Hype surrounding Notre Dame sophomore safety Tae Johnson began to build throughout the off-season after a strong spring. Less than a week into fall camp, the hype train has officially left the station and is barrelling down the tracks headed towards a potential opening week start in Miami against the Hurricanes. Once considered a long shot in replacing All-American Xaver Watts, now with the Atlanta Falcons, Johnson now appears to be the favorite.
“Tae is one of those guys you just love to coach. He enjoys it. He’s grateful for the opportunities,” said Marcus Freeman earlier this week at his first press conference of camp.
A Multi-Position Star in High School
“Extremely athletic player. If you listen to Tae, he’ll be the best wideout and the best DB. He was pretty good in high school at both, too,” Freeman said earlier this week.
Before Johnson even arrived in Notre Dame’s secondary, he was dominating on both sides of the ball at nearby Fort Wayne North Side High School. As a prep player, he was a true do-it-all athlete. Johnson started at wide receiver, quarterback, safety, and even returned kicks during his high school career.
Johnson finished his high school career with over 2,000 receiving yards, nearly 400 rushing yards, and contributed as a playmaker on defense and special teams. His athleticism translated to the basketball court as well, where he was a standout for North Side’s basketball team.
The positionless profile helped Johnson rise up the national recruiting rankings as one of the top athletes in the country. In high school, though, he relied almost solely on his pure athleticism. Since arriving at Notre Dame, he’s been able to focus on one side of the ball, but there’s been a transition.
“He’s learning the skill set that’s just not natural. There’s natural skill set that he has, but there’s also a skill set, the consistency, the trust – those type of things that it takes to be an every-down player,” said Freeman. “What you saw today was a reflection of how he’s prepared from the spring. You go back again, and you do it in the summer, and you’re doing it again in fall camp.”
What the media saw was Johnson all over the field on day one of camp, including intercepting Notre Dame quarterbacks three times on the day.
Four-Star Rankings Across the Board
Tae Johnson’s recruiting profile reflected his raw athletic upside and versatility. He was a consensus four-star prospect across Rivals, 247Sports, ESPN, and On3, consistently ranked among the top athletes nationally, and one of the best players in Indiana.
| Service | Stars | National Rank | Athlete Rank | State Rank (IN) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rivals | ⭐⭐⭐⭐ | No. 60 | No. 6 | No. 3 |
| 247Sports | ⭐⭐⭐⭐ | No. 160 | No. 13 | No. 3 |
| 247 Composite | ⭐⭐⭐⭐ | No. 168 | No. 13 | No. 3 |
| ESPN | ⭐⭐⭐⭐ | No. 274 | No. 31 | No. 4 |
| On3 | ⭐⭐⭐ | No. 283 | No. 12 | No. 5 |
| On3 Consensus | ⭐⭐⭐⭐ | No. 164 | No. 5 | No. 3 |
His stock rose steadily throughout his high school career, especially after standout performances as a junior and strong camp showings. While On3 later downgraded him to a three-star late in the cycle, every other major outlet held firm on his blue-chip status.
Spring Rise and Heir to Xavier Watts
Johnson had a strong spring and drew praise from the staff without popping too much in the Blue and Gold game. Since then, however, there was a rising tide of hype for Johnson all summer long as the Irish look to replace the almost irreplaceable production of Xavier Watts. Expecting any player to produce at the level of Watts is unfair. He was perhaps the greatest ballhawk in Notre Dame football history. Wherever the ball was, so was Watts. Just ask Lincoln Riley and Caleb Williams.
Johnson isn’t Watts – few are – but that doesn’t mean he can’t replace Watts in the starting lineup and place his own stamp on the position. For as insane as Watts’ production was, he was a third-round pick in the NFL Draft mainly because he lacked the elite athletic testing numbers to match his elite turnover-producing statistics. Johnson, on the other hand, is more of an athletic freak. What he may lack in Watts’ instincts, he can make up for in some capacity with freaky athletic traits.
Why the Hype Is Real
You can’t always trust the off-season hype train. A few years back, the hype for Kyle Hamilton was similar and turned out to be real. But for every story like Hamilton, there’s a story like Demetrius Jones, who had a lot of hype surrounding him in 2007, leading to him starting that disastrous Georgia Tech season-opener. He ended up losing the job to Jimmy Clausen shortly after and ultimately transferred and played defense for Cincinnati. With Johnson, though, the hype appears to be similar to Hamilton’s in terms of realness. He backed it up with one of the better practice performances viewed by the media since Hamilton stole the show in the first practice media got to see in 2018 when Hamilton arrived on campus.
At this point, it seems like it would be an upset if Johnson did not start week one in Miami. Luke Talich was officially running with the first team when camp began, with Johnson second and Virginia Tech transfer Jalen Stroman running third. The veteran Stroman figures to make a push for the role, eventually making it a two-way battle with Johnson.
What Comes Next
Johnson won’t be handed the position, and one standout practice won’t win the job. As Freeman stressed in his presser, consistency will be key for Johnson now. Can he string together multiple strong practices in a row to the point where the staff trusts starting a player with zero starting experience on the road in Miami on Labor Day weekend? We’ll find that out over the next few weeks. At this point, I wouldn’t bet against him.
