Jovon Johnson is healthy and heading into a game — his last one at Ohio.
From a pick six in the first quarter of the first game to missing a month from injury, Jovon Johnson’s redshirt senior year has pogoed with optimism, constant setbacks and a few butterflies.
When Saturday comes, he’ll arguably be as healthy as he’s been since week one in Idaho, after injuries saw him substituted in and out of games throughout the season.
“We’re curing,” Johnson said. “It means we’re gonna go out there and play our best football.”
After getting injured against Idaho on Sept. 3, Johnson’s playing time was virtually nonexistent, with Ohio’s blowout win against Miami on Oct. 10 offering the first full glimpse of his impact on the team.
Following that 34-3 win, when he had another interception, Johnson said he had butterflies the first couple of series against the RedHawks after the five-week absence.
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If Johnson has butterflies again lining up with Appalachian State in the Raycom Media Camellia Bowl, it will probably stem from the inevitable: Saturday is his last game for Ohio.
“Going into the last game, I’ll pretty sad,” Johnson said. “I may shed a tear, I don’t know. We’ll see.”
Even if the Solon-native (Solon High School) isn’t in on a tackle or pass coverage, he and Quentin Poling are a noticeable presence at middle linebacker.
When injuries decimated depth at linebacker — Western Michigan ran for 401 rushing yards in the second half alone against a battered backing corps Oct. 17 — it was Johnson who helped lead the group forward.
With injuries so severe after the Western game that Ohio had to rethink linebacker options, Johnson worked with running back A.J. Ouellette at switching to the defense before playing Buffalo on Oct. 24.
But that was in the past.
As Ohio prepares to face an Appalachian State team that flirts with the triple option, there will be added pressure on the linebackers — mainly the outside ones — to check their reads and not get fooled by fake handoffs.
That also means the “Mike” linebackers will have to stay composed in the middle, preventing the Mountaineers from establishing a running game.
Regarding inspirational words before and during the bowl game, Johnson joked it’ll be the players around him who will need to deliver motivation.
“We love Jovon,” linebacker Chad Moore said. “We’re gonna be sad when he leaves. But we have one game ahead of us, and that’s what we’re looking forward to.”
gh181212@ohio.edu
@charliehatch_
