Four-star TE Theo Johnson Talk Georgia Visit and Recruitment

Of all the prospects in town last weekend for G-Day, only one of them had to cross international borders.

That would be four-star tight end, Theo Johnson‍. The big 6-foot-6 250-pounder hails from Windsor, Ontario, just a short 15-minute drive to Detroit. 

Johnson is a household name in the community and has become a nationally known name in the recruiting world as well. Johnson is a tremendous athlete at 6-foot-6 250-pounds who has earned offers from Georgia, Penn State, Michigan, Iowa, LSU, among others.

Johnson is making his second visit to Athens in the last two months and spoke with Dawg Post about his visit. 

“It was great,” Johnson said. “My mother and I flew down on Thursday night so we were able to spend all day Friday at the school and see everything. I went to a class in the morning with John FitzPatrick and got to see what that was like. I ate lunch with Charlie Woerner Ryland Goede and was able to get to know those guys and spend time with them. It was cool to experience a day in the life of a student-athlete at Georgia.”

New tight ends coach Todd Hartley has been recruiting Johnson for some time now, so the relationship Johnson has with the new Bulldog assistant is a strong one.

“One of my favorite parts was being able to sit down with coach Hartley again,” Johnson said. “I’ve known him since his days at Miami. He showed me some numbers from some of the tight ends in this upcoming draft and compared it to my height and weight and speed. It was an eye-opener to see what my potential could be in the right place. Coach Hartley and Coach Coley broke down how I could be used in their system and ways I could succeed. They said it would be a waste for someone like myself not to be a first or second-round pick.”

It’s clear the Georgia staff rolled out the red carpet for Johnson and made sure he knew he was a wanted man. Tight ends coach Todd Hartley is recruiting three tight ends particularly hard, with Johnson being one of them. The other two are five stars Arik Gilbert‍ and Darnell Washington‍.

So what matters most to Johnson?

“I’d say coaching stability means a lot,” Johnson said. “I know that’s hard to predict over a three or four-year span, but ideally I’d like to play for the same coaches and be able to learn and grow with them as a player. I also want to feel comfortable wherever I go. I want to enjoy my time there away from the football field and have great relationships with my teammates. Being used the right way schematically is important too, so it was nice to see some of the tight ends make some plays during the scrimmage. Georgia checks all the boxes from that standpoint.”

Johnson admitted that while the weather wasn’t great, he enjoyed everything about the fans and the atmosphere during the scrimmage. While the Bulldogs have made quite an impression, there are plenty of other schools who have Johnson’s attention as well.

“Penn State is another school who is recruiting me the hardest,”Johnson said. “Iowa is another team I’m considering. There are lots of Michigan fans in my community to I hear a lot about the Wolverines. Some asked me how my Georgia visit went, but then reminded me how close Michigan was,” Johnson said jokingly. “So Michigan and Michigan State are in the mix, too.” 

Johnson is ranked as the number-243 overall prospect in high school football and the 5th-ranked tight end prospect.