University of Houston Athletics
Brian Johnson Named Houston Offensive Coordinator
12/27/2016 12:00:00 AM | Football
HOUSTON - Houston Football head coach Major Applewhite has named Brian Johnson Houston's offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach.
A native of Baytown, Texas, Johnson comes to Houston after three seasons as quarterbacks coach at Mississippi State where he helped develop this season's NFL Rookie of the Year favorite and MVP candidate Dak Prescott, and lead the Bulldogs to three consecutive bowl games.
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Under his tutelage, Mississippi State quarterbacks have led the SEC in total offense in two of Johnson's three years with the team as sophomore Nick Fitzgerald totaled 3,798 yards of total offense this season and Prescott led the league with 4,435 yards in 2014. The current Dallas Cowboy was second in the league in 2015 with 4,381 yards.
"He was unbelievable and I'm very thankful to have him as a coach. Once I got the offense down, he took me to another level and his knowledge of the game was invaluable," said Prescott. "It meant a lot to have someone who has played at such a high level be able to teach you. You look at the success he had with his undefeated season at Utah and you know he can back up what he is teaching. He's also a great guy who pushes you to be a better person in the community and academically. I'm very proud of him."
Over the three-year span Johnson was with MSU, the Bulldogs were second in the SEC in both total offense (average of 6,129 yards per season) and passing offense (average of 3,492 yards) after finishing ninth in total offense in the year prior to his arrival with 5,647 yards and seventh in passing offense with 2,716 yards.
The 2016 season saw Fitzgerald finish the regular season as one of only three quarterbacks nationally with over 1,000 rushing yards (1,385 yards) and 2,000 passing yards (2,423 yards), joining Heisman winner Lamar Jackson and The American's 2016 Offensive Player of the Year, USF's Quinton Flowers, in accomplishing the feat. The trio were also the only players to rush for at least 15 touchdowns and throw for at least 20 as Fitzgerald ended the year with 16 rushing scores and 21 passing touchdowns.
Fitzgerald led the nation with three games with at least 300 yards passing and 100 yards rushing, and was the first SEC quarterback to produce three such games since Johnny Manziel accomplished the feat en route to the 2012 Heisman Trophy.
The sophomore shattered MSU's single-season rushing record by a quarterback and finished second on the school's single-season rushing yards chart regardless of position, just six yards from the program record. He tied a MSU program record with eight 100-yard rushing games and finished the season second on the MSU single-season charts with 16 rushing touchdowns. He had an SEC-best 45 runs of at least 10 yards this season.
In Johnson's first two seasons in Starkville, MSU produced the two highest single-season passing totals in school history. Seventeen MSU single-game and single-season team total offense, scoring and passing records fell in that span. The catalyst for the record-setting success was Prescott, who Johnson helped develop into the most decorated player in school history and a 2016 NFL Draft selection.
Prescott shattered 38 school records (eight single-game, 15 single-season, 15 career) and became one of the greatest quarterbacks in SEC history. He joined Tim Tebow as the only two SEC players to pass for 8,500 yards and rush for 2,000 yards in a career.
Johnson worked closely with Prescott to polish his passing skills and what resulted in 2015 became history. A finalist for the Manning and Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Awards, Prescott shattered nine single-season records as a senior passer, including yards (3,793), completions (316), completion percentage (.662), efficiency (151.7) and 300-yard games (seven).
The first two-time first-team All-SEC quarterback at MSU since 1956-57, the Dallas Cowboys called Prescott's name with the No. 135 pick in the 2016 NFL Draft. He became the highest drafted SEC quarterback since 2013.
Prescott became the first player ever at MSU to be named a finalist for the Davey O'Brien Award presented to college football's top signal caller. In 2014, Prescott shattered 12 MSU individual single-season records, including total offense (4,435), touchdowns responsible (41), passing completions (244), completion percentage (.616), passing yards (3,449), passing touchdowns (27) and passing efficiency (151.7).
Prescott finished eighth in the 2014 Heisman Trophy voting. In addition, Johnson helped form the SEC's top offense in 2014 as MSU led the league in total offense for the first time since 1982, averaging a school-record 513.8 yards per game. The Bulldogs broke 14 team single-season records en route to the Orange Bowl, including total offense (6,679), points (480), offensive touchdowns (60), first downs (334), passing yards (3,649), completions (261) and passing touchdowns (31).
Prior to his arrival at MSU, Johnson spent four seasons as an assistant coach at Utah, including one season as the offensive coordinator and one season as the co-offensive coordinator. He coached quarterbacks since joining the staff in 2010. A rising star in the coaching profession, Johnson became the youngest NCAA FBS offensive coordinator in the nation at age 24 on Feb. 2, 2011.
The fast ascension in coaching has been nothing new for Johnson. Dan Mullen, then the quarterbacks coach at Utah, signed Johnson to a National Letter of Intent at just 16 years old in 2004. Johnson went on to play in 10 games as a true freshman backup to Heisman Trophy finalist Alex Smith during Utah's 12-0 Fiesta Bowl season.
The next spring, he became Utah's starting quarterback at age 17. In January 2010, a year after breaking the school record for wins by a starting quarterback (26), Johnson accepted a position as Utah's quarterbacks coach.
Two years in that role was enough time to convince head coach Kyle Whittingham to appoint Johnson as the new offensive coordinator. In 2013, Johnson had the opportunity to work alongside former three-time Pac-10 Conference Coach of the Year Dennis Erickson as co-offensive coordinator.
Each of Johnson's first three seasons was defined by injuries at the quarterback position. Starter Jordan Wynn was injured for part or most of every season and Johnson inserted three different replacements from 2010-12. In both 2010 and 2011, Utah recovered to earn a bowl bid (Las Vegas Bowl and Sun Bowl).
With an eye to the future, Johnson anointed true freshman Travis Wilson the starting quarterback for the final seven games of the 2012 season. He also turned to the run game, implementing a game plan that allowed senior John White to net 1,041 yards and become the first Ute ever to produce back-to-back 1,000-yard seasons. Utah led the Pac-12 in time of possession, holding the ball an average of 32:07 a game.
As a player, Johnson was a three-year starter and a two-time bowl most valuable player. He set the school mark for victories by a starting quarterback, finishing his career with a 26-7 record. A finalist for the Johnny Unitas Golden Arm and the Manning awards as a senior in 2008, Johnson captained Utah to the best record in school history (13-0) and a Sugar Bowl victory over Alabama. The Sugar Bowl MVP tossed for 336 yards and three touchdowns in leading the Utes to a dominant 31-17 win over the fourth-ranked Tide.
For his career, Johnson threw for 7,853 yards and 57 touchdowns as well as running for 848 yards and 12 scores. He gained even more acclaim when EA Sports put him on the cover of its 2010 NCAA Football video game.
