Ronald J. Johnson is not an easy man to impress.
The father of BYU cornerback Evan Johnson — the unquestioned defensive hero of BYU’s 34-13 win over East Carolina — played receiver in the National Football League for the Philadelphia Eagles with the likes of superstars Reggie White, Randall Cunningham and Mike Quick. The legendary Buddy Ryan was one of Ron Johnson’s coaches.
So when Ron notes that what his son did in last Saturday’s game was “really over the top,” that’s saying something. Evan was responsible for a possible 14-point swing just before halftime, making a goal-line interception to thwart a Pirates scoring opportunity, then a pick-six on BYU’s next defensive play to give the Cougars a 13-3 halftime lead.
“It was pretty fun to watch,” Ron said. “I mean, the first play was great enough, and then to see him get that pick-six, that was something else. My wife (Lynn) and I were jumping all over the living room.”
The Johnsons live in Monterey, California, which is where Ron grew up before playing college football at Monterey Peninsula College and Long Beach State, which no longer has a football program. Selected by the Seattle Seahawks in the 1981 NFL draft, he played pro ball in the CFL, USFL and NFL until 1989. He’s now the president and CEO of the Boys & Girls Clubs of Monterey County.
Could Evan Johnson, who is one of the fastest players on the BYU football team, have locked him down back in the day when he was catching passes from Ron Jaworski, Matt Cavanaugh and Cunningham?
“I will take the fifth on that one,” Ron said with a laugh.
Evan Johnson is believed to be the first BYU player to make interceptions on back-to-back defensive plays in school history. His parents, who usually get to most of his games in person, were not surprised.
“I have watched his games, and I (isolate) on him a lot,” Ron said. “He’s been lurking and trying to put himself into that position, really since last season. And the ball didn’t come his way that much.
“The goal-line interception, it looked to me like he was just waiting in the wings to pick that one off. That play didn’t surprise me. The one that was the pick-six, that one really surprised me. I was really happy to see him get that play.”
Evan said after the game that the pick-six was the result of hours and hours of film study. East Carolina QB Katin Houser liked to throw the quick-out pass to the sideline after a three-step drop, Evan had learned.
“First pick-six of my life,” he said. “I played receiver growing up. I didn’t play defense. It feels incredible.”
Who is Evan Johnson?
Johnson’s friends, family, teammates and coaches all call him “Schmev,” a nickname he picked up when he was a youngster and “in a rap battle with his cousins in the garage,” according to his father, and started using words that rhymed with Evan and came up with Schmevan, which was shortened into Schmev.
“Ya just got Shmev’d” is what BYU football’s Instagram account blurted after his pick-six.
“That line is probably going to catch some fire,” Ron said, approvingly.
Evan redshirted his first season at BYU, 2022, then played in four games in 2023 as a redshirt freshman and in 12 games last year, starting in four. He had his first interception in the 34-14 win over Wyoming and his second in the 36-14 win over Colorado in the Alamo Bowl.
After missing spring ball with an injury, he entered the 2025 season as part of a deep cornerbacks room that also includes senior Mory Bamba, sophomores Tre Alexander and Marcus McKenzie and seniors Tayvion Beasley and Jayden Dunlap.
In addition to the two interceptions against ECU, he also had six tackles and broke up a pass.
He’s majoring in business, and is a little more than a year away from getting his degree. Johnson is on his third number, having worn No. 36 in 2023 and No. 21 last year.
He’s now wearing No. 0, prompting “Zero is a Hero” chants after his big plays in Greenville.
“If I have a big year, I might (think about leaving for the NFL),” he told the Deseret News in August. “If not, I am ready to come back and make more plays here.”
On his “Coordinators’ Corner” show Monday, special teams coordinator Kelly Poppinga called the pick-six “a legendary play right there” and said it will become a part of BYU football lore. Defensive coordinator Jay Hill said it “can’t be overstated how important those two plays were in us winning the game.”
Said coach Kalani Sitake: “I think the sky’s the limit for him. He is such a great player, and he’s a lot of fun to be around, so it makes sense that he’s going to make plays. I’m glad that he took advantage of the opportunities that he had Saturday night.”
Safety Tanner Wall, who had an interception that was nullified by BYU having too many men on the field, said Johnson has been showing glimpses of greatness for years.
“I have been mentioning Evan as a guy who I expected to have a great season for us (all summer),” Wall said. “He’s a great player. He handled the offseason the right way. He was coming off an injury, but seeing how fast and explosive he is, and the way that he takes pride in preparing for practice and games and watching film, I have known for a while that he was going to be an impact player for us. … I am excited to see what he does the rest of the season.”
A family affair in Provo
Evan Johnson’s brother, Wesley, joined the BYU coaching staff as a graduate assistant helping with the linebackers a couple years ago. Wesley was set to join North Dakota State’s staff when Evan overheard some BYU coaches talking about the need at the last minute to replace a GA who had decided to take another job.
He suggested his own brother, and the rest is history.
“Evan helped,” Ron Johnson said of Wesley Johnson’s path to BYU. “Evan definitely name-dropped him after Wesley was lookin for another opportunity to coach at the college level when Arizona State made the coaching change there (away from Herm Edwards).”
BYU lands a California speedster
In many ways, BYU coaches discovered a hidden treasure at Robert Louis Stevenson High in Pebble Beach, a couple 5-irons away from the famed golf links in the Monterey Forest. Despite being a multi-sport athlete and running a time of 10.41 seconds in the 100 meters in a prep track meet, Evan Johnson drew very little recruiting attention.
Former BYU linebackers coach Kevin Clune, also a Monterey native, was alerted to the speedster with NFL bloodlines, and after Evan scored four touchdowns against Greenfield High, Clune and defensive coordinator Jay Hill paid the family a visit.
Later, cornerbacks coach Jernaro Gilford and head coach Kalani Sitake visited, and invited the entire Johnson family to come to Provo and check out BYU themselves.
Ron Johnson said he had some familiarity with BYU because LBSU played BYU regularly when he was there.
“So I always had respect for the program,” Ron said. “In terms of the religion, that dynamic was a little bit different. I didn’t know exactly what to expect. But when we went on that recruiting trip, coach Sitake was so genuine, and then Coach G (Gilford) and the other coaches were outstanding as well.”
Evan said the coaches told him they saw him as a defensive back in college, although he never played on that side of the ball in high school. He remembers being thankful for their directness, when coaches at smaller schools were making hollow promises and talking about him being a preferred walk-on.
“BYU’s recruiting was really intentional,” Evan said. “I could tell they really wanted me, and they demonstrated that they really wanted me. That resonated with me.”
He committed to BYU on the morning of national signing day in February 2022, and signed his National Letter of Intent a few hours later.
“In the recruiting process, we were really impressed with his family, with his mom and dad, and the way they raised him,” Sitake said Monday. “We could see the potential there with the speed. He was one of the fastest guys out of California the year that he came out as a senior.
“So we knew he had tons of speed, and we knew he had a lot of ability and athleticism. So all we had to do was give him a chance to play in the system that was going to highlight his skills.”
Ron Johnson said his son’s defining characteristic on the football field is his ability to come up clutch, as he did twice against ECU. His first interception turned the entire tenor of the game in BYU’s favor.
“From an athletic standpoint, I saw the potential (early),” Ron Johnson said. “He could do all these things, whether it was demonstrating his flexibility, or whatever. He was a very graceful athlete, just super well-coordinated. He’s got that clutch (gene).
“When someone needs to make a play, he does it. Whether it was in baseball, or running track, playing soccer, playing basketball and then football,” Ron Johnson continued. “He just has the ability to make a play and finish a play. And it is always about the team. … As a kid, he didn’t think it was such a big deal to make a big play. He would do something amazing and then just come back to the huddle as if nothing had happened.”
Evan Johnson is now one of the most enthusiastic players on the team, ever smiling, and ever complimenting others.
“I love it here,” he said. “I have never doubted that this was the right place for me, just because I trust Coach G. When a school takes a chance on a kid who has no offers and just a bunch of interest, and they know what they are going to do with you, and teach you about life, you give them all your trust. That’s what I’ve done here.”
Along with make two of the biggest defensive plays of the season for the undefeated Cougars.
