Chad Johnson

Chad Johnson is a former 285-pound wrestler for Augsburg University. He is a 2-time national titlist and a four-time All-American, finishing seventh at 2011 and first the following two years, finishing his senior senior season with a third-place honor. Johnson finished his senior season at 35-2, ending his career with a 140-15 record.

Johnson made his Augsburg debut at the 2010 Auggie Brute Adidas Open on November 20, 2010, finishing co-fifth in the 285 pound silver division. Johnson made his varsity dual debut on January 8, 2011, falling to Wisconsin-Stevens Point's Matt Cuarda 6-4 in sudden victory.

On March 10, 2012, Johnson won his first National Title 6-1, over Corey Anderson of Wisconsin-Whitewater. On March 16, 2013 he defeated Joseph Zitone of Centenary (N.J.) 5-1 for his second title.

Following his wrestling career, Johnson joined the coaching staff for the 2014–15 season.

High school career
From Ferryville, Wisconsin, Johnson is a two-time Wisconsin Division III state high school champion and three-time placewinner at De Sota High School in De Soto, Wisconsin. He finished first in 2009 and 2010, while placing sixth in 2008. He went 87-1 his final two seasons while being named the La Crosse Tribune Wrestler of the Year in 2009. His final high school record was 136-26.

2010-11 season
Johnson made his Augsburg debut at the 2010 Auggie Brute Adidas Open on November 20, 2010, finishing co-fifth in the 285 pound silver division. Johnson made his varsity dual debut on January 8, 2011, falling to Wisconsin-Stevens Point's Matt Cuarda 6-4 in sudden victory.

Johnson picked up his varsity dual first win 10 days later when he blanked Waldorf's Jacob Combs 6-0.

Regional
Johnson finished true second at the 2011 NCAA Division III Great Lakes Regional. He opened the tournament with a 3:39 pin of Jason Geick (Wheaton) and a 9-0 blanking of John Linn (St John's) before falling in the semifinals to Mark Corsello (Elmhurst). He rebounded with three straight wins to claim his trip to nationals: 5-0 over Timothy Day (Augustana), 3-1 over Ryan Hatten (Chicago) in the Third Place match and then a 5-2 win over Tom Bouressa (Concordia-Moorhead) in the true second match.

Nationals
Johnson finished seventh at his first national tournament. As the eighth seed, Johnson opened up the tournament with an 8-3 win over James Zarate (Whitewater) before falling to top-seeded John Helgerson (Wartburg) 5-1. He then used a 12-3 major decision over Jeremy Klein (Loras) to reach All-American status. Derick Hesson (Mount Union) then defeated Johnson 5-3 to send him to the Seventh Place match where he defeated Judson Connell (Merchant Marine) 7-3. Johnson finished his first Augsburg season with a 32-11 record.

Regional
Johnson finished first at the Great Lakes Regional, going 4–0. As the top seed, Johnson marched to the finals with three straight pins: 2:17 over Dylan Mahler (North Central), 3:55 over Kyle Patton (Wheaton) and 1:23 over James Wagner (Knox). In the finals, he defeated Tom Bouressa (Concordia-Moorhead) 10–4.

Nationals
Johnson finished first at the 2012 National Championships. As the second seed, Johnson dominated his opponents, allowing just two points in four matches. Johnson opened the tournament with two major decision shutouts: 12-0 over Conner Herman (Luther) and then 8-0 over Logan Renas (Olivet). Johnson then topped William Mayer (Wisconsin-La Crosse) 4-1 in the semifinals before taking down Corey Anderson (Wisconsin-Whitewater) 6-1 in the finals.

2012-13 season
See: 2012–13 Augsburg Wrestling season

Regional
See: 2013 NCAA Division III West Regional

Johnson finished first at the 2013 NCAA Division III West Regional. As the first seed, Johnson received a bye in the first round. He opened completion with a 1:26 pin of Evan Schreurs (Pacific). In the Semifinals, he defeated John Scepaniak (St. John's) by a 8-4 decision before a close 2-1 victory over Tom Bouressa (Concordia-Moorhead) in the finals.

Nationals
See: 2013 Wrestling National Championships

Johnson finished first at the 2013 National Championships. As the first seed, he opened the tournament with a 4:25 pin of Nick Pearch (Luther). He followed that with a 10-3 decision over Tom Foote (Williams College) and a 6-2 decision over No. 4 James Buss (Loras) in the semifinals. In the finals, Johnson defeated Joseph Zitone of Centenary (N.J.) 5-1 for his second title.

2013-14 season
See: 2013–14 Augsburg Wrestling season

Johnson began the season at the home Auggie-Brute Open, finishing first in the 285-pound Gold Division, including a 4:32 pin over No. 12 (NAIA, heavyweight) Abram Reynolds of Briar Cliff (Iowa) in the final.

On Dec. 7, Johnson continued his season with a first-place finish at the Dragon open, going 3–0. He started the day with a 9–1 major decision over Dustin Caspers (Northern State University), took a 7–1 decision from no. 6 Cody Kasprick (Concordia-Moorhead) and edged Division I wrestler Michael Kroells (University of Minnesota) in the final. On Dec. 11, Johnson scored a 15–0 tech fall over Gerad Fugleberg at 4:46.

On Dec. 14, Johnson ran the table at the St. Cloud Husky Open, going 4–0 against four St. Cloud State competitors. In the first match, he notched an 8–1 victory over Trae Story, followed by a 5:23 pin of Gabe Tudor. In the semifinal Johnson faced four-time Div. II All-American and 2013 184-pound National Titlist and current St. Cloud State assistant coach Shamus O'Grady, whom he beat by a 10–7 margin. In the title match, he defeated Austin Goergen by a 3–1 margin in overtime.

On Dec. 28, Johnson received the 7th seed at the 51st Ken Kraft Midlands Championships scheduled to take place on Dec. 29 and 30. In the first round, he defeated Alex White (Purdue) 6–2 but then fell to Blaize Cabell (Northern Iowa) 3–2. In the wrestleback bracket, Johnson medical forfeited to Kosta Karageorge (Ohio State).

Senior level
Johnson competed at the 2015 ASICS U.S. Open on May 7 through May 9, 2015. We went 1–2 and did not place. He lost 13–4 in the first round to former Div. I All-American Dom Bradley (Sunkist Kids), rebounded with a :21 second fall over Michael Graves (The Gorilla Pit), but was eliminated via a 7-0 decision by Chad Hanke (Titan Mercury), himself a Div. I wrestler.

University level
Johnson competed at the 2015 UWW Cadet and University Nationals in the 125 kg. University Freestyle division from May 28 to May 31, 2015. He went 5–1 to place second. He fell in the final to Div. I All-American Adam Coon -- earning 30 team points for his effort. Johnson was not scored on in his first four matches, earning a 10–0 tech fall over Devin King (Bobcat Wrestling Club), followed by an 8–0 blanking of Tyler Swope (Iowa State), and a fall in 2:25 over Nicholas Gajdzik (Michigan - RTC). In the quarterfinal, Johnson scored an 8–0 decision over Garrett Ryan (Sunkist Kids), then gave up his first points of the tournament in a 5–3 victory over Nathan Butler (Stanford). In the final, he fell to Coon 10-0.