OSU Football: Cowboys Could Miss Leon Johnson III Next Season
Oklahoma State will bring back almost every important offensive player from last season, but it could miss one of its top receivers.
Last season, OSU went 10-4 and made the Big 12 Championship after a rough 2-2 start. With a bye week after its Week 4 loss to Iowa State, the Cowboys made some adjustments and rattled off a five-game winning streak.
However, OSU’s leading receiver through four games, De’Zhaun Stribling, suffered an injury and missed the rest of the season. That set the stage for another player to step up. Although he had planned to redshirt last season after playing his first three years at George Fox, Leon Johnson III made his way into the lineup.
Although he kept his redshirt intact for a couple more games, Johnson eventually decided to burn it and play the rest of the season, beginning with OSU’s game at West Virginia in mid-October. Along with appearances in the team’s first two games against Central Arkansas and Arizona State, Johnson did not make a catch in his first three outings.
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That changed dramatically in OSU’s Homecoming game against Cincinnati. Johnson caught five passes for 149 yards in OSU’s blowout win. He carried that momentum into a five-catch, 70-yard performance in OSU’s upset win in Bedlam a week later.
Johnson continued to be a consistent target for Alan Bowman and made multiple receptions in each of the Cowboys’ final seven games. That included a performance that helped save the Cowboys’ Big 12 title hopes. In the regular season finale against BYU, Johnson helped spark an 18-point comeback win with a season-high nine catches for 132 yards.
Johnson finished the season with 33 catches for 539 yards and one touchdown. Although Johnson was one of the most inspiring parts of OSU’s 2023 season, if he had not burned his redshirt, he could have helped the Cowboys have one of the best receiving cores in the country next season.
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Ivan is a sports media student at Oklahoma State University. He has covered OSU athletics since 2022 and also covers the OKC Thunder for Inside The Thunder and Thunderous Intentions.