It could be argued that cornerback Evan Johnson made some specific plays last season that won games for the BYU football team against East Carolina and Georgia Tech.
Without Johnson’s two picks against the Pirates — he returned one for a touchdown — and the interception in the end zone in the Pop-Tarts Bowl, the Cougars probably would not have won 12 games in 2025. His playmaking ability in the BYU secondary was matched perhaps only by safeties Tanner Wall and Faletau Satuala.
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At least one national football publication noticed, as Johnson was recently named the No. 4 returning cornerback in the country by the Pro Football & Sports Network. The redshirt senior from Monterey, California, was also named second team All-Big 12 by PFSN, and honorable mention All-Big 12 by the league itself.
Johnson turned himself into a hot commodity last fall.
In other words, the 6-foot, 185-pound ballhawk could have entered the transfer portal and commanded some decent money in the ever-expanding NIL market after the 2025 season. There were also some serious concerns among BYU fans and coaches that he would follow cornerbacks coach Jernaro Gilford and defensive coordinator Jay Hill to Michigan.
“It can’t be overstated how important those two plays were in us winning the (ECU) game,” Hill said after Johnson’s heroics in Greenville, North Carolina.
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A jump to the NFL was also a possibility.
But Johnson — known as “Schmev” to his coaches, family and teammates — chose to return to BYU.
Why?
“I never really seriously considered leaving,” Johnson told the Deseret News last month as BYU wrapped up spring practices. “I always knew I would stay at BYU, because of the way Kalani (Sitake) has developed the culture here and the brotherhood that we have. It wasn’t a hard decision to stay here at all.”
As was detailed in a Deseret News article after BYU beat ECU 34-13 on Sept. 20, 2025, BYU coaches took a big chance on Johnson when he was coming out of Robert Louis Stevenson High, which is beautifully located a few blocks away from the famed Pebble Beach Golf Links.
Despite being a multisport athlete, posting a blazing time of 10.41 seconds in the 100 meters in a prep track meet, and racking up dozens of receiving touchdowns at the smallish school in the Monterey Forest, Johnson only had a few college offers. BYU coaches saw the NFL bloodlines — Johnson’s father, Ron, played five years in the league for the Philadelphia Eagles — the freakish athleticism and pass-catching skills and told him they wanted to make him a defensive back at a school he knew little about in Provo.
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After Johnson’s entire family visited Utah, the speedster took them up on their offer, choosing BYU over San Jose State and a couple other small-school offers.
“I 100% wanted to stay loyal to them,” Johnson said. “This school and these coaches have really believed in me from the beginning. I feel like when a school does that, it is easier to go out there and sacrifice and give it your all, because nobody else was willing to take a chance on me like they were.
“These are people I really want to be around for as long as I can,” Johnson concluded.
Was NIL and revenue sharing a factor in EJ’s return?
Cautioned against it by their coaches, agents and managers, college football players generally don’t like to discuss their NIL opportunities and income, and Johnson is no exception. However, he said that NIL had little to nothing to do with his decision to return.
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He said his agent is actually his mother, Lynn Johnson, who recruits to doctors to Stanford as her day job.
“Those things (NIL and revenue sharing) haven’t really changed my life,” he said. “Everything is pretty much the same. I still live the same lifestyle I did when I was in the dorms making $500 a month. I am just blessed to be where I am at and have been able to invest some of my money and help prepare myself for the future. Everything else has really been the same for me.”
Looking back at 2025 and ahead to 2026
Johnson missed parts of spring camp with a minor injury, but said he was held out for precautionary reasons and will be good to participate in player-run practices this month and next.
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“I feel the best I’ve ever felt in my life,” he said. “Credit to our great strength and conditioning staff.”
If he puts up numbers like he did last year, he could be one of several BYU defenders drafted into the NFL next April, joining the likes of fellow seniors Keanu Tanuvasa and Isaiah Glasker. Johnson posted 47 total tackles (38 solo) while appearing in all 14 games.
He led the team with five interceptions — tied for the most in the Big 12 — and was one of 22 players nationally with five or more interceptions. He also broke up eight passes and had a sack.
“Coming in (to spring ball), you knew Evan was an all-Big 12 corner and Tre (Alexander) also has a lot of experience out there,” said new BYU cornerbacks coach Lewis Walker. “Those guys have a tremendous skill set, but the football IQ that they have, and the ability to adjust to the defense and be able to recognize offensive formations and everything, those are things that we as coaches look for at every position.”
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Johnson brothers have found a home at BYU
Schmev isn’t the only Johnson at BYU now. His older brother, Wesley, was recently promoted to assistant cornerbacks coach, after serving as a graduate assistant the past few years. Wesley Johnson was at Arizona State in a variety of positions before joining BYU in 2023.
“It’s so great, having him around and having him coaching the DBs,” Evan Johnson said. “He’s really, really smart, and he knows a lot about football.”
The fifth-year senior said he doesn’t have any personal goals or expectations in 2026, other than to surpass what he did in 2025.
“A big thing for me this spring was just focusing on improvement every day, getting better every day,” he said. “This season, I just hope to make a lot of plays and change games that way. We’ve got a taste of what it is like to win. So a successful season for us would be a Big 12 championship and a chance to play for the national championship.
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“Those are two things I really feel that this team can accomplish,” he continued.
Johnson graduated in April along with 28 other current or former BYU football players, getting his degree in business management.
