A tale from Johnson’s top three
Lion ran for more than 200 yards in first half against Oregon university rivals
In each edition of Blitz through the 2017 CFL season, we’ll get a Lions player to recall a memorable game from his past, whether in peewee, high school, college or the pro ranks. We’ll leave it to the player to determine whether the game was noteworthy due to the stakes, the venue, the playing conditions, individual performance or some other factor. Today’s entry: Jeremiah Johnson.
Long before Jeremiah Johnson perfected his end-zone-dance moves with the B.C. Lions, he was a star running back with the University of Oregon Ducks.
During his senior year, the now 30-year-old Johnson put on a personal performance for the ages, rushing for 219 yards against Oregon State in the historic rivalry game known as the Civil War. The Ducks won — with current Hamilton Tiger-Cats quarterback Jeremiah Masoli — to keep the Beavers out of the Rose Bowl.
Johnson’s final numbers are impressive on their own. All but 16 of his total rushing yards for that game in November 2008 were racked up in just the first half alone. That included an 83-yard touchdown romp.
He’s had some terrific performances throughout his career, like the 159 yards he rushed for in Week 12 last year versus Montreal. But when it comes to his overall personal rankings, Johnson puts that game against Oregon State in the top three for his entire career.
“My first run (against Oregon State) was a 79-yarder down the sideline on the right side. Just hit it hard, got some good blocking on the inside and just hit it and tried to run as fast as I could,” said Johnson. “That was actually my longest run over 20 (yards) the whole season. I was quite gassed after that.”
If he was at all tired or out of breath after that run, he did a good job of hiding it. The 219 yards rushing he finished with — a record for that rivalry contest, according to Oregon Live — could’ve been that much higher.
Despite Johnson’s wishes to remain in the game, he said that with the score getting out of hand, the coaching staff decided to rest him for most of the second half and keep him refreshed for the coming schedule, including the Holiday Bowl a month later.
The Ducks just barely held on for the 65-38 win.
“I was just extremely happy with the opportunity,” Johnson said. “Going into that game, there was a big rivalry. The implications of that game was really big for Oregon State. They had a chance to go to their first Rose Bowl in (44 years) and they were really jacked about it. We just took it upon ourselves to be that party-spoiler. My mindset was don’t leave no yards out there. Try to get as many yards as you can. We called the right plays, all our players blocked the right person and it was off to the races.”
That Ducks team also featured former New England Patriots running back LeGarrette Blount, who worked in tandem with Johnson in the backfield. He, too, had a big game against the Beavers, with 112 yards rushing and a TD.
Chip Kelly — a football “genius” in the mind of Johnson — was still the team’s offensive co-ordinator at the time, before he went on to become head coach of the program and eventually landed gigs in the NFL.
“We were very confident in what we could do,” Johnson said.
Based on the history and animosity between the two programs, there was considerable hype for the 112th rendition of the Civil War, Johnson recalled.
“Down in Eugene and Corvallis (Ore.), we just lived for that game only,” he said. “We could go 0-9 and that last game — we win that game, we had a successful season. With that being said, Oregon State always played us good.
“We just really wanted to put it on them. Down in Eugene, it was real big. You walk into class and a lot of fans were just like, ‘Have a good game! You’ve gotta beat them!’ With that said, we were jacked and just ready to get after it.”