Nick Saban Regrets Not Recruiting Oregon Ducks Transfer Tez Johnson

Oregon Ducks wide reciever Tez Johnson has been one of the biggest keys to the Ducks success the past two seasons. College football coaching legend Nick Saban admitted that when he was coaching at Alabama, he never recruited Johnson.

Jan 1, 2025; Pasadena, California, USA; Nick Saban on the ESPN Gameday set at Rose Bowl Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images / Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

Oregon Ducks wide receiver Tez Johnson has had a season to remember in Eugene. Johnson transferred from Troy to Oregon prior to the 2023 season and has been thriving. In his two seasons as a Duck, Johnson has hauled in 164 catches for 2,048 yards, and 20 touchdowns.

College football coaching legend Nick Saban said on the ESPN College Gameday set that he didn’t recruit Johnson coming out of high school, despite Johnson being just 45 minutes away from the University of Alabama’s campus in nearby Birmingham, Alabama. 

Nick Saban: “We Didn’t Recruit the Guy”

“Tez Johnson is in Birmingham and that’s 45 minutes away from Alabama..

We didn’t recruit the guy..

Who was recruiting Birmingham and I should’ve fired their ass” 😂😂 ~ Coach Saban#CollegeGameDay pic.twitter.com/eZhn76jwAr

— Pat McAfee (@PatMcAfeeShow) January 1, 2025

Nick Saban could not believe that he and his Alabama Crimson Tide staff missed on recruiting Tez Johnson out of high school and when he transferred from Troy. Johnson played high school ball at Pinson Valley in Birmingham, Alabama. 

“What I’m sitting here thinking about is Tez Johnson is in Birmingham, 45 minutes away from Alabama. We didn’t recruit the guy,” Saban said. 

Saban then joked around about saying it was all the fault of his Birmingham recruiter.

“Who was recruiting Birmingham? I should have fired their ass,” Saban said. “He went to Troy first and we didn’t recruit him.”

Coming out of high school in the class of 2020, Johnson was rated as three-star recruit. Even after three very productive years at Troy from 2020-2022, Johnson was still just rated three-stars in the transfer portal. The Ducks took a chance on him and he has made the most of it. 

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Tez Johnson Battles Back from Injury

Oregon Ducks wide receiver Tez Johnson (15) rushes up the field Saturday, Dec. 7, 2024, during the Big Ten Championship game at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis. / Grace Hollars/IndyStar / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Tez Johnson missed two games this season with a shoulder injury sustained in Oregon’s 38-17 win over Michigan on November 2nd. Johnson was absent in the next two outings against Maryland and Wisconsin. Johnson returned for Oregon’s rivalry matchup against Washington and had 3 catches for 36 yards and a touchdown. 

The following game against Penn State for the Big Ten Championship, Tez was all the way back. He had a season best 11 catches for 181 yards and a touchdown. Now with Oregon’s bye, Johnson has had nearly a month to get that shoulder feeling even better.

In a long awaited reamtch, Oregon and Ohio State will battle it out in the Rose Bowl for a spot in the College Football Playoff Semifinals. These two played in an instant classic earlier in the season, with Oregon winning 32-31. Johnson had 7 catches for 75 yards and a touchdown. 

Can the Ducks take down the Buckeyes for the second time this season? 

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