Former Huntington University cross country head coach Nicholas Johnson, who was an assistant coach on the NAIA program's national indoor championship team in 2019 before his recent firing, is facing four felony charges this weekend after an arrest warrant was issued by Huntington County's prosecuting attorney on Friday for three charges stemming from child seduction and kidnapping.
Johnson, who has led the Foresters to national success in recent years and was just the second head coach in program history, is out on bail after posting $30,000 bond on Friday, the same day of his arrest.
As of Sunday, he does not appear on the official Huntington University athletics page anymore. On Dec. 8, Huntington reposted a job opening for the cross country programs.
Johnson's first hearing for the three charges is scheduled for Monday, Dec. 14, in Huntington Circuit Court. In a press release issued by HC prosecuting attorney Amy Richardson, the county added, "the charges filed against Nicholas Johnson are an accusation and Nicholas Johnson is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty."
The 33-year-old coach, who is married, was entering his third season in 2020 as the head men's and women's cross country coach and also was an assistant coach of the track and field programs, working specifically with the distance teams. Before arriving at Huntington, he had nearly a decade's worth of experience at multiple levels.
According to his Huntington University coaches profile, Johnson owned a USATF Level 1 certification and was USOC SafeSport certified.
In 2019, he coached his athletes to eight All-American honors, seven individual Crossroads League titles in track and field and 11 conference badges.
Sixteen of his athletes competed at the national level. He also helped guide the women's program to a NAIA Indoor National Championship title in 2019.
Full Press Release:
