P L A Y E R B I O S
'It's everything he's looking for in a school'
O
ver the years, Penn State has signed
plenty of prospects whose fathers
coach football. But it's not o@en that the
Nittany Lions have signed a prospect
whose father coaches at another Power
Five program.
In adding quarterback Michael John-
son Jr. of Eugene, Ore., to the Class of
2019, though, that's exactly what James
Franklin and his coaching sta> did.
Johnson's father, Michael Johnson Sr., is
an assistant coach at Mississippi State,
having been hired in January to oversee
the Bulldogs' wide receivers a@er two
seasons at Oregon. The elder Johnson
has been in coaching for two decades
now, mostly at the NFL level.
Blue White Illustrated recruiting re-
porter Ryan Snyder caught up with
Johnson recently to discuss not only his
son and his recruitment, but what he
saw from Franklin and the rest of PSU's
sta> that earned his stamp of approval.
BWI How did Michael get started play-
ing football? Was he always a quarter-
back?
JOHNSON He erent drops and
workouts that I actually learned from
Norv Turner. Basically, you start him
with a one-step drop, three-step drop,
then ense. His passing technique will
need
some reord, Will Levis and fellow early en-
rollee Ta'Quan Roberson. Johnson will
undoubtedly redshirt in 2019.
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I N T E R V I E W M I C H A E L J O H N S O N S R .
MICHAEL
JOHNSON SR.
Photo courtesy of Michael Johnson Sr.
