BY NATE KOTISSO | THE MONITOR
One chapter of Johnny Howell’s senior year was completed on Wednesday. The Sharyland Pioneer senior made it official, signing a full scholarship agreement to throw at Houston in 2018.
“I’ve thought about it some, but not very much. I do know I feel pretty good about it,” Howell said.
Kathy Howell, Johnny’s mother and the girls track coach at Mission Veterans, beamed with pride as he put pen to paper.
“Today was special and something that was a long time coming for him,” Kathy Howell said. “It’s really exciting for the family, but I’m really happy for him. It’s important to me that he’s happy. I feel like he is happy, and I feel this is a good fit for him.”
Johnny’s dad, Larry, has instructed track athletes for more than 40 years, including the last three as an assistant coaching Johnny at Pioneer.
“He started track when he was 5 years old,” Larry Howell said. “As he was coming up, Johnny trained with a lot of the kids who went on to compete at Houston. Now, Johnny’s going to be under the influence of people like Coach (Leroy) Burrell and (assistant coach) Carl Lewis. I mean, these are Olympians. This is a dream come true.”
Howell chose Houston over Air Force, Arkansas State and Texas State. The addition of Howell tentatively pushes the total of former Sharyland Pioneer track athletes on next year’s Houston roster to four. He will join Nora Monie (junior thrower), Dalton Curtis (sophomore discus thrower) and Malaya Pistokache (freshman thrower).
“When I went up for a visit, UH had what I was looking for in a college,” Howell said. “I knew they had a really good track program. Plus, the coaches and I clicked really well while I was there. I felt like I was already a part of the team and a part of their family. All of this just added on to making my decision to go there.”
Howell will now shift focus to preparing for his final track season as a Diamondback. Howell’s junior year ended with a shot put throw 2 feet, 4 inches shy of medaling at the 2017 UIL State Class 5A Track and Field Meet in Austin.
“I think about that meet a lot,” Howell said. “I want to go back to Austin and come home with a gold medal.”