Photo via HookEm.com
During Texas football coach Tom Herman’s press conference on Monday, he revealed quarterback Roschon Johnson was taking a few reps at running back. On the surface, it seemed pretty innocent. Texas is without backup running back Kirk Johnson (shoulder) for several weeks. Daniel Young recently sustained a “severe” high ankle sprain, and time will tell if he plays again this season. Johnson appeared to be a break in case of an emergency option.
Well, consider the glass broken.
Johnson is no longer viewed as an emergency option.
He was officially moved to the third-string running back on Monday.
According to my sources, Johnson will back up Keaontay Ingram and Jordan Whittington in the season opener against Louisiana Tech. I learned Johnson will receive touches out of the backfield and play on special teams on Saturday.
In addition, the plan is to play Johnson in the first four games of this season before determining if he will be redshirted. Typically, Texas football coach Tom Herman waits until the latter part of the season before deciding whether to redshirt the freshmen. However, Johnson will play against Louisiana Tech, LSU, Rice and Oklahoma State before a decision is made to redshirt him.
Johnson met with the staff on Monday and expressed his desire to play running back this season. He no longer wanted to be an emergency option, but was willing to play behind Ingram and Whittington. After the meeting, Johnson’s move became more solidified.
As a high school quarterback at Port Neches-Groves, he finished as the school’s all-time leading passer with 7,710 yards and second all-time leading rusher with 4,900 yards. He posted 85 touchdowns both passing and rushing, and has a lot of potential as a running back at Texas.
From a big picture perspective, the move makes sense for everyone involved.
Johnson (6-foot-2 and 220 pounds) is currently behind junior quarterback Sam Ehlinger and redshirt freshman Casey Thompson. Ehlinger is the starter for the next two seasons, and nobody is going to beat him out. Johnson would have to sit for two seasons before having a chance to compete against Thompson for playing time.
Instead, Johnson would prefer to see the field at running back and be involved now.
What does this mean for Johnson’s future at quarterback?
From what I was told, that position is still on the table. It appears everyone – including Johnson - needs to see how the switch to running back goes before determining his future position. Johnson could return to quarterback if that is his desire. If he enjoys playing running back, Johnson may stay at that position. It is really too early to tell.
For now, get ready to see Johnson lining up in the backfield on Saturday.
