College and NFL lessons shape new Rush-Henrietta football coach

Bruce Johnson was a star player for Gates-Chili High School in the early 2010s

Bruce Johnson, a Rochester (NY) native, was recently named the head coach of the Rush-Henrietta varsity football program. / Courtesy of Rush-Henrietta Athletics

Rochester, New York, native Bruce Johnson has been rising the high school football coaching ranks over the years.

Johnson began his coaching career at his alma mater, Gates-Chili High School. He then became an offensive coordinator at Greece Arcadia before joining the coaching staff at East High School.

Now, he’s ready to lead his own program. Johnson was recently named the head coach of the Rush-Henrietta varsity football squad, replacing Joseph Montesano after 25-plus years of coaching.

“It’s a great opportunity for myself being a young and upcoming head coach that has some good football experience under my belt,” Johnson said.

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Johnson, who graduated from Gates-Chili in 2011, was a star player for the Spartans.

He garnered various accolades in his high school playing career, including two-time lineman of the year, two-time All-Monroe County, an All-State selection and an All-Greater Rochester honoree.

Johnson moved onto to play football at the University of Maine, a program competing in the America East of Division I’s Football Championship Subdivision (FCS).

Following a decorated career as a center for the Black Bears, Johnson took his chances in the 2016 NFL Draft.

Johnson signed a deal with the Philadelphia Eagles, becoming the third-highest-paid undrafted free agent at the time.

After going through the preseason with the Eagles, he joined the San Diego Chargers (now Los Angeles Chargers) on their practice squad.

His most recent tryout was with the Arizona Cardinals.

“(The NFL) was a great experience,” Johnson said. “I took a lot away from it from a networking standpoint and how to carry yourself in life after football. I made some great connections (in the league).”

Going from tryout to tryout and realizing the challenge of having a steady income, Johnson put his playing career to the side and entered the world of coaching.

“That’s what kind of kicked me into coaching because at the time I was intermittently playing football, so I was missing the sport year-round,” Johnson said. “I got into coaching to give back to the community and spread my knowledge about the game.”

The idea of coaching first stemmed from Johnson’s time at Maine.

“It’s a smaller Division I school, but a lot of people don’t realize that Maine is the starting point for a lot of defensive coordinators and head coaches around Power 5 college football right now,” Johnson said.

Johnson is taking inspiration from three of his former offensive line coaches.

Jeff Ambrosie, a former coach with the Black Bears, is now an assistant coach at Syracuse.

Frank Giufre, also a former coach at Maine, made stops with the Indianapolis Colts, the University of Connecticut and Fordham.

Jeff Stoutland, Johnson’s most recent coach, helps to anchor the run game and offensive line for the reigning Super Bowl champion Eagles.

“I was able to take all three of the (coaches’) philosophies and culminate it into my own as what they expected from a player as far as development and mindset of the game,” Johnson said. “I felt I’ve been successful in developing players so far in my high school coaching career, so hopefully I can take that and bring it to Rush-Henrietta.”

For players who aspire to chase the NFL dream, Johnson is there to provide guidance and assist with preparation.

“A lot of guys really don’t understand what goes into the game,” Johnson said. “It changes once you get into the pro level. It’s more so about taking care of your body and preparing for your opponent.”

It's why Johnson’s leadership style is seen as more of a players’ coach, he said, while also taking an aggressive approach and implementing a “win-at-all-cost” mindset.

“I won’t leave anything on the table when it comes to the kids,” Johnson said. “Being 32 and kind of fresh from playing myself, I’m still in the game.”

With football constantly developing, Johnson stressed the importance of letting kids enjoy the modern aspect of the game as he brings the “newness to coaching.”

“The kids definitely feed off of it,” he added. “I wanted to come in and change the culture a bit and get this team over the hump to win a championship.”

The Royal Comets are coming off a surprise run in the Section V Class AA playoffs that ended with a loss to eventual champion Aquinas Institute.

“They were more of a Cinderella story,” Johnson said. “They didn’t have a lot of success during the regular season, but they made it to the playoffs. They got a couple of big wins that bumped them into the championship game.”

Only a couple of weeks at the helm, Johnson is going through organized team activities and workouts.

With the 2025 season just on the horizon and majority of R-H’s players coming back from last year, Johnson has faith he can get the program over the hump.

“That’s my ultimate goal – winning the (sectional) championship and bringing home a state title,” Johnson said.

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