Will Johnson (cornerback)
 Johnson with the Michigan Wolverines in 2024 | |
| Michigan Wolverines – No. 2 | |
|---|---|
| Position | Cornerback |
| Class | Junior |
| Personal information | |
| Born: | March 29, 2003 Detroit, Michigan, U.S. |
| Height | 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) |
| Weight | 202 lb (92 kg) |
| Career history | |
| College |
|
| Bowl games | |
| High school | Grosse Pointe South (Grosse Pointe Farms, Michigan) |
| Career highlights and awards | |
| |
William Johnson (born March 29, 2003) is an American football cornerback. He was a two-time All-American for the Michigan Wolverines. In 2023, he won the national championship, and earned its defensive MVP award.
Early life
[edit]Johnson was born in 2003 and grew up in Detroit, Michigan.[1] His father, Deon Johnson, was a cornerback for the Michigan Wolverines in the 1990s.[2][3] Johnson played high school football at Grosse Pointe South High School. As a senior, he was an all-state selection, recording 45 tackles, a sack, an interception and 12 pass breakups. On offense, he totaled 1,302 all-purpose yards receiving, rushing and returning punts; catching 42 passes for 667 yards with six touchdowns.[4]
Johnson was rated as a five-star player and the No. 1 player in Michigan by 247Sports, ESPN and Rivals.[1] 247Sports gave Johnson a composite ranking as the No. 15 ranked high school football player in the country in the 2022 college football recruiting class.[5] On February 28, 2021, Johnson committed to the University of Michigan.[6][7] He also held offers from Ohio State, USC, Oklahoma and Texas A&M, amongst others.[8] He was one of the first Michigan recruits to benefit from the new rule allowing players to be compensated for the use of their name, image and likeness (NIL).[9][10]
College career
[edit]Freshman season (2022)
[edit]
Johnson enrolled early at the University of Michigan in January 2022, and participated in winter conditioning.[8][11] He impressed in spring practice and was described as being in position to play early in the fall of 2022.[12][13] Johnson became a starter as a true freshman. In total, he appeared in all 14 games, recording 27 tackles and three interceptions. Johnson recorded his first career interception versus Rutgers on November 5, and had a two interception performance in the Big Ten Championship Game victory versus Purdue.[14]
Following his first season, Johnson was voted team defensive freshman of the year, along with Mason Graham. He was also named to the True Freshman All-America team by 247Sports and Pro Football Focus.[15][16]
Sophomore season (2023)
[edit]In 2023, Johnson was named to the Jim Thorpe Award watch list.[17] In total, Johnson started 12 games for the Wolverines, missing three due to injury. Johnson allowed only 17 receptions on 321 coverage snaps, including zero receptions for touchdowns. He finished the 2023 season with the second lowest QB rating when targeted in college football, adding 27 tackles and four interceptions.[18]
Johnson scored his first career touchdown on an interception versus Minnesota on October 7.[19] In the victory against Ohio State on November 25, Johnson recorded an interception while defending Marvin Harrison Jr.[20] His most notorious interception came on a ball thrown by Washington's Michael Penix Jr. on the first play of the second half in the national championship game.[21] This helped seal a national title for the Wolverines, and earned Johnson the National Championship Defensive MVP Award.[22][23][24]
Following the season, Johnson was named a consensus first-team All-Big Ten selection and named a first-team All-American by Sports Illustrated.[25] He was also selected as a second-team All-American by USA Today.[26]
Junior season (2024)
[edit]Entering his junior season, Johnson was ranked as the best cornerback in college football by members of the media.[27][28][29] He was widely considered to be an early first round pick in the 2025 NFL draft.[30][31][32] In his first game of the season versus Fresno State, Johnson recorded three tackles and had an 86-yard interception returned for a touchdown to secure a win.[33] In week four against the USC Trojans, Johnson returned his second interception of the season for a 42-yard touchdown.[34] In doing so, he became the first player in Michigan football history to return three career interceptions for touchdowns.[35][36]
After the USC game, Johnson missed the next game against Minnesota with a shoulder contusion.[37] He returned the following week in game six versus Washington, before exiting the game with an injury and missing the second half in the loss to the Huskies. Johnson did not play the remainder of the season with a turf toe injury.[38][39] Following the season, he was named a second-team All-American, finishing the year with 14 tackles and two interceptions returned for touchdowns.[40][41]
On December 11, Johnson declared for the 2025 NFL draft, foregoing the ReliaQuest Bowl and his senior season.[42] He finished his career at the University of Michigan with a 35-6 team record, two Big Ten championships, All-American honors twice and was a national champion (including being the game’s defensive MVP). In his three years, Johnson appeared in 32 games, recording 68 tackles, 19 passes defended and nine interceptions (including three returned for touchdowns).[43]
References
[edit]- ^ a b "Will Johnson". University of Michigan. Retrieved July 24, 2022.
- ^ Mick McCabe (October 16, 2020). "How the son of a Michigan football player became the megarecruit the Wolverines covet". Detroit Free Press.
- ^ "Bentley Historical Library University of Michigan Football Rosters". bentley.umich.edu.
- ^ "Will Johnson Bio". University of Michigan Athletics.
- ^ "Will Johnson Recruiting Profile". 247Sports.
- ^ Orion Sang (February 28, 2021). "Michigan football gets commitment from Grosse Pointe South 5-star CB Will Johnson". Detroit Free Press.
- ^ Mike Adzima (March 2, 2021). "Souths Will Johnson choose Wolverines". Grosse Pointe News.
- ^ a b "Will Johnson, centerpiece of Michigan's 2022 recruiting class, is 'ready to work'". Mlive.com. December 15, 2021.
- ^ Jeff Seidel (December 16, 2021). "Dollar Signs; How star cornerback Will Johnson is raking in cash -- aboveboard -- before he plays a single down for Michigan". Detroit Free Press. p. 1C – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Will Johnson, University of Michigan's Top-Rated High School Football Recruit, Signs Historic NIL Deal with Michigan Restaurant". Yahoo. March 28, 2022.
- ^ "Michigan freshman CB Will Johnson impressing during spring practices, will 'earn his way onto the field this fall'". on3.com. March 29, 2022.
- ^ "Michigan freshman Will Johnson appears poised to carve out early role". The Detroit News. March 23, 2022.
- ^ "Two Michigan football freshmen impressing in spring ball". USA Today. March 18, 2022.
- ^ "Michigan football beats Purdue, 43-22, for second straight Big Ten championship". Detroit Free Press.
- ^ "2022 PFF College All-True Freshman Team: Ole Miss RB Quinshon Judkins, Notre Dame CB Benjamin Morrison and More". Pro Football Focus.
- ^ "Michigan cornerback Will Johnson named freshman All-American by 247Sports". The Michigan Insider: 247Sports.
- ^ "The Legendary Jim Thorpe, and the 2023 Season Watchlist for Top Defensive Back". College Football Poll.
- ^ "2024 Michigan Football Spring Position Breakdown: Cornerback". Maize & Blue Review: Rivals.
- ^ "Michigan football returns two interceptions for touchdowns in 52-10 beatdown of Minnesota". The Detroit Free Press.
- ^ "To beat Ohio State, Michigan covered Marvin Harrison Jr. like never before". The Detroit News.
- ^ "Will Johnson, the National Championship and what it means to wear No. 2 at Michigan". The Michigan Daily.
- ^ Peters, Andrew (January 8, 2024). "Michigan's Blake Corum, Will Johnson Named 2024 CFB National Championship MVPs". Bleacher Report. Retrieved January 9, 2024.
- ^ "Michigan does it at last, powering through Washington for first national title since 1997". FOX Sports. Retrieved January 9, 2024.
- ^ "CFP defensive MVP Will Johnson is just getting started at Michigan". Fox Sports.
- ^ "Sports Illustrated's 2023 College Football All-Americans". Sports Illustrated.
- ^ "3 Michigan Football Players Named to USA TODAY All-American Team". Detroit Sports Nation.
- ^ "College Football: Top 10 Returning Cornerbacks for the 2024 Season". Pro Football Focus.
- ^ "Ranking the Top 80 College Football Cornerbacks for 2024". Sports Grid.
- ^ "Top Five for 2024: Cornerback Edition". Mike Farrell Sports.
- ^ "Could Michigan football CB Will Johnson be the first since 1956 to capture this title?". Sports Illustrated (NFL Draft).
- ^ "Early look at the top 20 NFL draft-eligible college football players taking the field in 2024 season". CBS Sports.
- ^ "PFF predicts 4 Michigan football players to go in first round in 2025 NFL draft". USA Today - Wolverines Wire.
- ^ "Michigan v. Fresno State (2024)". ESPN.
- ^ "Michigan v. USC (2024)". ESPN.
- ^ "Postgame Notes: #18 Michigan 27, #11 USC 24". University of Michigan Athletics.
- ^ "Michigan CB Will Johnson breaks school record with 42-yard interception return TD against USC". CBS Sports.
- ^ "Michigan football injury update: Will Johnson out vs. Minnesota, Colston Loveland in". Detroit Free Press.
- ^ "Sherrone Moore provides injury updates for Colston Loveland, Will Johnson". Maize N Brew.
- ^ "Michigan rules out Will Johnson, Colston Loveland vs. Ohio State". Mlive.
- ^ "Graham Earns NCAA Unanimous Consensus All-America Honors". University of Michigan Athletics.
- ^ "2024 CBS Sports All-America team: Big Ten edges SEC in selections, Travis Hunter picks up three honors". CBS Sports.
- ^ Chengelis, Angelique. "Will Johnson, Michigan cornerback, declares for NFL Draft". The Detroit News. Retrieved December 11, 2024.
- ^ "Michigan All-American DB Will Johnson opts out to enter NFL Draft as projected top 5 pick". Detroit Free Press.
External links
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