David Johnson begins his fourth year coaching wide receivers for the
Majors after a brief stay at St. Augustine High School and a three-year
stint as the offensive coordinator and wide receivers coach at O.P.
Walker high school in New Orleans, La.
Prior to joining
the Millsaps staff in 2005, Johnson’s
time at St. Augustine was cut short due to Hurricane Katrina. He and
his
family were forced out of the area and took shelter in Oxford. He joined
the
Majors several months later after being offered the job from former
head coach, David Saunders. Johnson knew Saunders from his playing career
at Nicholls State University in Thibodaux, La. At Nicholls State,
Johnson
lettered three years for the Colonels at wide receiver and finished
his career as the seventh leading receiver in school history and third
all-time
in yards-per-catch.
In his time at O.P.
Walker, Johnson coached seven 1,000 yard receivers, including former
LSU Tiger and 2007 First Round Draft
Pick by the
San Diego Chargers Craig Davis. Davis, who was arguably the most sure-handed
receiver on the LSU squad, ended his senior year ranked seventh in
the
SEC in receptions/game (4.67) and eighth in the league in receiving
yards/game (69.7). Also in his time at O.P. Walker, he helped lead the
team to the
state championships – a first in Louisiana public school history.
Under Johnson’s tutelage, the Majors’ receiving
core has improved each season, becoming one of the top in the Southern
Collegiate
Athletic Conference and country. Five receivers gained All-SCAC recognition
last season, led by Eric McCarty on the First Team, giving the fourth-year
coach a total of 11 on his resume.
Last season the Millsaps
offense featured one of the deepest groups of receivers in the nation,
led by McCarty’s 748
yards, while five different receivers totaled more than 200 yards.
McCarty, Donnie
Epps
and Louis Conley each caught seven touchdown passes and eight others
also hauled in a TD as the offense averaged a school-record 41.4
ppg. A total of 22 Majors caught a pass over the season, 12 of whom
had 10
or more receptions.
David and his wife,
Akeia, will celebrate their seven-year anniversary in December. They
have three children, Jermaine (18), De’von
(13) and Karaaz (3).
