NU Hires Rick Johnson as Assistant Rifle Coach

Lincoln, Neb. --- Nebraska's head rifle coach, Ashley Rose-MacAllister announced Thursday the addition of Rick Johnson to the coaching staff. Johnson will serve as the team's assistant coach.

Johnson comes from Army West Point where he served as the assistant coach for three years under head coach Ron Wigger from 2011-14.  From 2014-15, Johnson was the acting head coach at Army West Point and helped mentor the team to a 7-6 record and a seventh-place finish at the GARC Championships.

During his first year with the team, Johnson played an instrumental part in the team's fourth-place finish at the NCAA Championships. In the four years Johnson served as coach, the Black Knights finished 30-17 and made three NCAA appearances (2012-13-14). His peers rewarded his efforts by voting him the GARC assistant coach of the year for the 2013-14 and 2014-15 seasons and CRCA coach of the year in 2014-15.

Prior to working at Army West Point, Johnson founded a junior marksmanship program at Harvard in 2005.  The program is meant for individuals between 10-20 years old who are interested in competitive shooting. The program teaches firearm safety, along with marksmanship skills. He served as the director for the program until 2011.  From 2006-11 Johnson also coached the Massachusetts Junior Rifle Team, comprised of the top shooters within the state.

Johnson graduated from the University of Massachusetts-Lowell with a degree in meteorology in 1999. Following graduation, he served as an assistant staff meteorologist at MIT for eight years.

Johnson has been a competitive smallbore shooter for over 25 years. He is a three-time Massachusetts state champion, claiming the 3-posistion Junior State Titles in 1985 and 1986, and also capturing the 1986 Prone Junior State Championship.

Johnson is a licensed USA shooting level one rifle official and advanced rifle coach.