Kerryon Johnson’s best game at Jordan-Hare Stadium came around a year ago -- before he was an Auburn Tiger.
Johnson was fresh off leading his Madison Academy Mustangs to their third consecutive AHSAA 3A State Championship--the game was played in Auburn--and he lit up the stat sheet, running for 178 yards and four touchdowns on only eight carries, while also recording a pick-6.
He committed to coach Gus Malzahn, running backs coach Tim Horton and Auburn in April of 2014, when Johnson was still a junior.
Fast-forward a year and a half, and Johnson has established himself as a true difference-maker in Malzahn’s offense as a true freshman.
As of Nov. 8, Johnson has accrued 164 yards on 40 carries, and scored his first collegiate touchdown in Lexington.
Johnson’s athleticism has been evident from day one, as he’s assumed the mantle of the Wildcat quarterback in Malzahn’s offense.
With the emergence of Jovon Robinson, coupled with the strong running of Peyton Barber and the talent-laden Roc Thomas, Johnson finds himself as one part of a four-headed monster in the backfield.
“I will say this, we have confidence in all of the running backs that we have,” Malzahn said. “Peyton has done a super job, Jovon has done a super job. Roc Thomas, who has battled some injuries, and Kerryon Johnson is developing into his own little role right there. We have confidence in all of them.”
Johnson has shown himself to be a capable runner--his season-high is nine carries for 36 yards against Kentucky--but he is just as elusive out of the backfield as a receiver.
Against Texas A&M, Johnson caught three passes for 43 yards, including a 34-yarder down the sideline in the third quarter. He nearly scored his second touchdown of the year early in the second quarter, but stepped out at the 1-yard line as he tried to dive into the end zone.
Despite his steadily increasing stats, Johnson was content to play the background, instead praising the offense as a whole as it climbs out of an early funk.
“We knew what we had,” Johnson said. “We were in a hole a few games ago but we still had the same outlook. We knew what we had, we knew what we could do if we just put together a whole game, and we finally did that this week. Now we’ve just got to keep doing that, keep building upon it … We’ve just got to keep pushing and keep pushing until the job’s done.”
As Auburn heads into the final three games of the year, the offense finally appears to be clicking, similar to what it looked like in 2013 when the Tigers led the nation in rushing.
Although it won’t reach those levels of production this season, Malzahn and Co. look to have a capable workhorse for the future waiting in the wings in Johnson.
Given that he has a minimum of two more years on The Plains, Johnson could find himself as one of the better backs to come out of “Running Back U” when his time is up.
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