So where did Billy “White Shoes’’ Johnson get his nickname?
Well, there was no ESPN and Chris Berman in those days, and the nickname came to life after a game he played as a junior at Chichester High School in Delaware County, Pa., in 1968.
“White Shoes’’ takes it from here: “I was sitting that summer out on the steps with a friend of mine, and we were talking about players like Joe Namath that were wearing white cleats. I told my friend I really liked white shoes, and he dared me to do it. So I had two pairs of new black high tops and took them to a nice little shoe store nearby and had them dye them. They did a great job. So I show up at training camp that summer and you have to understand my coach was a real throwback coach … the three yards-and-cloud-of-dust type of guy. He said what are you doing? I said the shoes help me run fast. So he said, ‘we will see’ and that afternoon I had a great practice, and he never said another word.
“Then after a game that season when I had like six touchdowns, a writer named Ed Gebhardt wrote a story and called me ‘Blazing Billy White Shoes.’ It stuck, but in college thankfully they dropped the ‘blazing’ part of it.’’
Interestingly, while Johnson is not in the Pro Football Hall of Fame, his shoes have been there. When he retired in 1988 as the NFL’s all-time leading punt returner, the white shoes went on display.
“I don’t know if they are still there,’’ Johnson said. “They also had my jersey. That is pretty cool to have it there. There are a lot of great players and memorabilia that have went through Canton (Ohio).’’
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