The good news for Stephen Johnson is that defenders will have to give him more than a love tap to get him down this fall.
But with Kentucky counting its quarterbacks down upon first contact with defenders in last Friday’s spring game, that neutralized the mobility that makes Johnson effective. Instead of relying on his running ability, Johnson had to function like a dropback passer.
That’s the bad news.
Johnson held onto the ball for too long, missed wide-open receivers for potential big gains and tossed an ugly interception just before halftime that helped the White team – a collection of reserves – tie the score at 14 against Johnson’s Blue team, composed of starters.