These five years of college football have been a winding road, unlike anything Jaden Johnson could have imagined as a top-20 national quarterback prospect coming out of high school.
There have been stints at Southern Mississippi, Fort Scott Community College, and Missouri State and last year he landed at Prairie View where he found out he was academically ineligible primarily because of all the transferring. This season has come with its challenges too for the fifth-year senior, who finished third in a three-man competition to lead the Panthers’ offense.
But finally, the Memphis product has landed where he reasonably questioned if it would ever happen and that’s as the starting quarterback at Prairie View.
“It’s been a long journey, I can say that,” Johnson said. “With the highs and lows I’ve had, with me being ineligible last season, getting kicked out of school at Missouri State, it’s been real trying.
“It’s been really trying just to stay focused. I’ve had my doubts and I’ve also had times when I said I know I can do it when I put my mind to it and actually just go with what I know.”
That’s exactly what Johnson did two weeks ago when he finally got his chance in the second half against Grambling State during the annual State Fair Classic in Dallas. The dual-threat quarterback not only rallied the Panthers in the second half, but he also led them to one of those most thrilling outcomes, which ended in a 36-34 five-overtime win over the Tigers.
“I remember Texas A&M or Mississippi State when they played,” Johnson said. “It was one of those two games, I had watched on TV. I had never experienced something like that myself. It was kind of new for me, as well.”
With Cam Peters and the offense stuck in neutral and trailing GSU 17-7, the coaching staff made the decision to turn to Johnson and it was the spark the Panthers needed. Johnson used his arm and legs to elevate Prairie View to a 24-17 lead early in the fourth quarter.
And after a late fourth-quarter touchdown allowed Grambling State to force overtime, Johnson threw a touchdown pass and led the offense to a field goal during the extra periods. He completed 12 of 18 passes for 104 yards and a touchdown while running for 22 yards and a rushing touchdown.
His coaches couldn’t have been more pleased.
“Jaden, when he got his opportunity, he rose to the occasion, point blank,” said Patrick Browning, the Panthers’ co-offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach. “He is a great athlete; he is a great young man. I couldn’t have been more proud of his performance.
“I’m just looking forward to seeing his growth week to week and continuing to get better.”
Johnson won’t soon forget that game. It was his first real opportunity to step on the field in a few seasons. It was also enough to earn him his first career start at Prairie View the following week at Incarnate Word.
“I was ecstatic. For that moment, I can’t lie I was ecstatic,” Johnson said of the Grambling State game. “Hearing my number called after waiting for so long, week after week after week after week, knowing that I can go out and get the job done… So when my number was called, I was more than ready for the opportunity that was presented to me.”
It was a moment that was created by perseverance through disappointment whether it was having to leave Southern Miss and Missouri State, having to sit out last season or having to start this season sitting behind Lucas Coley and Peters.
Johnson said the idea of having to return home without having achieved anything kept him going.
“Mainly the fear of going back home with nothing, no college degree, no championships, no wins,” said Johnson, who graduated in summer session with a bachelor’s degree in psychology with a minor in communications. “Just the fear of going home empty-handed, showing back knowing that I didn’t accomplish anything when I had each and every opportunity to accomplish something.
“That’s my driving motivation, not just showing up empty-handed. Always trying to finish up with something.”
Prairie View coach Bubba McDowell says he was impressed with Johnson from the time he arrived on campus and thought he would have had a chance to contribute last season were it not for the academic issues. He believed in Johnson in the Grambling State game and pushed his coaching staff to get him in.
“We knew what Jaden could do,” McDowell said. “It was just a matter of him getting the chance. A change of scenery I guess you can say. We needed a spark and he brought that spark to us that second half.”
Johnson’s coaches have been pleased with how he has handled the adversity he has faced. Facing the disappointment of being the third-string quarterback in his fifth and possibly final year could have definitely changed his desire and attitude.
“The (GSU game) we felt like we needed a spark,” Browning said. “When Jaden went in, everybody got to finally see what all of those months of keeping a good attitude, coming to meetings, learning the offense, and continuing to get better, when his moment came he was able to rise to the occasion.”
For now, Johnson is the Panthers’ starter, but that won’t change his mindset, which is to work like he is still on the bench.
“That’s my mindset, just staying humble, staying hungry and playing with an even bigger chip on my shoulder since I get to start,” Johson said ahead of his first career start when Panthers played Incarnate Word. “Just being humble, let the game come to me and let my playmakers around me make their plays and not try to make all of the plays myself.
“Like I said, work like I’m still on the bench. That’s my mindset every day in practice. Work like you are still trying to get a job or you are still trying to take the job from somebody. That’s my mindset. Just keep on working.”
