Kelli Johnson
{{Use mdy dates|date=June 2018}}
{{Infobox person
| name = Kelli Johnson
| image = Kelli Johnson Comcast SportsNet Reporter (6312752304).jpg
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| caption = Johnson in 2011
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| birth_date = {{Birth based on age as of date|23|1999|12|4}}
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| occupation = Sports anchor
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| alma_mater = University of Idaho
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Kelli Johnson is an American journalist and former sports anchor on NBC Sports Bay Area in San Francisco, California. She provided coverage on the Golden State Warriors and San Francisco Giants as well as other teams. She co-hosted the shows SportsNet Central and The Happy Hour. Growing up in Moscow, Idaho, she played basketball for University of Idaho and went into sports broadcasting with various places such as Medford, Oregon; Austin, Texas; and St. Louis, Missouri. With Comcast, she worked with Comcast SportsNet Mid-Atlantic in the Washington D.C. region, Comcast SportsNet Houston, and eventually NBC Sports Bay Area.
Background
Johnson is a native of Moscow, Idaho. Both of her parents were coaches (baseball and gymnastics) and physical education teachers.
Kelli played point guard for the Moscow High School girls' basketball team. During that time, the team had a three-year winning streak, where they won three consecutive state titles.{{cite web |url=http://www.idhsaa.org/Records/1011/GirlsBasketball.pdf |title=girls' state basketball champions |publisher=Idaho High School Activities Association |work=idhsaa.org |accessdate=February 24, 2018 |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20121001181420/http://www.idhsaa.org/Records/1011/GirlsBasketball.pdf |archivedate=October 1, 2012 }} The Moscow-Pullman Daily News named her State A-2 Most Valuable Player for her senior year.
In 1994, she continued her basketball career immediately, as a freshman in her home town, at the University of Idaho as a shooting guard for the Idaho Vandals women's basketball team. She started all 110 games of her career, which were the third most in school history. As a junior, she set the record for the most three-point field goals in a game (seven) against the University of North Texas. That season, she also broke the career 3-point school record. By the end of her college career, Kelli had made 207 3-pointers – 81 more than the nearest contender.{{cite web|url=https://issuu.com/idahosid/docs/mediaguide/54|title=University of Idaho Women's Basketball Guide 2010/2011 | publisher = University of Idaho Women's Basketball | via=issuu.com | accessdate=June 18, 2018 | pages=54–55 }} These records stood for 19 and 17 years, respectively. Johnson graduated in 1998 from Idaho with a degree in Broadcast Journalism. She joined her father in the Idaho Vandals Hall of Fame in 2016.{{cite web|url=http://www.spokesman.com/stories/2016/oct/22/locally-university-of-idaho-athletic-hall-of-fame-/|title=Locally: University of Idaho Athletic Hall of Fame inducts Class of 2016|author=|date=|website=spokesman.com|accessdate=June 18, 2018}}
Sports reporting career
Johnson's first job was as a sports reporter for KTVL in Medford, Oregon in 1999. After ten months at the station, she moved to Time Warner Cable in Austin, Texas, still doing sports reporting. Eighteen months later, she had her first position with an NBC affiliate in St. Louis, KSDK.
Then, in 2003, she joined Comcast SportsNet Mid-Atlantic, covering the Baltimore Orioles and, then, the Washington Redskins and Washington Nationals. In 2012, she joined Comcast SportsNet Houston as a sports anchor for SportsNet Central.{{Cite web |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/dc-sports-bog/post/kelli-johnson-leaving-dc-market-for-csn-houston/2012/09/13/59711650-fdfc-11e1-b153-218509a954e1_blog.html |title=Kelli Johnson leaving D.C. market for CSN Houston |date=September 13, 2012 |work=The Washington Post |access-date=February 24, 2018}}{{Cite web |url=https://blog.chron.com/sportsupdate/2012/09/kelli-johnson-coming-from-d-c-to-csn-houston/ |title=Kelli Johnson coming from D.C. to CSN Houston |last=Barron |first=David |date=September 13, 2012 |work=Houston Chronicle |access-date=February 24, 2018 |archive-date=February 25, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180225144900/https://blog.chron.com/sportsupdate/2012/09/kelli-johnson-coming-from-d-c-to-csn-houston/ |url-status=dead }} In 2014, after a layoff from a rebranding of the Houston office,{{cite web|url=https://blog.chron.com/sportsupdate/2014/09/75-comcast-sportsnet-houston-employees-facing-layoffs/|title=75 Comcast SportsNet Houston employees facing layoffs|author=|date=September 16, 2014|website=chron.com|accessdate=June 18, 2018|archive-date=June 18, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180618230224/https://blog.chron.com/sportsupdate/2014/09/75-comcast-sportsnet-houston-employees-facing-layoffs/|url-status=dead}} Johnson joined Comcast SportsNet Bay Area in San Francisco where she began covering the San Francisco Giants and the Golden State Warriors. In 2017, Johnson began hosting The Happy Hour, a conversational discussion sports program with media personalities Greg Papa and Ray Ratto;{{cite press release | url=https://www.nbcsports.com/bayarea/press/nbc-sports-bay-area-serves-happy-hour-greg-papa-ray-ratto-and-kelli-johnson|title=NBC Sports Bay Area servers up The Happy Hour with Greg Papa, Ray Ratto and Kelli Johnson | first=Jay | last=de la Cruz |date=March 29, 2017|website=nbcsports.com|accessdate=June 18, 2018}}{{cite web|url=https://www.mercurynews.com/2017/05/22/why-comcast-and-nbc-havent-brought-their-a-game-to-bay-area-tv-viewers/|title=Why Comcast and NBC haven't brought their 'A' game to Bay Area TV viewers | publication-date=May 22, 2017 | newspaper=San Jose Mercury News | first=Steve | last=Berman | accessdate=June 18, 2018}} The Happy Hour was canceled at the end of 2018 with the airing of its final episode on December 21.{{Cite web|url=https://www.mercurynews.com/2018/12/13/the-happy-hour-axed-by-nbc-sports-bay-area/|title='The Happy Hour' axed by NBC Sports Bay Area|date=December 14, 2018}} In 2019, she hosted the pre-game and post-game programs for the San Francisco Giants.{{Cite web|url=https://www.sfexaminer.com/sports-columnists/kelli-johnson-arrives-as-the-new-host-of-the-giants-pre-and-postgame-shows-on-nbc-sports-bay-area/|title=Kelli Johnson arrives as the new host of the Giants Pre- and Postgame shows on NBC Sports Bay Area|date=March 31, 2019|website=The San Francisco Examiner}} On August 4, 2020, NBC Sports Bay Area announced that they would not be renewing Johnson's contract.{{Cite web|url=https://www.mercurynews.com/2020/08/04/kelli-johnson-out-at-nbc-sports-bay-area-as-layoffs-hit-network|title=Kelli Johnson out at NBC Sports Bay Area as layoffs hit network|date=August 4, 2020}}{{Cite web|url=https://www.sfchronicle.com/warriors/article/NBC-Sports-Bay-Area-lays-off-at-least-17-employees-15458933.php|title=NBC Sports Bay Area lays off at least 17 employees, including Giants host|first=Connor|last=Letourneau|date=August 4, 2020|website=San Francisco Chronicle}}
Other ventures
In addition to freelance reporting, Johnson announced in 2021 that she is involved as a real estate agent.{{cite tweet|number=1402438065994436608|user=KJohnsonNBCS|title=No big deal… just a new Real Estate agent experiencing her first Broker Tour in San Francisco! Dang these streets a… |date=June 9, 2021}}
References
{{reflist|refs=
{{Cite web |url=https://www.linkedin.com/in/kelli-johnson-087014a7/ |title=Kelli Johnson |publisher=LinkedIn Corporation |via=LinkedIn |access-date=February 24, 2018}}
{{Cite web |url=https://www.mailtribune.com/archive/1999/12/04/reporter-shows-she-has-game/ |title=Reporter shows she has game |last=Hammericksen |first=Randy |date=December 4, 1999 |location=Medford, Oregon |access-date=February 24, 2018 |newspaper=Mail Tribune | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180801122451/http://mailtribune.com/archive/reporter-shows-she-has-game | archive-date=2018-08-01 | url-status=live }}
{{Cite web |url=https://www.nbcsports.com/bayarea/author/kelli-johnson-nbcs-bay-area |title=We're not unicorns -- we do exist |last=Johnson |first=Kelli |date=February 6, 2017 |website=NBC Sports Bay Area |access-date=June 18, 2018}}
{{Cite web |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/11/13/AR2007111300862.html |title=Comcast's Johnson Earns Redskins' Respect |last=Shapiro |first=Leonard |date=November 13, 2007 |access-date=February 24, 2018 |newspaper=The Washington Post}}
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External links
- {{twitter|KJohnsonNBCS}}
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Johnson, Kelli}}
Category:American television sports anchors
Category:Basketball players from Idaho
Category:Idaho Vandals women's basketball players
Category:University of Idaho alumni
Category:Sportspeople from Moscow, Idaho
Category:Year of birth missing (living people)
Category:American women journalists