Kevin Johns - Offensive Coordinator / Quarterbacks - Football Coaches

Kevin Johns

Title:
Offensive Coordinator / Quarterbacks
Email:
football@memphis.edu
Phone:
901-678-5119

Kevin Johns is in his third season as the offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach at Memphis. He joined the staff in January 2019.

In 2020, Johns guided the Tigers to yet another impressive offensive season, as the team ranked 22^nd in the nation in total offense (453.1) and also finished the year ranked 17^th in both passing offense (307.9) and first down offense (260).

On the year, Memphis totaled five games with over 500 yards of total offense, including an incredible 703 total yards against UCF on Oct. 17. The Tigers set a school-record, coming back from a 17-point deficit in the third quarter to earn the 50-49 win. The 703 total yards of offense was the fifth-most in Memphis history.

Individually, quarterback Brady White capped his incredible career at Memphis by winning the 31^st William V. Campbell Trophy, which is presented to the college football player with the best combination of academics, community service and on-field performance. White was also a First-Team Senior CLASS Award All-American, one of nine semifinalists for the Wuerffel Trophy and a top-15 candidate for the Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award.

Wide receiver Calvin Austin III was tremendous for the Tigers, earning First-Team All-American Athletic Conference accolades after totaling 63 receptions for 1,053 yards and 11 touchdowns. Austin III led the AAC in both receiving yards and touchdowns, ranking sixth and eighth in the nation in each category, respectively.

Tight end Sean Dykes earned honorable-mention all-conference honors after posting 47 catches for 581 yards and seven touchdowns.

In his first season at the controls of the offense, Johns helped carry on the recent run of high-octane offenses Tigers fans have enjoyed. In 2019, Memphis ranked among the top 20 nationally in nine statistical categories: passing yards (7^th), scoring offense (8^th), passing yards/completion (9^th), total offense (10^th), first downs (10^th), passing efficiency (10^th), passing offense (17^th), passing TD (17^th) and third down percentage (19^th). The Tigers rolled up more than 500 yards of total offense seven times last season, including 542 yards versus Big Ten foe Penn State in the Goodyear Cotton Bowl Classic.

Johns’ first offense in the Bluff City produced a 4,000-yard passer (Brady White), a 1,000-yard rusher (Kenneth Gainwell) and a 1,000-yard receiver (Damonte Coxie), the second time in three seasons a Tigers offense did so. Gainwell was named The American’s Rookie of the Year and also earned all-conference first team honors. White and Coxie were all-conference second team picks.

As the quarterbacks coach, Johns directed White to one of the best seasons in UofM history. White led the league in total passing yards (4,014) and was fourth nationally in that statistical category. White became only the second Tigers quarterback to throw for more the 4,000 yards in a season and enters the 2020 campaign with more than 7,000 career yards. Nationally, White also was sixth in passing yards/completion, eighth in TD passes, ninth in passing efficiency, 10^thin passing yards/game and 10^thin points responsible for.

Prior to Memphis, Johns spent the 2018 season as the offensive coordinator at Texas Tech after spending 2017 as the offensive coordinator/quarterbacks coach at Western Michigan.

At Texas Tech, Johns guided a Red Raiders offense that ranked fourth in the country with 352.6 passing yards per game and 12^thwith 485.2 total yards per game. The previous season, Johns helped Western Michigan rank 25^thin the country with 33.9 points per game. The Broncos sported a balanced offense under Johns’ tutelage, also ranking 21^stin the country with 224.8 rushing yards per game.

Before his one-season stop at Western Michigan, Johns spent six years at Indiana (2011-16), the final three as the program’s offensive coordinator. The Hoosiers rewrote 54 school records during Johns’ time there, including season marks for points, total yards, passing yards and rushing yards. In 2015, Indiana joined elite company having a 3,500-yard passer, two 1,000-yard rushers and a 1,000-yard receiver. Johns, who also coached quarterbacks at Indiana over his final three seasons, also assisted with coaching wide receivers after arriving as a co-offensive coordinator in 2011.

In 2013, Indiana had five 1,000-yard receivers playing at the same time. One of them was Cody Latimer, who was one of eight NFL draftees during Johns’ time in Bloomington, another was Shane Wynn, who closed his career among the top four in multiple career categories at Indiana, including receptions (189), 250-yard games (13), 200-yard games (19), four-TD games (5) and all-purpose yards (4,429) before joining the Jacksonville Jaguars roster.

Indiana was the second Big Ten employer for Johns. From 2004-11, Johns was on staff at Northwestern. He joined the staff as an assistant coach with the running backs from 2004-05 and began working with the wide receivers and serving as the program’s recruiting coordinator in 2006-07. He added passing game coordinator duties to his work slate in 2008 and served in that role for three seasons before joining the staff at Indiana in 2011.

A two-year starter at the University of Dayton, Johns was a member of teams that posted a 20-1 record and also earned Division I-AA All-America honors in his time as a Flyer. Johns graduated with a degree in mathematics in 1998 and received his master’s degree from Northwestern’s School of Education and Social Policy in 2001.

After completing his undergraduate degree, Johns served for three seasons at Northwestern as a graduate assistant (1999-2001). He then spent two seasons as the wide receivers coach at the University of Richmond (2002-03) before returning to Northwestern for his second stint.

Johns and his wife, Krista, have twin sons, Logan and Tyler, and a third son, Carter.

Johns At A Glance

Alma Mater	University of Dayton, 1998 Northwestern University, 2001
Playing Experience	University of Dayton (1994-97) Four-year letter winner and team MVP in 1996, 1997 Named a Division I-AA All-American at quarterback
Family	Wife - Krista Children - Logan, Tyler and Carter

Coaching Experience

Piqua (Ohio) High School	Assistant Coach (1998)
Northwestern University	Graduate Assistant, Offense (1999-2001)
University of Richmond	Assistant Coach, Wide Receivers (2002-03)
Northwestern University	Assistant Coach, Running Backs (2004-05) Assistant Coach, Wide Receivers/Recruiting Coordinator (2006-07) Passing Game Coordinator, Wide Receivers (2008-11)
Indiana University	Co-Offensive Coordinator, Quarterbacks/Wide Receivers (2011-13) Offensive Coordinator, Quarterbacks/Wide Receivers (2014-16)
Western Michigan University	Offensive Coordinator, Quarterbacks (2017)
Texas Tech University	Offensive Coordinator, Inside Receivers (2018)
University of Memphis	Offensive Coordinator, Quarterbacks (2019-Present)

Bowl Coaching Experience

2004	Hawai'i Bowl
2005	Sun Bowl
2008	Alamo Bowl
2009	Outback Bowl
2010	Ticket City Bowl
2015	Pinstripe Bowl
2016	Foster Farms Bowl
2019	Goodyear Cotton Bowl
2020	Montgomery Bowl