Wisconsin set to hire new coaching staff member

Wade-Peeryby:Wade Peery•03/09/22

The Wisconsin Badgers are expected to hire ex-Badgers and former NFL lineman Al Johnson, to their staff. Johnson has recently been the head coach at Division II school named East Central. In the meantime, East Central is expected to promote offensive coordinator Kris McCullough to interim head coach, per On3’s Matt Zenitz. The news was first reported by John Brice of FootballScoop.com.

Johnson was a former three-time All-Big Ten Conference selection during his playing days with the Badgers. He has spent the previous four seasons as the head man of the East Central University Tigers. According to FootballScoop, he is joining Paul Chryst’s staff at Wisconsin to coach the running backs. He was a Rimington Award finalist as a senior during his final year with the Badgers. Johnson also earned third-team All-American honors for the Badgers in 2002. He’d also been running a camp–the Al Johnson Line Camp. Earlier in his coaching career, he’d also served as the offensive coordinator for Southern Door High in Brussels, Wisconsin.

He also spent two seasons at St. Norbert College and he was their offensive coordinator in 2015. St. Norbert is a Division III program located in De Pere, Wisconsin.

Coaching the running backs at Wisconsin has long been one of the nation’s most prestigious coaching jobs, simply because of the caliber of tailbacks they produce out of Madison, Wisconsin.

The next great Badger running back is without a doubt, Wisconsin’s Braelon Allen. Many college football pundits have him as a longshot Heisman candidate for the 2022-2023 season and it’s not that far off. Last year as a true freshman, Allen couldn’t be stopped, rushing 186 times for 1,286 yards and 12 rushing touchdowns. Per PFF, he had more rushing yards than any other running back when facing more than eight or more defenders in the box. He rushed for 814 yards when facing eight or more defenders in the box. The second closest running back in the stat was Tavion Thomas of the Utah Utes, who had 764 rushing yards.