Johnson gives Texas another option at running back

By JIM VERTUNO
AP Sports Writer

AUSTIN, Texas(AP) — A wrecking ball of a runner, Cody Johnson has
been the short-yardage specialist for No. 2 Texas for the last
two seasons.

It’s when he bounces that squat little body to the outside for
touchdowns that he gives the Longhorns an extra dimension in
their late-season march toward the goals of winning Big 12 and
national championships.

Johnson scored Texas’ first two touchdowns Saturday in a 35-3
win over Central Florida, a team that ranks among fourth in the
NCAA against the run.

Texas is 9-0 for just the ninth time in 117 years of playing
football and the first since 2005 when the Longhorns went 13-0
and won the national championship.

Johnson’s first touchdown Saturday was a 20-yard burst up the
middle when the offensive line opened a huge hole. The second
came on a third-and-1 from the Central Florida 13. Texas sent in
its “jumbo” package with 300-pound defensive tackle Lamarr
Houston at fullback.

Johnson leaned his 5-foot-11, 250-pound body into the left side
of the line, then used a quick burst of speed to the outside to
beat two defenders to the corner and scamper to the goal line.

Pretty sharp for a guy whose early season carries were limited
in part because he wasn’t in the best of shape in training camp.

“I’m getting more opportunities right now,” Johnson said. “Right
now, I’m trying to settle down and learn new stuff and keep
dropping weight.”

Johnson’s 44 total yards wouldn’t turn heads on a day Texas
passed for 470. What Texas needs him to do is keep pounding out
the first downs, the touchdowns and hold onto the ball.

“The first time we’ve seen him bounce outside and walk in,”
Texas coach Mack Brown said. “At the end of the game he carried
a bunch of (defenders) with him. He was carrying about five
there at the end I saw him wrap his off hand over the ball to
make sure they couldn’t strip it out.”

Johnson is the latest standout in Texas’ tailback-by-committee
approach.

Vondrell McGee, who leads Texas with 275 yards, and Tre’ Newton
were the early standouts but have dropped off. Fozzy Whittaker
started the last three games.

Johnson, meanwhile, just keeps finding the end zone when he gets
the ball

After leading Texas rushers with 12 touchdowns last season, he
has nine in 2009. Most have come from short-yardage situations
and the 20-yarder against Central Florida was his longest this
season. He has six games with two or more TDs.

Make no mistake. Texas is not looking to start grinding out
yards on the ground. The Longhorns are a pass-first team that
uses the running game to keep defenses honest and to bull out
tough yards. Success on the ground complements Colt McCoy’s
passing but won’t replace it.

Brown has said he wants three things out of his running game: 4
yards a carry, a first down or a touchdown. Johnson usually
delivers.

Against Central Florida, Johnson averaged 4.4 yards. After his
two touchdown runs, he ran for 5 yards on fourth-and-1 and
nearly broke out for another score. The play set up McCoy’s
touchdown pass to James Kirkendoll for a 21-3 lead in the third
quarter.

Later, Johnson caught a 14-yard pass on Texas’ final scoring
drive that Whittaker finished with a 6-yard touchdown run.

“I think whoever is in is going to do their job,” Johnson said.
“I’m just fortunate to be the one that they picked to handle the
position right now with Fozzy.”