45 Days Until Gameday – Day #49 Johnson County, Nebraska

We have 45 days until our first game of the 2026-2027 football season against the Ohio Bobcats on 9/5/2026.
Yesterday we looked at Jefferson County, Nebraska.

https://www.on3.com/boards/threads/46-days-until-gameday-–-day-48-jefferson-county-nebraska.8901179/

Johnson County, Nebraska

• Established in 1855 and named after Vice President Richard Johnson.
• License plate prefix #57.
• Tecumseh is the county seat and the only city in the county.
• Population is ~5,200 (2025) and has grown since 2000, but is still significantly down from its peak of over 11,000 in 1900.
• The county is approximately 377 square miles, making it the 4th smallest county in Nebraska by total area.
• The Big Nemaha River flows through the county.
• The Tecumseh Opera House was built in 1880 with the original molded white tin ceiling still in place. For nearly 40 years, the opera house hosted notable performers at its time such as Maude Atkinson, Katie Putnam, and John Dillon, but also was a place for the local talent shows, operas, comedies, debates, and speeches. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1988.
• The Johnson County Courthouse that is still in use today was built in 1889 and listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1990.
• Tecumseh was originally named Frances in 1856, falsely attributed to the name of the wife of Vice President Richard Johnson. Except his wife (through common law marriage) was named Julia Chinn, who was an octoroon slave (1/8th African, 7/8th White) in her youth. Shortly after being founded, the city name was changed to Tecumseh after the Native American Chief killed by VP Johnson in the Battle of the Thames in Ontario, Canada during the War of 1812.
• In 1987, Tecumseh was the setting for an ABC miniseries called Amerika which depicted life in a small American town after a successful takeover by the Soviet Union.
• Tecumseh Public Schools merged into the Johnson County Central Public Schools in 2007, due to having low student numbers in the district.
• Crab Orchard, NE was named after a grove of crabapple trees near where the town was platted in 1883.
• Scandium and titanium have long been discussed to mine just outside of Elk Creek but all efforts have been stifled.
• The Johnson County Fair is held annually in August in Tecumseh and hosts a parade, carnival, livestock shows, exhibits, and a softball tournament.
• The Antique Tractor and Machinery Show is held annually in August in Sterling since 1983. In 1999, it was designated a Local Legacy by the US Library of Congress.
• The Wirth Brothers Lake is a 27-acre lake outside of Sterling for camping, fishing and has an archery range.

Former Huskers and Spotlights (years are letterman years)
According to University of Nebraska-Lincoln records, there have been 12 letterman football players from Johnson County, NE.


Tony Davis – FB 1973-1975, Tecumseh, NE.

• 5’11” 210lb running back wearing #25
• All-State and All-American player out of Tecumseh HS.
• Played at Nebraska from 1972-1975, lettering from 1973-1975.
• Tom Osborne’s first 1,000 yard rusher.
• Finished his career as Nebraska’s all-time leading rusher with 2,445 yards.
• 1975 All-Big Eight
• MVP of the 1974 Cotton Bowl and 1974 Sugar Bowl. The 1974 Cotton Bowl was played on New Year’s Day culminating the 1973 season and the 1974 Sugar Bowl was played on New Year’s Eve culminating the 1974 season. He has the rare distinction of being named MVP of two major college football bowl games in the same calendar year.
• Selected in the 4th round of the 1976 NFL draft by the Cincinnati Bengals and would play 6 seasons in the NFL split with the Bengals and Buccaneers.
• Nebraska Sports Hall of Fame member
• Cotton Bowl Hall of Fame member

Loren Caley – HB 1914-1916, Sterling, NE.

• Lettered at Nebraska from 1914-1916 from Sterling, NE.
• 1914 team was Missouri Valley Conference champions going 7-0-1.
• 1915 team was Missouri Valley Conference champions going 8-0.
• 1916 team was Missouri Valley Conference champions going 6-2.

Jim Holscher – WB 1985-1987, Cook, NE.

• 5’10’ 180lb wingback wearing #27.
• Former walk-on.

Wayne Blue – HB 1940-1941, Tecumseh, NE.

• 6’ 205lb halfback out of Tecumseh HS.
• Played on the 1941 Rose Bowl team in Nebraska’s first bowl game.
• Served in the US Air Force for 20 years and flew over 50 combat missions in WWII where he earned the Distinguished Flying Cross.

Matt Davison – SE 1997-2000, Tecumseh, NE.

• 6’1” 185lb split end wearing #3.
• All-State receiver out of Tecumseh HS.
• Set Tecumseh records for career receiving yards, season receiving yards, single game receiving yards, career touchdown receptions, single game touchdown receptions.
• All-State basketball player and led Tecumseh to their first state title. Holds school record for points in a career, season, and game.
• Nebraska High School Sports Hall of Fame member.
• Played at Nebraska from 1997-2000, lettering all 4 years.
• Finished his career playing in 47 games, starting 26. Finishing with 93 catches for 1,456 yards and 6 TDs.
• 3x Honorable Mention All-Big 12.
• 3x Academic All-American.
• In 1998, he set the school record for receiving yards in a game, which has since been broken.

Raymond Jobes – HB 1918-1919, Tecumseh, NE.

• Halfback out of Tecumseh HS.
• Lettered at Nebraska in 1918 and 1919.
• Due to the flu pandemic and WWI, Jobes played as a young player in a time where it was not common.
• The 1918 team would finish 2-3-1 in William Kline’s 1st and only season as head coach.
• The 1919 team would finish 3-3-2 in Henry Schulte’s 1st season as head coach.

Avard Mandery – HB 1924-1926, Tecumseh, NE.

• Halfback out of Tecumseh HS.
• Brother to Roy Mandery.
• The 1924 team would finish 5-3 in Fred Dawson’s 4th season as head coach.
• The 1925 team would finish 4-2-2 in Ernest Bearg’s 1st season as head coach.
• The 1926 team would finish 6-2 in Ernest Bearg’s 2nd season as head coach.

Roy Mandery – E 1924-1926, Tecumseh, NE.

• An end out of Tecumseh HS.
• Brother to Avard Mandery.

Chris Mathis – HB 1930-1932, Tecumseh, NE

• 5’8” 147lb quarterback and halfback out of Tecumseh HS.
• The 1930 team would go 4-3-2 in Dana Bible’s 2nd season as head coach.
• The 1931 team would go 8-2 as Big Six champions in Dana’s 3rd season.
• The 1932 team would go 7-1-1 as Big Six champions in Dana’s 4th season.

Eldon McIlravy – FB 1937, Tecumseh, NE.

• 6’1” 175lb fullback out of Tecumseh HS.
• His career was ended early during his very first collegiate game. Against Minnesota in the 3rd quarter, he suffered a severe skull fracture while blocking a punt and was carried off the field unconscious. He was feared dead initially, but he eventually recovered from the injury and never played football again. Nebraska would win that game 14-9.
• The 1937 team would go 6-1-2 as Big Six champions in Biff Jones’ 1st season as head coach.

Edson Shaw – T 1915-1917, Tecumseh, NE.

• 6’1” 200lb fullback, halfback, and tackle out of Tecumseh HS.
• He was the starting tackle on the undefeated 8-0 1915 team.
• 1916 team was Missouri Valley Conference champions going 6-2.
• He played professional football from 1920-1923, winning an NFL championship with the Canton Bulldogs in 1922.

Clyde White – G 1934, Tecumseh, NE.

• 6’ guard wearing #39 out of Tecumseh HS.
• The 1934 team would go 6-3 in Dana Bible’s 6th season as head coach.

Other Notable or Prominent People from/born in Johnson County:

Dennis Aust – Born in Tecumseh. Aust played professional baseball with the minor leagues most of his career, but spent 2 seasons with the St. Louis Cardinals in 1965 and 1966. In 15 appearances as a relief pitcher, he had an 0-1 record with a 5.82 ERA and 14 strikeouts.

Betsy Baker – Born in 1842 in England, she immigrated to Johnson County in 1907. She would live there for 65 years. She was the world’s oldest living person at her time. In 1953, at age 101, she was named “Queen Mother of the Johnson County Fair”. At 107, she received a congratulatory letter from President Truman. On her 112th birthday, she was featured in Stars and Stripes. She passed away in Tecumseh in 1955 at 113 years old.

Peirson Hall – Born in South Dakota, he lived in an orphanage and graduated from Tecumseh HS. He would later move to California where he eventually was appointed as a judge for the US District Court for the Southern District of California by President Franklin D. Roosevelt.

Jennie Florella Holmes – Moved to Tecumseh in her 30’s. She was a temperance activist and suffragist. She served as the chair of the executive committee of the Nebraska State Suffrage Society from 1881-1884. She was also a vocal advocate for prohibition and a national delegate for the National Prohibition Party.

Walter Kiechel III – Born in Tecumseh, but grew up outside of Washington DC. He would become the managing editor for Fortune Magazine and the editorial director of Harvard Business School Publishing, producing the Harvard Business Review.

Ronald Schafer – Born in Tecumseh, Schafer was an electrical engineer noted for his contributions to digital signal processing. He received his PhD from MIT where his doctoral advisor was Alan Oppenheim.

Bob Stitt – Born in Tecumseh, he played college football from Doane from 1982-1986 where he was the All State College Offensive Player of the Year in 1985. He is currently the head football coach at Colorado School of Mines. He coached at Montana from 2015-2017. He holds a 136-80 record as a head coach across 19 seasons.

Roy Barcroft – Born in Crab Orchard, Barcroft was an actor from the 1930’s-1950’s known for playing villains in his roles. Throughout his career, he appeared in over 300 films. Before his acting career, he enlisted in the US Army at age 15 in 1917 and fought in France in WWI where he received a purple heart for wounds sustained in action.

Hal Borland – Born in Sterling but grew up in Colorado, Borland was a writer and journalist for the New York Times

Gail Kopplin – Born in Sterling, NE, Kopplin served in the Nebraska Legislature from 2005-2009.


GO BIG RED


Resources:
https://storage.googleapis.com/husk.../ZD6pyAK8hFocPYXCFPaVccH8170tcm1uOYyc7u0R.pdf
https://johnsoncounty.ne.gov/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Johnson_County,_Nebraska
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Natio...ic_Places_listings_in_Nebraska#Johnson_County