JCM's Johnson working harder after interest from UofM

Daveon Johnson is a 6-feet-3-inch, 277-pound defensive lineman who runs a 4.9-second 40-yard dash.

Last weekend, he decided on a last-minute decision to go to a camp at the University of Memphis, and before the day was done, the Tigers’ coaching staff showed some interest in him.

“I went through the workout and drills and scrimmaging throughout the day, and they pulled me aside and said they were interested in me,” Johnson said.

While they didn’t offer him a scholarship, Johnson said he was glad to get interest from an NCAA FBS program since he didn’t get to play his junior year.

He tore his labrum, but it wasn’t diagnosed and worked on until last summer, too late in the offseason for him to play. But he was able to return to team activities right after the season ended with the Cougars’ big win over Gibson County.

Johnson was on the sidelines with his teammates throughout the season and has been working with them the entire offseason.

“Him getting attention at a camp isn’t surprising to me,” said JCM head coach Erit Turner. “He’s a big boy that can move, so he’s going to play college football somewhere and get some scholarship money to do it.”

The Cougars went 2-8 last season with wins over Liberty and the Pioneers. The rest of their schedule is full of larger schools with solid football traditions with North Side and South Side in the non-region schedule and teams like Milan, Huntingdon, Peabody and defending Class 2A state champion Riverside in region play.

But since JCM now has a full season of varsity football under its belt, Johnson said he feels like the team is ready to get back into competition with top-level programs.

“When you see us work out, you see a bunch of dogs in the weight room or out on the practice field working hard to get better,” Johnson said. “We got a good idea of what it’s like being back last year, so now we’re ready to take the next step as a program.”

Brandon Shields, brandon@jacksonpost.news