"That was all she wrote," Johnson said. "I knew I was done the second it happened. I just hoped it wasn't going to need surgery. But my college career was over."
Some wondered if it was the last football game he would play. But not Johnson.
"Once my college career went (pause) up in the air, I started looking at what route would be the best," Johnson said.
The best, and almost only one available was to the CFL.
Johnson was signed as a free agent in the spring, with no fanfare. The Argonauts became interested through the agency Johnson had signed with. It also represented Wayne Gretzky, a co-owner of the Argonauts along with King owner Bruce McNall and comedian John Candy.
In fact, the first contact between Johnson and team officials was made during a Kings game.
"We had a nice conversation between periods," McCarthy said.
They iced the deal soon after, giving Johnson his chance. He's tried to make the most of it since.
"I did enough good things in training camp to be able to stay around," Johnson said. "That was my first goal. The next goal is to be prepared to play. Then it's a matter of how the breaks go."
And those are terms Johnson can deal with.
