Sports in RI: Athletic director Justin Erickson. Making a difference in Johnston – John Cardullo

by John Cardullo, sportswriter

Johnston’s Athletic Director has made a big difference in his short time at both the high school and middle school – and the best is yet to come.

Justin Erickson was named the athletic director for Johnston High School and Ferri Middle School in the middle of the school year in 2022. Since hired to guide an already rich sports program in the small town of Johnston, he has already changed the program in a positive direction, and he has only just begun.

Taking over the sports programs in both the high and middle schools could have been a bit overwhelming for most people, but for Erickson, who’s easy demeanor and friendly smile said, “having been an assistant athletic director for the City of Cranston prepared me for this position. In Cranston I was hired as the assistant for the Cranston East and Cranston West programs in 2017 under friend and mentor, Vinny Varreccihone. He was assigned to oversee the four middle schools that Cranston had. Park View, Bain, Western Hills and Hope Highlands middle schools all had very active sports programs and overseeing all of them made his days very interesting to say the least. When I wasn’t attending a sporting event at one of the high schools, I was running from one middle school to another middle school. I oversaw coaching interviews, individual teams’ budgets, ordering uniforms and equipment. I was involved in each schools’ athletic program from soup to nuts!”

Leaning on a close friend and coach at Cranston West, Vin Turchetta, who suggested that Erickson pursue the newly created assistant athletic director’s position and was a resource of advice after Erickson landed the position. Up until he landed the job, Erickson was a Cranston West guy. He graduated from the high school in 2002 where he played football and was on the indoor track team and Wrestled for the Falcons. He attended Western New England to play football where he suffered a career ending injury, he returned to Rhode Island and completed his associate’s degree at CCRI. Erickson was so tied to Cranston West, you could look up the definition of what a Cranston West Falcon was, and you would see his photo. Erickson became involved with many of the Cranston West sports programs and their fundraising efforts. It was in 2013 when he as an assistant coach to the newly formed Boys Lacrosse team hat had only 15 players on the team. “When I left the program in 2020, we had 50 players on the team in 2020,” said Erickson.

Erickson’s third mentor he mentioned was former Cranston Athletic director, Michael Traficante who after a stint at being the Athletic Director at the Prout School, returned to Cranston to find Erickson in place leading all the city’s middle schools, took him under his wing and began grooming his successor. That was up until Erickson discovered that Johnston was looking for a new athletic director. What made the timing odd was that the opening in Johnston came in the middle of the school year. “Most openings for a position such as this usually occurred after the school year, when all the sports were finished for the summer. When the opening happened, I was reluctant to throw my hat into the ring. After some long discussions with my wife and close friends, all of which encouraged me to go for it!”

Erickson was hired and immediately made his presence known. A believer that building a brand was important to the athletic program. He focused on everything from ordering new uniforms, to the public announcers’ sound system. Johnston has been along time community pride school that was often led by its sports teams. “I wanted to let the students know that it was as important to excel off the field of competition as well as on it. We wanted them to enjoy their competitive side of being a student athlete, but excelling in the in the classroom was as important.”

Recognizing that perception is a huge part of promoting athletics, Erickson began replacing old worn-out banners with new ones. Not only in the school, but throughout the school, including the school parking lot. Upgrades to practice equipment were made, little details were not overlooked. A new digital scores table was purchased that displays advertisements for supporter’s ads for a fee. New chairs with the school’s mascot on them greet spectators, even the floor brooms have the “Panthers” logo on them. The middle school shows an equal amount of pride with the Jaguars logo everywhere. What the high school gets, the middle school gets as well.

Justin Erickson has turned the culture around, when the schools had legends playing and coaching on the teams such as Dan Marzulla, Carolyn Thornton and 2,000-point girls all time basketball scorer, Chelsey Marandolla, but those days of glory have seemed so far in the past. But recently the sports program began to turn around. New coaches were drawn to Panthers kingdom. Tom Centore, who was a hometown football and baseball hero, joined the football staff, Jhamal Diggs came to coach the Johnston girls’ basketball team from Rhode Island College. Fallon Davis and Allare Maiello-Cerullo came to head up the game day and competitive cheer teams, Matt Ellis signed on to become the Track and Field’s throwing coach and experienced soccer coach Fredrick Yevochuk took over the boys’ soccer team.  Erickson was the main reason why these coaches came to Johnston. His easy nature and direct approach make it hard to say no.

Erickson believes in becoming involved with the community. He is on many board of directors, such as Cranston’s CLCF sports organization, a founding member of Cranston Cares, The Cranston Heritage Hall of Fame, the Cranston Athletic Hall of Fame, The Rhode Island Interscholastic League Injury fund board, the Rhode Island Interscholastic League board, the Leukemia and Lymphoma leadership council, the Saint Mary’s Feast Society, the Cranston Board of Canvases, a board member for RIPCOA (Rhode Island Principal Committee of Athletics), and recently has been named to the NIAAA Section 1 committee.

To say he has his plate full is an understatement! Despite all the things that he does and the committee and organizations that he is involved with, Erickson’s concern is making athletics in Johnston better and making the athletes experience a great one. A sport that he and Johnston High School is spearheading is a girl’s Flag Football program in conjunction with the NFL, Erickson has launched a “club” team at Johnston and hopes to work with the RIIL to target 2026 year to begin competitive Girls Flag Football. 

For anyone else all the achievements and accomplishments would be enough for any other person, but for the 40-year-old Erickson, this is just the tip of the iceberg. There are more challenges ahead, more goals to go after more projects that need to be completed. But for now, this easy-going man, with a wide smile just wants to help students excel on and off the field and keep making Johnston sports better!

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John Cardullo, sportswriter. John is a lifelong Rhode Islander. His sports experience is extensive, as a player, coach and sponsor of youth and high school sports. He has been the Public Address Announcer for the CCRI Men’s and Women’s Soccer teams. Both the Cranston East and Cranston West football, Cranston East Boys and Girls basketball for 12 years before moving onto the Central, Juanita Sanchez and Mt. Pleasant football teams. Also, Central HS Boys and Girls Basketball, Scituate High School Boys and Girls Basketball, Johnston High School Girls Basketball, Boys Volleyball, Girls Softball, Boys and Girls Soccer teams, and CLCF football.

John has been involved in Men’s softball for 61 years, starting as a batboy for his father’s team in 1964. He moved to the teams scorekeeper then became a player in 1975, and created the men’s team, Players Corner Pub, that went on to win 20 State Championships in their 35 year history. In the 1990’s he published the statewide softball magazine “The Fielders Choice” which was dedicated to all topics related to adult softball. As a feature writer, John and the publication won several media awards. In 2019 he was elected and inducted into the Rhode Island Slow Pitch Softball Hall of Fame which he also helped create. John is a softball umpire in Warwick, Rhode Island.

In his spare time John golfs with his life long friends in season. After retiring from the printing Industry after a 45-year career, he now writes specialty sports columns for RINewsToday.com, is still actively engaged in the high school sports scene, and will soon launch a radio show/podcast on high school sports.