Nick Saban enjoys watching Oregon WR Tez Johnson play. However, it seems the former Alabama head coach would have much rather watched him play in crimson and white than green and gold.
Johnson, a Birmingham native, was not recruited by the Crimson Tide. He ended up going to Troy for 3 years before transferring to Oregon ahead of the 2023 season. Now he’s become Dillon Gabriel’s go-to guy and helped lead the Ducks to an undefeated record.
Ahead of the Ducks’ Rose Bowl CFP quarterfinal clash against Ohio State on Saturday evening, Saban joked about Johnson not catching Alabama’s eye:
“What I’m sitting here thinking about is Tez Johnson’s in Birmingham, 45 minutes away from Alabama. We didn’t recruit the guy. Who was recruiting Birmingham? And I should have fired their ass,” Nick Saban quipped, drawing laughter from the rest of the College GameDay crew.
Johnson recorded 78 catches for 866 yards and 10 touchdowns this year — all team highs for Oregon. All of those numbers would have led Alabama in 2024, too, just for the record. Freshman Ryan Williams posted 865 receiving yards for the Tide on only 48 catches.
It’s safe to say Dan Lanning and the Ducks are happy Johnson made his way out to the west coast.
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