Johnson finds new home at left guard

TUSCALAOOSA | Imagine for a moment that you’re an offensive lineman for the University of Alabama football team, and on any given play there’s junior Andre Smith on your left, and senior Antoine Caldwell on the right.

Except for Justin Britt last year, it’s been a long time since anyone on the Crimson Tide’s been in a comparable position, and one can certainly understand why Mike Johnson smiles about it.

“Left guard is my home now,” he said. “I found a really good spot between Antoine and Andre. I don’t think there’s any player in the conference who could ask to be in a better place.

“Obviously, between Andre and Antoine, they make you better and you want to be better. They don’t take no for an answer.”

Johnson made the move from the right side, where he started 10 games at tackle and three at guard last season, in time for spring and hasn’t looked back. By doing so, junior Drew Davis was given an opportunity to win the right tackle job, resulting in no starting sophomore or freshmen linemen for the first time in years.

Consequently, Alabama is banking on the unit as being a real strength, even though there’s very little proven depth.

“Obviously we feel pretty confident,” Johnson said. “Last year we ran pretty good and we had a freshman running back, who was ready to run. I think we can come into this year and do bigger things. We’re a veteran group, we have seniors and juniors across the line, and there’s no reason why we shouldn’t do that.”

One area in particular that coaches are looking for improvement is in red-zone offense, where ideally they want to steamroll opponents into the end zone. For the second season in a row, red-zone play was particularly problematic. Last season the Tide scored 43 times on 53 possessions inside the 20, for 81.1 percent, which ranked 10th in the Southeastern Conference.

More telling was that out of those 43 scores, just 29 were touchdowns, meaning Alabama reached the goal-line just 55 percent of the time it got within the 20.

Needless to say, it’s a been a point of emphasis.

“That’s probably the most important thing they harped on us during the offseason,” co-captain Caldwell said. “(Offensive coordinator Jim) McElwain, he calls certain plays personality plays. He calls the red zone the compete zone. That’s what we have to do down there, and do a lot better job down there.

“I’m actually looking forward to that first opportunity.”

Continuity was also a huge problem in 2007, especially after Caldwell and right guard Marlon Davis were two of five players suspended four games for their part in the textbook disbursement scandal.

Even before that, Caldwell went from starting the first five games at center before moving to left guard against Houston, right tackle at Ole Miss, and back to center for the final two games.

Not surprisingly, the offense sputtered.

“Believe it or not, it’s just like Justin is there,” Smith said about the transition from Britt to Johnson. “He’s smart, he’s athletic, Justin was athletic. He didn’t skip a beat.”

Smith wasn’t exaggerating about the “smart” thing. Johnson graduated from Pine Forest High School in Pensacola, Fla., with a 4.0 GPA, and scored 27 on the ACT exam (FYI, the national average score this year is 21.1).

Considering linemen frequently want to be in sync like a set of windshield wipers, moving in tandem with each other, that cohesion isn’t something to be taken for granted. It’s considered crucial that a tackle knows what guard will do, and vice-versa.

“It just depends how you adjust to the person who’s on the side of you,” Smith said. “He helps me in certain situations and I help him in certain situations, with the left side of the line being a unit.”

Although Alabama scored on its first offensive play last season on a carry behind Johnson at right tackle, a 47-yard run by Terry Grant against Western Carolina, the Tide predominantly ran to its left, which also protects quarterback John Parker Wilson’s blind side.

That’s why Johnson, listed as 6-foot-6, 299 pounds, was moved to the left side, to plug that all-important hole between two likely All-American candidates.

“I always say I consider John Parker to be like my mother,” Smith said. “You never want anyone to hit your mother, so you’ll do whatever it takes to protect her.”

Reach Christopher Walsh at christopher.walsh@tuscaloosanews.com or 205-722-0196.