Former Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver Hines Ward, left, talks with former Madison Academy and current Auburn running back Kerryon Johnson at an event prior to the John Stallworth Foundation Celebrity Golf Tournament on June 11. (Record Photo/Nick Sellers)

By Nick Sellers | Staff Writer

HUNTSVILLE – As is customary for the annual John Stallworth Celebrity Golf Tournament, professional football players past, present and in the case of Kerryon Johnson, future, descended on Huntsville to benefit the former Alabama A&M and Pittsburgh Steelers star’s foundation.

The John Stallworth Foundation, which was created by Stallworth to provide Alabama A&M students scholarships, held the golf tournament at Hampton Cove Golf Course June 12 and a pairings party on June 11 at the Westin Hotel at Bridge Street.

Also at the June 11 event was the awarding of the first John Stallworth Award, which was given to Johnson, the former Madison Academy standout, and J.O. Johnson High School basketball coach Jack Doss, who recently made Alabama history with his state-record eighth championship as head coach.

“We could not have selected two better people who are examples of what our foundation values in citizenship, academics, being a role model and performance,” Stallworth said in a press release prior to the event.

A number of former Pittsburgh Steelers and other retired players made the trip to the Rocket City, including Anthony Munoz, Hall of Fame offensive lineman for the Cincinnati Bengals, and Hines Ward, whose numerous accolades include Super Bowl XL MVP.

Ward, who broke Stallworth’s record for career receptions and also holds the club record for career yards and touchdowns, spoke to Johnson at the event and joked with him about choosing Auburn, as Ward was a standout at the University of Georgia from 1994-97.

Johnson spoke about his transition from high school to college.

“I’ve been [at Auburn] two-and-a-half weeks, and I love it even more,” Johnson said. “I felt like I made the right decision; I still feel that way.”

Johnson’s teammate and fellow running back at Madison Academy, class of 2016 athlete Malik Miller, announced earlier on June 11 that he was going to rejoin his former teammate on the Plains.

“I talked about it to him about it a lot, but I’ve never tried to push it, and I know he made that decision because he wanted to,” Johnson said.