Miles
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- Mar 18, 2019
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More than a decade later, Johnson was named a Freshman All-American in 2011 and earned First-Team All-SEC honors in 2013. During his four years with the Vols, he tallied the most total tackles among SEC players since at least 2005.
Wilson, who is in the Tennessee Sports Hall of Fame, could tell as early as 2011 that Johnson had a chance to be an impact player.
“You could tell from his freshman year that he was going to be an outstanding football player, simply because he came in and won a starting job as a freshman,” Wilson said. “Playing middle linebacker in the SEC as a true freshman is not the easiest thing to do, so he earned my respect early on as a player and as a linebacker.”
Wilson said Johnson is “arguably the best middle linebacker” to play at Tennessee, which is high praise coming from Wilson. He said Johnson’s hands, knack for the football and his 6-foot-2, 255-pound frame are attributes “you just can’t coach.”
“If he continues to hone his skills and stay focused on what it takes to become a better middle linebacker and understands the intricate parts of the game, there’s no question he’ll be a Pro Bowl player in a year or two,” Wilson said.
That kind of support means a great deal to Johnson, who said he modeled his game after the older linebacker.
“Growing up, as a kid, I didn’t know much about Tennessee football,” Johnson said. “When I started getting recruited by them, that’s when I really started learning about the history behind it. Immediately, it clicked. … I was like, ‘Man, that’s who I want to be like.’ It was [Wilson] and Eric Berry who were the two guys that were dudes at Tennessee that I was like, ‘Yeah, I want to model my game after them.’ That was pretty cool to get my first chance to meet [Wilson] when I was at school, and we clicked from there. He’s been a great mentor.”