Johnny

Johnson III

Johnson put a crossover that would make Tim Hardaway jealous on a Utah defender to put himself wide open on a 45-yard touchdown connection with Justin Herbert. Outside of that play, it was mostly short-yardage plays for the wideout, but it was enough to help Oregon secure a Pac-12 title game. Johnson (6'0/199) and the Ducks will head to Pasadena for the Rose Bowl in January.

Johnson (6'0/199) was having a strong game before the fourth quarter, but boy did things escalate quickly in that final period. He scored in back-to-back possessions after the Ducks fell behind 24-7, and he was the focal point of the offense on both of those drives. It just wasn’t enough, and Oregon is now eliminated from playoff contention. Johnson will look to build off this effort next Saturday, and shouldn’t have issues getting open against the porous Oregon State secondary.

Johnson (6'0/199) buoyed Oregon’s passing game even though he did not bring in any of their four touchdowns. He was the only player to even come close to the 100-yard mark and was one of just two Oregon receivers with a 25-plus yard gain. Johnson has not shown up to have a big game like this in a while, so it was encouraging to see him do so in an important game.

Johnson (6'0/199) has registered at least four receptions and 49 yards in each of his three games, but this was easily his most complete effort of 2019. It was his first multi-score game since posting two TDs on Sept. 15, 2018 against San Jose State, and the eight grabs broke the career high he set with seven receptions against Auburn in the opener. Next up is a visit to Stanford next Saturday for the conference opener.

Johnson got a chance to make an impact with the injuries to Brenden Schooler and Juwan Johnson, and he did just that. He was Justin Herbert’s go-to target when he went down the field, and he set up two of the three scores for the Ducks with big plays. Johnson has likely earned more playing time, starting next Saturday against Nevada.

Schooler is expected to miss 6-8 weeks as a result of his injury, leaving a hole at the flanker position that needs to be filled. At this point it appears that Johnson (6'0/199) is at the front of the line, as the junior has been working with established starters Juwan Johnson and Jaylon Redd. He faces competition from freshmen Josh Delgado, Mycah Pittman and JR Waters, but those three have yet to appear in a college game. As a sophomore Johnson appeared in all 13 game, starting six, catching 17 passes for 215 yards and four touchdowns. If experience is a factor in HC Mario Cristobal’s decision-making process Johnson clearly has the upper hand, but Delgado and Pittman will certainly have the opportunities to make a run at the job.

Johnson caught two passes for 39 yards in his college debut against Southern Utah, including a 37 yard reception. The Ducks have Nebraska on the schedule next followed by Josh Allen’s Wyoming team.