Ernie Johnson recounts inspirational speech to Alabama football team

TNT’s Ernie Johnson is one of the titans of the sports broadcasting space. He’s best known for hosting “Inside the NBA” with Charles Barkley, Kenny Smith, and Shaquille O’Neal. Alabama head coach Nick Saban recently brought Johnson in to deliver some inspirational words to his team. SEC Network’s Paul Finebaum asked Johnson to reflect upon his speech to the Alabama Crimson Tide football team.

“I know what I wanted to say and the message I wanted to bring to the Alabama football team. I was honored that Nick Saban would ask me to be there. So that was very humbling and very flattering,” Johnson said.

“But it’s the same message I’ve been trying to tell so many. It’s the game message I gave when I did the commencement address at my alma mater, Georgia, back in 2017. I’ve given that message to countless groups. That’s what I knew going in. I’m gonna go down these roads. I hope some of it lands with 18 to 20 year old kids. I’m in a room full of football players and coaching staff. I spoke for about 40 minutes,” he recalled.

“But when the Alabama football team put together, you know, that five minute clip, I was just as amazed as anybody Paul. Because I don’t know how things go viral, but that one did. It was like there were millions of people who were watching it. I guess it was just because of the message itself.”

“We had a son who was–a nurse in Romania said the boy’s no good, don’t take him. And then, this kid just changed lives in his 33 years,” Johnson gushed.

“And at the same time, I was telling these football players trying to gear it to them about appreciating what you have here–this “get to” job that you have. So many people in the world are “Oh, I gotta do this or I gotta do this. But if you have that “get to”, I get to do this. I think that’s one of the things that maybe resonated and I heard from so many folks about that,” he said.

“I’m at a loss to explain how it all happened or how it works that way but maybe it was just something that people were wanting to hear and needing to hear. I’ve gotten to the point in my life now Paul, where look, I’m trying to find the deepest meaning I can for why I’m here,” the TNT broadcaster said.

Johnson then became choked up in the interview, “I think if we can spread any kind of positivity about being a better human being–now is the time to do it.”

Ernie Johnson is one of the most inspirational figures in media today

Ernie Johnson is an inspirational figure and it’s no surprise that Nick Saban chose him to speak with his team. Johnson was diagnosed with non-Hodgkins lymphoma back in 2003. He’s also a prostate cancer survivor, so he’s certainly been through plenty of battles with adversity in his life.

His son, Michael, battled Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD), a rare genetic disorder of progressive muscular weakness, which generally affects boys, according to the Muscular Dystrophy Association.

While Johnson is best known for his work on Inside the NBA, he also does play-by-play for a number of different sporting events. He setup a foundation, titled, “Love You Too,” after his son’s favorite phrase. He’s a wise reminder to us all to appreciate what we have in this world.