Upperman Bees football player Colton Johnson has set career highs for both tight end and linebacker this season.
Johnson started gravitating towards the tight end role at age five. Johnson said he started playing the position thanks to his love for watching football.
“We always liked watching the tight end position,” Johnson said. “My dad always pushed me to block more and I like having the ball, so it’s a good fit.”
Johnson said he takes blocking more seriously when playing tight end. Johnson’s commitment to blocking has resulted in more usage this season. Johnson has seen the field on nearly 95 percent of Upperman’s snaps this season. Johnson said he blocks on around 70 percent of Upperman’s plays. Johnson has seen more opportunities as the Bees get to the red zone.
“A lot of time we get in the red zone, teams expect us to run the ball cause that’s just how we’ve been in the past,” Johnson said. “But now, a lot of time there’s somebody over the top of me so we try to get a lot of play action and stuff like that to get me open and let Bronzden [Chaffin] make a play.”
When Johnson has run routes as tight end, he has seen success, scoring in four of six games for the Bees. Most of those touchdowns have occurred in the red zone. Johnson said he and Bronzden Chaffin have developed a connection that the coaching staff trusts.
“Me and Bronzden [Chaffin,] we go out and we throw it a lot and we work together,” Johnson said. “We talked about it with coach [Adam] Caine about how the red zone can be a big time for us to get me the ball and me and Bronzden have a good connection in that aspect.”
Johnson has also seen success on defense this season. His 7.3 tackles per game ranks among the highest for any Bees defender. Johnson’s next game is set for Friday against Livingston.
