UM spring game
When: 3 p.m. today
Where: Sun Life Stadium
Cost: Free
Parking: Free and the lots open at noon.
TV: None
Gates open at 12:30 p.m. Use Gates F, G and H.
It might be time for the University of Miami to start working on a nifty Heisman Trophy campaign for Duke Johnson.
According to Bovada Sportsbook, an online gambling site, Johnson’s chances of winning the Heisman are 12-1. Those are better odds than any other returning player in the ACC, including Clemson quarterback Tajh Boyd (15-1), who was last year’s ACC Player of the Year.
Nationally, only five players are a stronger bet to win the Heisman than Johnson, with Texas A&M quarterback Johnny Manziel, last year’s winner, a 4-1 favorite to repeat.
Not bad for a guy that wasn’t even a full-time starter for the Hurricanes last season. As a freshman, Johnson started only five of 12 games.
But expectations are soaring after Johnson broke Clinton Portis’ school freshman rushing record and provided constant excitement during an otherwise rocky 7-5 season that concluded with his selection as ACC Rookie of the Year.
“That’s very cool but not something I focus on too much,” Johnson said of his Heisman odds. “I don’t base how I play or how I do on trying to get the Heisman. I base my play off winning.”
How much winning the Hurricanes do will depend greatly on their 5-foot-9, 192-pound tailback. Johnson takes over the tailback duties he and Mike James shared last season. With James gone and running back depth an issue, Johnson’s workload figures to increase substantially in 2013.
Last season, Johnson averaged just under 12 carries a game and between runs, catches and kickoff returns averaged around 16 touches. This year, UM plans to get Johnson the ball at least 20 to 25 times a game.
“We just have to be smart,” coach Al Golden said. “He’s a guy that’s very versatile so you can get in a routine where you keep drawing up plays for him. … You have to be careful that you don’t overdo it. “
To compensate for the expected wear and tear, Johnson showed up last month for the start of spring practice, which ends today with the spring game at Sun Life Stadium, 10 pounds heavier than he finished the 2012 season and 25-35 pounds stronger on the bench press.
Johnson may not be very big, but question his toughness at your own peril.
“The thing that people misunderstand because he’s not that big of a dude and he’s always smiling and having fun — people mistake that for being soft,” offensive line coach Art Kehoe said. “That’s the last thing I’d ever say about him. He’s a roughneck.”
Size didn’t keep Johnson from rushing for 957 yards last season, breaking Portis’ former record of 839 yards set in 1999. Johnson also set the school record for kickoff return yardage (892) and finished second nationally with a 33.04-yard average on 27 kickoff returns.
The only rough patch for Johnson came after he hurt his foot against Notre Dame. He gained only 96 combined rushing yards in consecutive games against Notre Dame, North Carolina and FSU before finishing the season with three 100-yard outings in his last four games, including a career-best 176-yard performance with three touchdowns in the regular-season finale against Duke.
Junior guard Jon Feliciano calls Johnson “one of the toughest people I know” but refers to him in the same breath as “a big momma’s boy.”
Teammates enjoy playfully teasing Johnson and he gives them plenty of ammunition. During a “Harlem Shake” video the team shot last month, Johnson showed up wearing a one-piece penguin costume that exposed only his face.
“He makes people smile,” Feliciano said.
UM fans hope Johnson makes them cheer for years to come. Kehoe has played or coached at Miami for 29 years and has seen the who’s who list of running backs that have suited up in orange and green. Johnson, Kehoe said, doesn’t take a back seat to any of them.
“He’s special,” Kehoe said. “Knock on wood he stays healthy and does the things he’s capable of but he’s right there all these spectacular backs we’ve had.”
