Will Johnson was busy and upbeat during the weekend, just seven days after Michigan won its third consecutive Big Ten championship.
And, perhaps more significantly, getting back into shape.
The Wolverines’ standout cornerback is still recovering from a lower-leg injury suffered in practice prior to the Ohio State game, which he claims kept him from playing in Indianapolis, where Michigan defeated Iowa 26-0 to clinch another Big Ten title.
During a brief interview with reporters at the Blake Corum-hosted toy drive at Somerset Collection, Johnson admitted that it was difficult to watch the championship game from the Lucas Oil Stadium sideline — especially after “having a good game in it last year” — but that it was important.
“I’ve got to do what’s best for me and the team in the long run,” he stated. “So that’s good. They kept it for me.”
Johnson described the decision to sit out as a collaborative one taken with the Michigan coaches and trainers in order to avoid re-aggravating anything. And with the Wolverines facing the worst offence in college football (Iowa) with its backup quarterback, it made sense.
Michigan won with surprising ease and earned the No. 1 seed in this year’s College Football Playoff, setting up a Rose Bowl game with Alabama in Pasadena, Calif. on Jan. 1. Johnson expects to be prepared for this game.
“I’m kinda looking forward to that next game,” Johnson remarked. “I wouldn’t have been 100 percent at all playing in this last game, so it was a little bit both: Trying to play it safe and be proactive.”
