Starbucks attracts many repeat customers. Every day people come in, get the same thing and they’re ready to start the day. Waking up early calls for coffee. Nicholas Johnson picks up his black coffee with a splash of cream then heads to the natatorium to start the day with practice. He wakes up every morning before the sun comes up. After this, his daily trip to Starbucks, and he’s off to begin working for the day.
Coach Johnson, head coach of the JV and varsity swim teams, has resided with the team for nine years, using his experience in coaching and long-lasting love for the sport. Johnson began his journey of coaching swimming in December 2008.
“I was in college. I knew I didn’t want to sit in an office all day at a computer, and I was on the college swim team. I enjoyed swimming,” Coach Johnson said. “I enjoy working with kids, so it kind of just made sense to stick with swimming.”
Before coming to Legacy, Johnson coached at North Crowley as well as coaching a club swim team at FASST in Frisco, separately. While he enjoys residing in Mansfield, he does miss his past swim community.
“I miss them, and they miss me but for the most part it was a good move,” Coach Johnson said.“The longer I’ve been here, the smoother it’s gotten.”
Although Johnson’s place of work is the MISD Natatorium rather than Legacy’s campus, he feels connected to the swimmers and families that surround him.
“I don’t feel super connected to the campus just because I work in a natatorium all day, and I’m not on the campus interacting,” Coach Johnson said.” We have great kids from Legacy and great families.”
Johnson coaches the team through 11 meets each year. He enjoys pushing his swimmers to achieve their best and said that most of the work is the athletes’ responsibility.
“They do all the work. I kind of just show the way. They’re the ones who have to be focused. They’re the ones who have to show up on race day,” Coach Johnson said. “My job is more like a guide.”
The little things matter to Johnson’s swimmers. From having an impeccable attendance rate to his calming demeanor, he shows how much he truly cares about his swimmers and their accomplishments.
“I really appreciate how he takes time to show up every day,” sophomore Mason Ford said. “He helps us with our technique which helps us get better.”
While focusing on the small technical things, he also works them hard. Starting practices at 5:30 a.m. and going until 7:30 a.m. helps Johnson make his swimmers improve in every way. The varsity swimmers lift every Monday and Wednesday.
“It’s early in the morning, so you’re tired and run down,” Ford said. “He helps motivate us and push us even when we’re feeling down. He encourages us to do his best.”
Toward the end of the 2024-25 swim season, Johnson continues to stay optimistic about what the future holds and can’t wait to see how his swimmers use their past challenges to their advantage.
“We have a pretty good sophomore swimmer on the team right now. I’m interested to see how she does at state this year,” Johnson said. “Last year was a learning opportunity, so now she’s got a little experience under her belt. Hopefully, she’ll really shine at the big meet.”
His most memorable meet occurred during his second year of coaching the team.
“2016-17 we got fifth at state,” Johnson said. “So, that was a pretty big accomplishment for the team to place in the top five,” Johnson said.
Johnson plans to keep leading the swim team to success for the foreseeable future.
“They have to do all the work, so really, I just do my best to be prepared and help them along the way,” Johnson said.
