2021 South Dade (FL) DE/OLB Tyler Johnson committed to the Canes last Sunday afternoon during his junior day visit to Miami.
The 6-2, 200-pounder is currently unranked in the national rankings, as not many class of 2021 prospects have earned a rating yet. His commitment moves Miami’s 2021 class ranking to #1 on 247Sports and #1 on Rivals.
The Player
It’s been stated many times at this point, but here’s one more for good measure: Johnson is the younger brother of the recently graduated All-World Hurricanes safety Jaquan Johnson. Just like his brother, coaches and teammates are effusive in their praise of Tyler, calling him a weight room warrior, hard worker, and a leader both on and off the field despite only being a sophomore. At Paradise Camp in July, Johnson played a lot of linebacker and earned his UM offer the next day. Johnson always wanted to be a Hurricane and it wouldn’t take long for him to come aboard. Along with 4 other recruits, including his teammate in 2020 CB Jaiden Francois, he committed to the Canes at junior day last weekend. UGA was Johnson’s other major offer at the time.
If you wanted to know if Johnson leans more towards the DE or OLB side of the spectrum, just take a look at his tape: basically every clip is of him rushing the passer, either with his hand on the ground or standing up just off the edge. Clearly his playing style lends you to believe he would be a fit at DE at the next level, but he has the speed and frame to stick at LB as well if UM chooses to put him there. It will be worth watching how much he grows over the next two years, and he certainly could have a similar trajectory as former South Dade teammate and current Miami DE/OLB Patrick Joyner.
Johnson’s feet never stop moving, and that’s key for someone that’s undersized like he is right now going up against much larger offensive lineman. Johnson is all speed, and it is hard for high school level offensive lineman to even get a hand on him with his quick first step. He rushes in with good lean and dips low to propel himself around the edge. Johnson flashes disruptive qualities in gaps and seemingly always finds a window to knife his way into the backfield.
The Class
For purposes of discussion, we will look at Johnson as a LB for now since we just looked at DE yesterday in Chamon Metayer’s Class Impact, but Johnson could very well end up as a DE at UM. Johnson is the 7th commit overall (at the time) in the 2021 class and the first linebacker in the class. Being nearly two years from the class of 2021’s signing day, it’s difficult to accurately predict how the numbers will shake out for this class with so many variables still undetermined.
There’s not many offers out to linebackers in this class so far, but one in particular that UM has been going after for a while now is Sandalwood (FL) 4-star Branden Jennings. Like Johnson, Jennings is also a UM legacy that is high on the Canes, being the younger brother of current UM linebacker BJ Jennings. UM took a bit of a hit here when main recruiter Todd Hartley was let go, but some feel Jennings is Miami’s to lose. FSU will be the team to watch out for here, as Jennings is a legacy there as well.
The Team
Assuming there’s no attrition, the LB’s from the current roster that will still be on campus when Johnson arrives in 2021 are seniors Bradley Jennings, Waynmon Steed, and De’Andre Wilder, along with juniors Avery Huff and Sam Brooks, plus senior hybrid DE/OLB Patrick Joyner. In 2020, UM has no current linebacker commits, but they will certainly take at least 3 to help balance the numbers.
Like most freshmen, Johnson will likely take his first year to work his way into the rotation and develop his technique and body for the rigors of the college game. He could also be similar to Joyner in that Johnson could bounce back and forth between LB and DE his freshman season at UM. However, the returning LB’s in 2021 are completely unproven as of now, so there will theoretically be plenty of playing time available for Johnson and any of his classmates if he sticks at LB. Johnson has as good a chance as anybody to take hold of a starting job and run with it by his sophomore season.
The 6-2, 200-pounder is currently unranked in the national rankings, as not many class of 2021 prospects have earned a rating yet. His commitment moves Miami’s 2021 class ranking to #1 on 247Sports and #1 on Rivals.
The Player
It’s been stated many times at this point, but here’s one more for good measure: Johnson is the younger brother of the recently graduated All-World Hurricanes safety Jaquan Johnson. Just like his brother, coaches and teammates are effusive in their praise of Tyler, calling him a weight room warrior, hard worker, and a leader both on and off the field despite only being a sophomore. At Paradise Camp in July, Johnson played a lot of linebacker and earned his UM offer the next day. Johnson always wanted to be a Hurricane and it wouldn’t take long for him to come aboard. Along with 4 other recruits, including his teammate in 2020 CB Jaiden Francois, he committed to the Canes at junior day last weekend. UGA was Johnson’s other major offer at the time.
If you wanted to know if Johnson leans more towards the DE or OLB side of the spectrum, just take a look at his tape: basically every clip is of him rushing the passer, either with his hand on the ground or standing up just off the edge. Clearly his playing style lends you to believe he would be a fit at DE at the next level, but he has the speed and frame to stick at LB as well if UM chooses to put him there. It will be worth watching how much he grows over the next two years, and he certainly could have a similar trajectory as former South Dade teammate and current Miami DE/OLB Patrick Joyner.
Johnson’s feet never stop moving, and that’s key for someone that’s undersized like he is right now going up against much larger offensive lineman. Johnson is all speed, and it is hard for high school level offensive lineman to even get a hand on him with his quick first step. He rushes in with good lean and dips low to propel himself around the edge. Johnson flashes disruptive qualities in gaps and seemingly always finds a window to knife his way into the backfield.
The Class
For purposes of discussion, we will look at Johnson as a LB for now since we just looked at DE yesterday in Chamon Metayer’s Class Impact, but Johnson could very well end up as a DE at UM. Johnson is the 7th commit overall (at the time) in the 2021 class and the first linebacker in the class. Being nearly two years from the class of 2021’s signing day, it’s difficult to accurately predict how the numbers will shake out for this class with so many variables still undetermined.
There’s not many offers out to linebackers in this class so far, but one in particular that UM has been going after for a while now is Sandalwood (FL) 4-star Branden Jennings. Like Johnson, Jennings is also a UM legacy that is high on the Canes, being the younger brother of current UM linebacker BJ Jennings. UM took a bit of a hit here when main recruiter Todd Hartley was let go, but some feel Jennings is Miami’s to lose. FSU will be the team to watch out for here, as Jennings is a legacy there as well.
The Team
Assuming there’s no attrition, the LB’s from the current roster that will still be on campus when Johnson arrives in 2021 are seniors Bradley Jennings, Waynmon Steed, and De’Andre Wilder, along with juniors Avery Huff and Sam Brooks, plus senior hybrid DE/OLB Patrick Joyner. In 2020, UM has no current linebacker commits, but they will certainly take at least 3 to help balance the numbers.
Like most freshmen, Johnson will likely take his first year to work his way into the rotation and develop his technique and body for the rigors of the college game. He could also be similar to Joyner in that Johnson could bounce back and forth between LB and DE his freshman season at UM. However, the returning LB’s in 2021 are completely unproven as of now, so there will theoretically be plenty of playing time available for Johnson and any of his classmates if he sticks at LB. Johnson has as good a chance as anybody to take hold of a starting job and run with it by his sophomore season.
