HBO will soon air the high school football program that never existed in its next sports documentary, “BS High,” set to premiere Wednesday at 9 p.m. ET.
That would be Bishop Sycamore — best known as the school that took a 58-point loss in front of ESPN cameras against renowned prep power IMG Academy on Aug. 29, 2021, only to later become an Ohio school that never really was a school. And at the epicenter of the controversy was the man who handled head coaching duties at “BS High,” Roy Johnson.
Who Is Roy Johnson? What Was His Background Before Bishop Sycamore?
Johnson is the main subject interview in the show. The trailer clips for BS High point to a man who didn’t regret getting himself and his team in front of ESPN cameras and analysts despite the firestorm of controversy that engulfed them later.
He even said these words in front of HBO: “Do I look like a con artist?”
But he was exposed for his exploits, false sales pitches to recruits, and was slapped with lawsuits — all eventually chronicled in the book “Friday Night Lies” that was co-authored by Andrew King and Ben Ferree. The latter is a former Ohio High School Athletic Association investigator who assisted in the writing and publication of the in-depth account.
Before that controversial game with the Florida-based powerhouse known for producing countless athletes good enough for Alabama, Florida State, and other Power Five college football programs, Johnson was considered the founder of Bishop Sycamore in 2018, but the institution was then known as Christians of Faith Academy before being rebranded.
Johnson has a background as an insurance salesman and registered healthcare provider. But was he ever a coach? And what were some of his tactics that were exposed?
Johnson Coached His Final Game That August Afternoon
Johnson’s tenure on the football field became short-lived after the 58-point loss.
But once his background was given a deeper dive, the secrets of what was going on at Bishop Sycamore led to the demise of the program.
Parents and players who got to know Johnson claimed he was selling Bishop Sycamore as the next great high school powerhouse that would take on some of the best schools in the nation, including IMG.
Among the reported false promises? Netflix cameras would document the players’ journeys, and they would receive national exposure and land at big-name powerhouse CFB programs. None of that occurred.
Johnson managed to coax recruits into believing that the school was set to have a state-of-the-art workout facility in the near future. He also sold an online learning academic program that was never truly monitored. Parents and players have even claimed Johnson forged a check by printing it from scratch at Kinko’s.
Players interviewed in the film claim that the school never had trainers to deal with injuries and even had to share helmets with other players.
Bishop Sycamore later became the subject of online ridicule after Johnson and the school were exposed. Johnson recently was hit with bankruptcy per Awful Announcing on Aug. 18, nearly a week before the show premieres.
The documentary is anticipated to share an unfiltered version of the former coach.
