Senior running back Montrell Johnson high-steps into the end zone for the go-ahead score in Florida's upset of ninth-ranked Ole Miss on Saturday at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium. (Photo: Jay Metz/UAA Communications)
A Big Win for Gators & Napier, A Perfect Sendoff for Johnson
Saturday, November 23, 2024 | Football, Scott Carter
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By: Scott Carter, Senior Writer
GAINESVILLE, Fla. — Billy Napier woke up Saturday for the 1,084th consecutive day since his introductory press conference at Florida in December 2021.
In the two years, 11 months and 18 days since that Sunday afternoon when he spoke of building an "army" of staff to help in the battle of turning around Florida's football program, Napier and his three UF teams have taken a considerable amount of incoming fire.
They finally delivered a bomb of their own Saturday when they upset No. 9-ranked Ole Miss 24-17 at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium, knocking the Rebels from the College Football Playoff race and delivering a statement that, maybe, after Florida's first back-to-back wins over ranked teams since 2018, they have their chomp back.
"We're just getting started," Napier said. "This is just part of the big-picture journey."
Coincidentally, the Gators pulled off their biggest win under Napier against Ole Miss coach Lane Kiffin, who was front and center in constant speculation earlier this season about potentially being targeted to replace Napier should the Gators cut ties. In a season full of twists and turns, the Gators clinched a bowl berth Saturday and improved to 4-0 at home with true freshman quarterback DJ Lagway the starter.
Beyond the surface of Saturday's cheerful victory, a more personal story touched Napier than the media- and critic-driven drama of beating Kiffin and former Gators defensive lineman Princely Umanmielen.
He wore No. 1 and scored the go-ahead touchdown.
Afterward, Napier recalled when he and running back Montrell Johnson Jr. were at Louisiana. Johnson, then a freshman from New Orleans who originally committed to Arizona, reconsidered at the urging of his mother, Keyshawn Harris, and opted to play at Louisiana, was new to college football and had a different look in those days.
"He was wearing No. 25 back then," Napier said. "I wrote down out there behind the scrimmage, 'Hey, 25 is a real guy.' He's been toting the rock ever since. All he does is produce."
That's why, in the fourth quarter, with the game tied 17-17 and Florida taking possession at its 33 with 9:34 left, Napier turned to running backs coach Jabbar Juluke and told him to hand the ball to Johnson. Johnson returned to action a week ago in the win over LSU after missing three consecutive games due to a lower-body injury.
"Let's get one in there [end zone],'' Napier said. "He's feeling it pretty good today."
Following a 41-yard pass from Lagway to Chimere Dike on first down, moving the Gators to Ole Miss' 26-yard line, it was Johnson for 12 yards, Johnson for five yards, and finally, with Johnson replacing Lagway behind center, he took a direct snap from the wildcat formation and raced nine yards for the score behind blocks from offensive lineman Knijeah Harris and tight end Hayden Hansen.
The Gators took a seven-point lead and let the defense do the rest, including a pair of interceptions by safety Bryce Thornton off Rebels quarterback Jaxson Dart in the final two minutes.
"That's a great play because, actually, I'll practice that play with JB 13 [Jadan Baugh],'' Johnson said. "So, when they called it, it was like, 'Trell, it's your play.' I'm just thinking touchdown — I gotta score. I got to get in the end zone for Senior Night."
As Johnson high-stepped into the end zone, the sold-out crowd at The Swamp set off a roar reverberating across campus. After battling back from minor knee surgery in preseason camp and another injury against Georgia, Johnson had a moment that nearly choked up Napier when he was asked about his senior leader.
Johnson transferred to UF after one season at Louisiana to follow Napier to Florida. He deferred to his mom on Saturday when asked why he had so much faith in Napier to leave his home state.
"She has been guiding me all my life. She guided me this far,'' Johnson said. "She had faith in Coach, so I had faith in Coach. I trusted him with important decisions."
Johnson hasn't looked back. He rushed for 107 yards on 18 carries against the Rebels and is 64 yards shy of reaching 3,000 career yards.
Before he carried twice for 14 yards versus LSU seven days ago, many figured Johnson would sit out the rest of the season to be healthy for Pro Day in March.
"A couple of times I thought that,'' Johnson said.
But he wanted to finish his career on the field, and in his final home game, he turned in a memorable Senior Day performance in front of his mom, sister, brother and cousin.
His mom has been his guiding light and biggest cheerleader.
"This is his journey and I'm here to support him through it all,'' Harris told a New Orleans TV station. "His father was murdered at the age of 2 years old, right before Hurricane Katrina, so I'm all he knows. I'm his biggest pusher and supporter."
In the postgame euphoria on the Florida side, Johnson answered questions in his customary low-key style. He is as steady off the field as he is on it.
He runs tough, straight ahead. He talks softly and humbly.
"It felt good to go out like that,'' he said.
That's part of why his comeback performance against the Rebels had his teammates and head coach smiling each time his name came up.
"Montrell is a huge part of our team,'' Dike said.
"He's been a great leader since day one since I stepped on campus," Lagway said.
Since Napier first stepped foot on the UF campus all those days ago, college football and the UF program have undergone constant change. The Gators have taken more lumps than they have delivered.
Still, Johnson has been the Gators' steady rock when needed. On Saturday, when they turned to him, he lifted them to the kind of win Napier envisioned when he left Louisiana for UF and convinced Johnson to come along.
"Montrell is a special kid to me for a lot of reasons," Napier said. "He's a class act, first of all. Has been since I first met him. But just a selfless guy who really sets the tone and the example in the running back room. We've got young players in there that have been able to transition and play well and be successful, and they're watching him, and I think that he set the example, he sets the standard."
He showed his teammates how to exit the building with grace and style in his final home game.
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