ATHENS, W.Va. – Jeremiah Johnson, who was a two-time All-American (2015, 2017) for the Concord University football program, is the next guest on the Concord University Athletic Alumni at Work interview series, episode 11.
Over his career, Johnson was a four-time selection to the All-Mountain East Conference First Team, made all-region squads from 2014-17 and is in the top five in program history in interceptions and pass break-ups.
Johnson talks with Concord University Sports Information Director
Wes McKinney about the transition from his hometown of Baltimore to Concord's campus, the special bond of the history-making 2014 CU football team that made the Division II National Semifinals, and his professional football experiences to this point in his career.
After graduating from Concord in 2017, Johnson was in the Indianapolis Colts' minicamp during the spring of 2018, played for the Salt Lake City Stallions of the now-defunct American Alliance of Football and was a starter for the Houston Roughnecks for the XFL during the 2020 season.
Some excerpts of the interview are below while the complete interview can be found here:
https://cutt.ly/BgVQCYR
ON ADJUSTING TO COLLEGE LIFE AT CONCORD
I always wanted to get out and explore more than just Baltimore. A lot of my trips that I've taken have been business trips. I never really been on a vacation—the only vacation I can say I've been on is to Alaska. I've been trying to expand my mind outside of Baltimore, and by doing that giving back to the youth—letting them to step out of their comfort zone, go to college and experience it. I got my two cousins to come to Concord for a short period of time. They were able to interact and meet people. For me, it was a leap of faith, trusting the process. Going to a small school, knowing I can play on the top level. I'm used to being the underdog.
ON THE 2014 SEASON
We did feel something special. I just soaked it all in. The day before games (our team chaplain) J.B. (Hurt) would come out with the cards and the quotes on the cards. We would be sitting on the field, and he would talk then we would pray. When we were praying, I peeked around one time to see if everyone had their heads bowed. I noticed how dialed in everyone was. I felt as though we were all on the same mission. We had that one mission to win it all, beat Shepherd because we didn't like that feeling.
ON PLAYING FOR THE ROUGHNECKS IN THE XFL
It was great. From the coaching staff to the stories to the meeting to the quote of the day. June Jones is a brilliant guy. When we were in practice, we would barely use chains. The receivers might run a deep route every time. He's a smart guy. Our defense was great. We had a defensive line that could get to the quarterback and it took pressure off the defensive backs. We had some hitters at linebacker. I think I've been a part of some great teams with great coaching staffs that had the team in line, and I think the XFL is at the top of the board with what I see as a pro team the way we handle things.
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