FAU football: Former offensive coordinator Michael Johnson leaves for Syracuse

Former Florida Atlantic offensive coordinator/quarterbacks coach Michael Johnson has been hired as the wide receivers coach at Syracuse in a move first reported by ESPN's Pete Thamel.

Johnson was the Owls' offensive coordinator last season, replacing Clint Trickett and calling plays for the FAU offense. He'd been intended to serve as co-OC with Drew Mehringer in 2021, but Mehringer left in the offseason to serve as passing game coordinator/quarterbacks coach at New Mexico.

The Owls’ offense ranked sixth in Conference USA for total offense last season. The unit averaged 151.8 rushing yards per game and 248.7 passing yards per game.

An FAU university spokesperson told The Palm Beach Post last week that Johnson was going to be moved to tight ends coach for the Owls for the upcoming season. He would be replacing Jon Bills as position coach.

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Head coach Willie Taggart rounded out his coaching staff briefly last week with hires at offensive coordinator, defensive coordinator and two other positions. However, now with the absence of Johnson, a tight ends coach will need to be hired.

Johnson to Syracuse one of many coaching changes Taggart and FAU have made this offseason.

The biggest turmoil involved the offensive coordinator position, where former Troy head coach Chip Lindsey was originally viewed as Johnson's successor. That changed on Dec. 27 when UCF announced Lindsey's hiring join the staff of head coach Guz Malzahn at UCF.

Lindsey's exit prompted FAU to hire former Middle Tennessee offensive coordinator/quarterbacks coach Brent Dearmon last week.

This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: FAU football: Former OC Michael Johnson leaves for Syracuse