Like Old Man River, Glen Johnson Keeps On Rollin’

Ol’ man river,
Dat ol’ man river
He mus’know sumpin’
But don’t say nuthin’,
He jes’keeps rollin’
He keeps on rollin’ along.

– Lyrics from "Old Man River," performed by Paul Robeson 

The first verse of this classic African-American spiritual embodies the career of Glencoffe "The Road Warrior" Johnson (49-13-2, 33 KOs). This Road Warrior is nowhere near as popular as Mel Gibson’s Mad Max persona, but he’s been nearly as resilient over his 17-year career. And don’t let the 13 losses fool you. Probably only a handful were legitimate.

This Friday, the "41-years young" Johnson faces off against the much younger, 30-year old Yusaf Mack (28-2-2, 17 KOs) in an IBF title eliminator. But as Bernard Hopkins has proven, getting old in the 175 pound division is not necessarily a bad thing. Ironically, Mack, like Hopkins, is a tough Philadelphia fighter. And like Hopkins did nearly 13 years ago, Mack will be looking to lay a "not-so-Brotherly Love" beat-down on Johnson.

Mack has a problem though. He’s not Bernard Hopkins circa ‘97. Even worse, he’s facing Glen Johnson 2.0, an upgrade on its previous installation. Look for the "new Johnson" to use his familiar tactics of pressure and powerful right hands to wear Mack down on the way to a 10th round stoppage.

He keeps on rollin’ along … like old man river.