Rookie lineman feels right at home this week
You can bet this week has been circled on Evan Johnson’s calendar for a few months.
The Ottawa Redblacks rookie offensive lineman, who has been so effective since becoming a starter a month ago, is back home — he played for the University of Saskatchewan, whose field the Redblacks have occupied since Monday. Thursday, he will head to his hometown of Regina, where Redblacks play the Roughriders Friday.
“It’s still a work week for me, but it’s sure nice to be able to meet up with some old friends and teammates,” Johnson said. “I’m excited to go back to Regina and play football. I’m a pretty even-keeled guy so I’m not getting too nervous — I’m treating it like any other game.”
Since stepping into the lineup at left guard because of an injury to Jon Gott, Johnson has stood out.
“It’s like what we saw on film when we drafted him,” Redblacks offensive line coach Bryan Chiu said. “He’s been grading out very, very high. For a rookie to do that, to continually get better like he has, it’s really quite remarkable. The kid puts in a lot of work, he doesn’t make mental mistakes; we expect good things from him.”
An offensive tackle while with the Huskies, Johnson is adapting to, and loving, the new position.
“Having played tackle, this is a different kind of speed. Tackle’s a lot more vertical speed, up and down the field. On the inside, it’s a lot more lateral speed and quickness. Things happen a lot faster at this level, but everything’s starting to slow down a bit for me.”