career started when he was just 6 years old, playing for the Ettrick Trojans of the Chesterfield Quarterback League.
Current Thomas Dale head coach Kevin Tucker was a friend and teammate of Johnson's all the way through their days playing for the Knights.
"Rudi made it look easy" Tucker recalled. "That's when everyone realized how good he was going to be. When he made it look easy and look like everyone else was standing still.
Johnson went on to be named All-Metro as a senior at Dale and led them to the regional semifinals in 1997 where they lost to Varina, their only blemish that season.
Johnson attended Butler Community College before playing for Auburn University where he rushed for more than 1,500 yards in a single season. He was named SEC Offensive Player of the Year in his only season with the Tigers.
Tucker also spoke about the pride the Thomas Dale community had in watching Johnson play at the highest levels of the game.
"I can still remember being in college and watching 'College Gameday' (on ESPN)" Tucker recalled. "You were like 'Aw, there's the Auburn running back. I played with him in high school!'"
"The whole community was proud".
A fourth-round pick, Johnson entered the NFL in 2001 as a Cincinnati Bengal, where he earned Pro Bowl honors after setting the Bengals' single-season rushing record—a record he still holds.
"Rudi was a fine person and an excellent running back for us," said Bengals president Mike Brown. "He was dependable and productive as a player, and very popular among his teammates. Everyone liked him and saw him as a dear friend. We are deeply saddened by his passing."
Johnson spent the 2008 season with the Detroit Lions before his retirement.
Thomas Dale's football program shared a post on Facebook in Johnson's memory, saying in part:
"Rudi was a strong family man who loved all that he met, especially his family. He was a great son, a great husband, a great father and brother. At this time, let’s just all come together in prayer and show our support to the Johnson family."
"He was always smiling, always happy" Tucker added. "He was just one of those guys that made everyone around him better."
His cause of death was not immediately known.
Johnson recorded a video message that was played as part of his induction into the Chesterfield Hall of Fame earlier this month.
"I just want to say dream big, shoot for the stars, stay focused, never give up," Johnson said in the recorded message. "And one more thing to all the kids from Chesterfield County, I'll be watching for the next star to be born."
In the two-minute video, Johnson reminisced about his time growing up in Chesterfield County and playing under inspirational coaches for both the Ettrick Trojans youth football team and Thomas Dale High School Knights.
Email tributes or memories of Rudi Johnson the CBS 6 Newsroom.
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