WSU rewind: After a long wait, RB Angel Johnson comes off the bench to score his first touchdown as a Coug

Nov. 30—PULLMAN — Angel Johnson cradled the football in his right hand and stomped his feet. His breath came billowing out of his face mask and into the night air at Gesa Field, where he had just glided into the end zone, putting the exclamation mark on his Washington State team's blowout win over Oregon State in both teams' regular-season finales.

As Saturday night's game came to a close, Johnson lingered in the end zone for a moment, mobbed by teammates. Several slapped his helmet in celebration. Offensive lineman Christian Hilborn faked like he couldn't lift Johnson into the air. As he jogged back to the sideline, even more teammates were waiting to congratulate the running back, who set up his short touchdown rush with a 50-yard burst on the prior play.

"That was emotional," WSU coach Jimmy Rogers said.

Ahead of this season, that Johnson touchdown rush was supposed to be the norm. He was supposed to be making a habit out of that, leading the Cougars on the ground, flourishing as their top running back. He had waited his turn at FCS South Dakota State. This was supposed to be his year, his breakout season.

Instead, Johnson's touchdown rush took on another meaning. It felt less like the norm and more like a special occasion. It felt like a celebration of a guy whose season had gone wayward, like a moment that allowed everyone around him — from Rogers to running backs coach Donnell Kirkwood Jr. to all his teammates — to breathe.

Finally.

"It's been a big up and down year for Angel Johnson," said quarterback Zevi Eckhaus, one of the first players to rush over to the senior transfer and celebrate with him in the end zone.

That it has. Exactly three months ago, Johnson was the guy in Washington State's running back room. He had spent several seasons waiting to enjoy that kind of role at SDSU, and as he prepped for his one year in Pullman, he looked like the Cougars' unimpeachable RB1.

"Didn't work out for him," Rogers said.

Listed at 5-foot-9 and 192 pounds, Johnson started each of his first six games as a Cougar, but in those contests, he managed only 94 yards on 47 carries, which came out to an average carry of 2 yards. He often ran into trouble at the line of scrimmage. He didn't show much burst. As a starter, his longest rush covered a dozen yards.

As the weeks went on, Johnson lost his starting spot to sophomore Kirby Vorhees, who unlocked the Cougars' rushing attack, and looked much more elusive and energized.

Throughout the season, Johnson struggled to maintain a steady role. He played just nine snaps in a win over Toledo and eight in a loss to Oregon State. He was on the field for just four snaps in his team's loss to James Madison last weekend.

Which is what made Johnson's lone touchdown rush as a Coug so meaningful for him and the team.

On a first down in the fourth quarter, Johnson took a handoff and jetted through the line of scrimmage, finding a seam and bursting through it. He bolted 50 yards down the field, all the way down to the OSU 2-yard line, where the Cougars had first-and-goal. On the very next play, Johnson scampered into the end zone. After nearly 200 fruitless snaps in the crimson and gray laundry, Johnson scored for the first time this season.

"He's had a rough year. He's never complained," Rogers said after the game, growing visibly emotional. "He's never hung his head. Came in with the expectation to be the number one. Didn't work out for him. Kirby found his way. Happy for Kirby.

"I just felt like at times throughout the season, when Angel got in, things broke down for him. It wasn't always what he was doing or what he wasn't doing. He's handled it like a pro, though, and I'm so happy for him, because that was emotional. It's been an emotional year for him, and I wish he could have had a better year in coming here with us than what he had. But it was good to see him get in the end zone, and a little bit of a relief, honestly, for a lot of us."

Johnson wasn't made available after Saturday's game, but he must be feeling relieved himself. He had waited long enough for this moment. He didn't play at all during WSU's spring practice slate, recovering from an injury he had suffered the season prior, his fourth and final at South Dakota State. He underwent surgery soon after that, he said, putting him on ice for his first spring in Pullman.

Around that time, WSU coaches and players talked about Johnson with reverence, all saying something along the same lines: Just wait till you see this guy.

His numbers as a Bison backed them up. In Johnson's final year at SDSU, he totaled 646 yards and three touchdowns on 91 carries, averaging 7.1 yards per rush.

In each of his three seasons at South Dakota State, Rogers pointed out that Johnson played behind a running back who went on to play in the NFL: Amar Johnson, Isaiah Davis and Pierre Strong.

All signs pointed toward him making a real splash at WSU. Before committing to follow Rogers, Johnson fielded an offer from Tennessee, which really wanted the 5-foot-9 running back. The Volunteers made him a sizable NIL offer in the triple digits, according to one source. But Johnson stayed committed to Rogers and landed in the Palouse.

He likely imagined his first WSU touchdown coming under much different circumstances. The Cougars probably imagined the same. But his patience paid off, and with the Cougs set to play in a bowl game next month, it might pay off again.

"Obviously, a lot of expectations for him, but credit to him for never just throwing in the towel," Eckhaus said.

"He could have thrown in the towel weeks ago and not showed up, or didn't have the right mindset for practice and games. And I truly don't believe that he does what he does out there without the preparation that he puts in for games, and just the care that he has for not only himself but the players around him. I think there's a huge testament that goes to that. It was awesome to see him get in the end zone."