The award is named for Robert Hill Johnson at the age of 22 .
Robert Hill Johnson is a native of Sparta who was a student and assistant football coach at Tennessee Polytechnic Institute when he was killed in an auto accident in 1952 .
The award is named for Robert Hill Johnson , a native of Sparta who was a student and assistant football coach at Tennessee Polytechnic Institute when he was killed in an auto accident in 1952 , at the age of 22 .