The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1503142
THE WOLVERINE 2023 FOOTBALL PREVIEW ■ 105 "We put a lot into that season, and for it to all work out for us the right way felt great." Doing so represented no small task. The Buckeyes poured 12 months into prepping for an overwhelming act of revenge, fol- lowing Michigan's win in Ann Arbor the year before. OSU fans, players and coaches talked about the Wolverines having to come to Columbus, and how things would be dif- ferent. The 104,663 fans who showed up cer- tainly geared themselves up for a resounding hu- miliation of the Wol- verines and dressed ap- propriately. While they somehow find ways to infiltrate when their team plays in Ann Arbor, Michigan fans stood like a droplet of blue in a sea of red in Columbus. "When they were here, and we beat them here, there were a lot of Ohio State fans here," Johnson recalled. "When we went there, it was pretty much straight red. You pretty much felt the differ- ence when you went to their stadium. But we knew what we could do with ourselves throughout the game." They did. They came, they saw, and then conquered, before smashing Purdue in the annual Anticlimax Bowl a week later. While Michigan's 43-22 clinching of a second straight Big Ten championship never ap- peared in doubt, Johnson enjoyed a second straight week of celebration, securing 2 of his 3 interceptions on the season against the Boilermakers. "Those two back-to-back weekends were some of the best times for me, for sure," he said. "Especially the Ohio State win. That was more of a personal game for me. Then the Big Ten championship, I had a great game and I felt good at the end." Brought Along Slowly Johnson's sterling games to conclude the season weren't necessarily hinted at in the early going. He didn't make his first start until Nov. 5 against Rutgers, announcing his arrival in the lineup with his initial career interception. He played in all 14 Michigan games, but with a veteran secondary, U-M wasn't in any hurry to rush its five-star freshman into the lineup. More than half his 27 tackles and all 3 of his interceptions arrived after October ended. "They didn't want to put me in too much, because they didn't think I was ready yet," Johnson said. "They wanted to sprinkle me in. But the more I got in — against Rutgers, against Michigan State — that's when it started to pick up for me and I started to get more comfortable." That's also when uniform No. 2 began looking more comfortable on the freshman standout. Johnson insists he didn't choose the number with its most famous wearer, Charles Woodson, in mind, but he did ac- knowledge a keen awareness of the digit's significance in U-M lore. "I knew what came with it and I knew the expectations that it would bring," Johnson assured. "I knew people would either say I shouldn't have it, or I should have it on. "At the beginning of the season, I think people were saying I shouldn't have it on. Toward the end, people respected me hav- ing it on. For me, just knowing the expecta- tions I would have, I just used it for a little motivation." If Johnson needed any further motiva- tion, Woodson himself provided it prior to one of Michigan's games. "I met him a few times," Johnson noted. "The only time he really talked about the number was before one of our games. He said, 'If you're going to wear that number, you've got to ball out and make plays in it.' "It's the only conversation we had about it, but he had respect for me and definitely respected me wearing it, too." Woodson and all former Wolverines respected what Michigan got done in Co- lumbus, and subsequently securing the Big Ten championship. They ached a bit in the shootout loss to TCU in a College Football Playoff semifinal. But nobody hurt worse than the present Wolverines, Johnson included, when Mich- igan came up short and wound up watching TCU and Georgia in the national championship contest. "Definitely," John- son said. "I could barely watch that game, because I knew how it was going to turn out. It was just a hard feeling, knowing we should have been there. We all felt that way. It still doesn't sit well with us. "Our team is probably even more loaded than it was last year. We have goals to be national champions, and it's very possible." Johnson learned early that anything is possible, from a father who earned three Big Ten titles in his time at Michigan. He also got his son ready for some hard knocks and tough coaching. "He was just pushing me, saying little things to me, seeing how I responded to it," Johnson recalled. "We would go back and forth some days. Some days I would be really mad at him. But when we got done working out, we would all be good. We'd know we got a good workout and it was all for the better." These days, co-defensive coordinator/ defensive backs coach Steve Clinkscale has taken up the prodding baton. "He's like my dad," Johnson said. "He's always going to be hard on me, pushes me to get the best of me. He's the only guy, be- sides my dad, that coaches me and gets the best out of me." "I'm pretty used to it. I grew up getting coached pretty hard. I knew Coach Clink coached like that. It's one of the reasons I chose him. I was here a lot, seeing him coach the guys before me, so I knew that's one of the ways to get the best out of me. I don't need somebody who's easy on me, or that really cares about my feelings when I'm on the field. "I need someone who tells me the real and gets the best out of me." Now, Johnson focuses on getting the best out of himself, and what he considers a budding "great defense." He still has scores to settle, one of which awaits on Nov. 25 at Michigan Stadium. ❑ "Those two back-to-back weekends were some of the best times for me, for sure. Especially the Ohio State win. That was more of a personal game for me. Then the Big Ten championship, I had a great game and I felt good at the end." JOHNSON Johnson grabbed 2 of his 3 interceptions on the season in Michigan's 43-22 win over Purdue to clinch a second straight Big Ten championship, PHOTO BY CHAD WEAVER