Football
Stephen Johnson - Football - University of Kentucky Athletics 15

StephenJohnson

  • height 6-2
  • Weight 185
  • class Senior
  • Hometown Rancho Cucamonga, Calif.
  • Previous School Grambling/College of the Desert
  • High school Los Osos
2016 – Junior
  • Enrolled at Kentucky in January of 2016
  • Entered fall camp as the No. 2 quarterback but after an injury to starter Drew Barker, Johnson led UK to seven wins in its last 11 games
  • Holds a 5-4 record as a UK starter; also led team to wins in a relief role vs. New Mexico State and Austin Peay
  • Completed 145 of 265 passes (54.7) for 2,037 yards and 13 touchdowns
  • Also rushed for 327 yards (fourth on the team) and three scores
  • Ranked eighth in the SEC in pass efficiency (130.9) and ninth in total offense (197.0)
  • Named UK’s MVP of the TaxSlayer Bowl after completing 19-of-34 passes for 175 yards and a score and rushing for a team-high 49 yards on 14 carries with one TD
  • Named one of four team captains for the bowl game
  • Earned several honors for his role in leading the Cats to a win over No. 11 Louisville on the road, including SEC Player of the Week by SEC Gridiron Now, Manning Award Star of the Week, one of five SEC players to earn an ESPN Helmet Sticker and named the Howard Schnellenberger Award as the Most Valuable Player for the winning team 
  • Completed 16-of-27 passes for a career-high 338 yards and a career-high-tying three touchdowns vs. the Cards
  • Also led Kentucky in rushing with eight carries for a career-high 83 yards which gave him a career-high 421 yards of total offense
  • On UK’s first offensive play at UL, he hit Garrett Johnson on a 75-yard bomb … It was Stephen’s longest pass as a Wildcat, although he did have a 75-yarder for Grambling in 2014
  • On the final game-winning field goal drive, he completed 2-of-2 passes for 34 yards and also had a 15-yard run for a first down
  • Had zero interceptions in the fourth quarter or the red zone this season
  • Did not start vs. Austin Peay with intentions to nurse a sore knee but with UK trailing 13-0 he entered in the second quarter and directed UK to touchdown drives on all five possessions he played — three possessions in the second quarter and the first two possessions of the third quarter
  • Made his first career start vs. South Carolina, completing 11-of-19 passes for 135 yards
  • Came in for an injured Drew Barker on UK’s second offensive series and finished the game 17-for-22 with a then career-high 310 yards passing and a career-high three touchdowns – all three were to tight end C.J. Conrad
  • Second quarterback in school history to pass for at least 300 yards within their first two career games played … The other was Jared Lorenzen against Louisville on Sept. 2, 2000
  • First UK quarterback with at least 300 passing yards and at least 50 rushing yards since Patrick Towles vs. Mississippi State on Oct. 25, 2014
  • Made his UK debut in the third quarter vs. Florida
  • Rushed for a three-yard score vs. Vanderbilt, his first rushing touchdown of his UK career
  • Had 72 net rushing yards on 10 attempts at Tennessee
  • Completed 17-of-33 passes for 292 yards and two touchdowns in the win over Mississippi State … His 17 completions tied a career high
  • Was 8-of-11 in the second half vs. MSU for 191 yards and two touchdowns

Preview

  • Enrolled at Kentucky in January of 2016
  • Entered fall camp as the No. 2 quarterback
  • Finished the Blue/White Spring Game connecting on 6-of-13 passes for 135 yards passing and 47 yards rushing, along with one score
  • Dual-threat quarterback
2015 – Sophomore at College of the Desert
  • Rated as a three-star recruit and the No. 5 dual-threat quarterback in the junior college rankings
  • Transferred to College of the Desert in Palm Desert, Calif., and played for head coach Jack Steptoe
  • Named Mountain American Conference’s Offensive Player of the Year after leading College of the Desert to a 6-4 record and share of the league title for the first time in more than a decade
  • Threw for 3,210 yards and rushed for an additional 429, while leading the Southern California Football Association in passing yards per game (321.0) and passing touchdowns (34)
  • Added eight rushing scores for the Roadrunners in his impressive sophomore season
  • His 2015 total yardage and quarterback rating was first among all quarterbacks in Southern California
  • Chose Kentucky over offers from Hawaii and Arkansas State
2014 – R-Freshman at Grambling
  • Completed 59 passes for 723 yards and six touchdowns while carrying the ball for 91 yards and another score in the first four games
  • Suffered a high ankle sprain midway through his redshirt freshman season, which sidelined him for a month
2013 – Freshman at Grambling
  • Redshirt season
High School
  • A four-star prospect by Scout and three-star recruit
  • Recruited out of high school by Doug Williams at Grambling
  • Named to the Region IV All-California first team
  • Totaled 1,712 passing yards and 34 touchdowns in his junior and senior seasons at Los Osos High School
Personal
  • Born in Inglewood, Calif.
  • Son of Stephen and Paula Johnson
  • Dad, Stephen, played baseball at Oregon
  • Sister, Sydney, is a senior forward/midfielder on the women’s soccer team at Southern Cal, which won the 2016 NCAA championship
  • Suffered from Tourette Syndrome until the age of 13
  • Major is agricultural economics with a minor in business

Community Cats

  • Spent a week doing mission work in the country of Belize with his family and hometown church family (2017)
  • Spent time with a child suffering from Tourette Syndrome and has continued a relationship with him (2016)
  • Shared his testimony at Southland Christian (2016)
  • Read Green Eggs & Ham by Dr. Suess on camera for a local elementary school’s Read Across America celebration
  • Visited a child with bone cancer at UK Children’s Hospital (2016)

Stephen Says
  • His nickname is “Stevie J.”
  • Other than playing in the NFL, his dream job is anything in banking
  • One word to describe him is “warrior”
  • Most people don’t know he’s bowled a 225 and that’s better than Alex Montgomery
  • The best advice he’s ever received is “put God first and the rest will fall into place”
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