Following yet another devastating injury from 6th-year veteran John Emery Jr, LSU football coach Brian Kelly most recently announced that freshman cornerback Ju’Juan Johnson has officially made the switch over to running back.
Veteran running back John Emery Jr out for the season with an ACL tear
Coming off a season opening loss vs. USC, the bad news wasn’t done yet for coach Brian Kelly and his 2024 LSU football squad. Just two days later, it was reported that running back John Emery Jr – now in his 6th year with the program – had torn an ACL for the second time in the last year.
Emery Jr had previously been ruled out for the remainder of the season after tearing his right ACL vs. Florida on November 11 of last year. It was understandably devastating for a player who’d battled through academic issues throughout his career to finally get back on the field.
In many ways, that background is what made his week one performance so special. Not only was he able to get out on the field less than a year following his season-ending injury, but he was by far one of the best running backs in the game, carrying the ball 10 times for 61 yards.
Unfortunately, the feel-good story was short lived, as far as the 2024 season is combined, and he’s now set to miss the remainder of the season after tearing his left ACL in a non-contact play, leaving his college football career up in the air, depending on how his recovery goes.
“We feel pretty good right now where we’re at, in terms of the running back position. Obviously, we feel sick about John [Emery Jr],” LSU coach Brian Kelly said in reference to the veteran running back. “It’s just, sometimes you think about this, and just wonder how can this be fair in any way to this poor kid? I mean, he’s just overcome so many obstacles, and he’s in a non-contact situation and he sticks his foot in the ground and he tears his knee up. It was just so disappointing, he had surgery today; successful surgery.”
“It was so disappointing, and we feel so bad for him and his family, but John has overcome so much. I’m so proud of what he’s accomplished, in getting his degree from LSU, and he’s gonna be successful in life. We’ll see what the future holds for him.”
As bad as the injury was for the 6th-year veteran, it also left the LSU backfield in a state of uncertainness, with just three running backs remaining on scholarship (6th-year Josh Williams, sophomore Kaleb Jackson, freshman Caden Durham).
LSU freshman cornerback Ju’Juan Johnson making the move to running back to provide additional depth
While it’s hard to ever find good news in the midst of injuries and depth concerns on a football team, the one thing to be encouraged by heading into the remainder of the 2024 season was the fact that LSU is full of elite athletes that could make an impact as ball carriers if need be.
For example, just last season, star linebacker Harold Perkins Jr took a handoff in the 2024 ReliaQuest Bowl, making his way into the endzone to get the scoring started for the Tigers in the season finale. With that said, as an attempt to leave the talented athlete on the defensive side of the ball, coach Brian Kelly turned to another defender, and one that has already found himself in the Louisiana record books as far as the offensive side of the ball is concerned.
“We moved Ju’Juan Johnson to running back. So, he’s getting some carries and touches this week, and I think he’s gonna win the Heisman,” the Tiger head coach joked about his newly dubbed running back. “I’m just kidding with you, but he’s gonna play some running back for us, and he gives us the fourth back and gives us a little more balance there. He’s an exciting player.”
He can do a lot of things. We felt like we could shuffle some things around on the defensive side of the ball and begin to get him involved. Obviously, there’s gonna be a learning curve on some things, but certainly, I think he can do some things for us this weekend.”
Johnson, who’d previously been listed as a 5-foot-11, 203-pound defensive back on the LSU football roster was the true definition of an athlete coming out of high school. Projecting more as a cornerback at the collegiate level, the Lafayette Christian Academy standout was simply too good to not have on the field at all times in high school, and in turn put up some of the best numbers Louisiana high school football has ever seen.
After recording 14,451 yards and 171 touchdowns as a quarterback – both of which are state records – Johnson elected to stay in-state and join the purple and gold as a cornerback, leaving his offensive stat padding behind.
However, less than one full year later, his services have once again been called upon, and according to coach Brian Kelly, it appears that he’ll immediately step in and leave an impact in the LSU backfield.
While this transition will more than likely take some time to put in place, there’s no doubt that Ju’Juan Johnson has the kind of skillset to be truly special with the Tigers. For now, it’s just a matter of where to best utilize him, and for the time being at least, it appears that running back is the place to be.
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