ATH Zach Johansen's comeback feels complete after Ole Miss offer

On3 imageby:Jeremy Johnson•11/30/21•

JeremyO_Johnson

Suwanee (Ga.) North Gwinnett senior Zach Johansen picked up his first SEC offer early last week.

Ole Miss offered the 6-foot-1, 185-pound safety on Nov. 24. Receiving the offer was a full-circle moment for Johansen.

He missed most of his junior season with a knee injury. He made his return to the field in 2021 and has put together some solid play that grabbed the attention of the Ole Miss coaching staff.

“I was very relieved,” Johansen said. “It’s been a tough couple of high school years, especially last year seeing everyone getting everything and being hurt and not having a junior year. Getting that offer just showed me that a lot of my hard work has paid off.”

Johansen felt the understanding from the Ole Miss coaching staff following his offer. He was offered by the associate director of recruiting Alex Collins but has had conversations with the safeties coach Chris Patridge.

As a result, Johansen felt the understanding for his set of circumstances in the phone call.

“He (Collins) just told me that he knows my circumstance and that my hard work has paid off,” Johansen said. “Pretty much how I felt is pretty much what he was telling me. It kind of made me realize the emotions that I had.”

There is an instant connection with Ole Miss for Johansen.

“To know that they’ve seen me and seen my film and they trust me to help their program means the world to me,” Johansen said. “Getting an opportunity like that is kind of hard to pass on. I love Ole Miss. I have a bunch of family and friends that have gone there. They just tell me great things and hearing something that doesn’t have to do with football has a big impact.”

New interst from SEC programs for Zach Johansen?

Vanderbilt has shown Johansen some interest in recent days. Johansen went to a camp at the school and enjoyed his experience.

“I’ve always loved Vanderbilt, I went to a camp up there and I talked to coach (David) Raih the wide receiver coach,” Johansen said. “Vanderbilt would be awesome to go to as well.”