C.J.

Johnson

Head coach Mike Houston said Johnson “is not living up to the standards we have set for our football program.” Houston never mentioned specifically was that meant but he continued by saying Johnson “fully understands the steps needed to be taken to be a member of this program moving forward.” This puts the Pirates at a serious disadvantage at wide receiver as they lost last year’s leading receiver Tyler Snead to the NFL and with Audie Omotosho graduating.

Johnson’s 60-yard touchdown with just 33 seconds remaining in the first quarter was the first score of the afternoon, and it set the tone for the entire day for the Pirates. He is gaining 22.7 yards every time he pulls down a reception from QB Holton Ahlers, and he has found the end zone four times in the past six games and five times overall in eight contests this season. He’ll look to keep up grabbing huge chunks of real estate in next Saturday’s home contest against SMU.

A quiet day in terms of catches, but an efficient one. He scored a 75-yard touchdown on a connection with Holton Ahlers in the first quarter, and the two did it again from five yards away two quarters later The 6-fot-2, 229-pound wideout was a breakout star for the Pirates last year with a 54-909-4 line as a freshman, and he should be the top target in this pass-happy attack going forward. His next chance for success comes next Saturday against the Midshipmen of Navy.

Johnson (6'2/229) was a three-star recruit out of Greenville, NC who was a big signing for new HC Mike Houston in 2019. He took some time getting acclimated to the college game catching only 11 passes in his first five games. Once he developed a rapport with QB Holton Ahlers though, he finished the season with six straight games of at least 85 yards receiving while going over 100-yards in four of them. His best effort came in a 43-46 loss to Cincinnati when he caught 12 passes for 283 yards and a touchdown against a formidable Bearcats secondary. A 100 catch, 1,300 yard season is in play for the talented sophomore.

Johnson (6'2/229) dealt with an undisclosed injury earlier in November, but the freshman certainly looked healthy in this one; albeit in a game that was never in reach for the Pirates. He picks up his fourth receiving touchdown of the year, and ends his freshman campaign with 54 receptions and 908 receiving yards. It’d be a surprise if he wasn’t one of the top receivers in the AAC come 2020.

Houston deemed Johnson to be “fine” after the frosh wideout exited against SMU last weekend due to injury concern. Barring a late setback, the 6-foot-2, 229-pounder should be able to play against UConn on Saturday.

Johnson (6'2/229) was knocked out injured in the first half of Saturday’s game against SMU. ECU HC Mike Houston deemed the freshman to be “fine” following practice on Tuesday, noting that he was a “full-go” for the session. The Pirates are currently off on bye, allowing Johnson plenty of time to get right before the team’s showdown with UConn on Nov. 23.

The team has yet to pass along an official update, but Johnson might have sustained a concussion early on. The 6-foot-2, 229-pound freshman went to the medical tent in the first half, was subsequently spotted with a towel over his head and has yet to return to the contest. Consider him questionable-to-doubtful to return to action on Saturday.

Brown (6'2/229) exited for the medical tent early before returning to the sideline proper with a towel over his head. Consider the freshman wideout questionable to return to Saturday’s contest. The exact nature of his injury concern is not currently known.

Johnson (6'2"/229) has taken over former ECU WR Trevon Brown’s target-hog role, as QB Holton Ahlers was locked-on to him today. Johnson has come alive over the past four games, catching 33 passes for 574 yards and three touchdowns over that span. ECU is a young team learning HC Mike Houston’s new system, expect to see more progress out of the upstart Pirates over the next few weeks. ECU travels to play SMU this Saturday.