Self-reflection lifted Oklahoma State WR Braydon Johnson during year away from football

STILLWATER — Braydon Johnson doesn’t like to talk much about the medical issue that kept him out of all but one game last football season.

What matters is that he’s back now.

Wearing a green non-contact jersey through all of the Oklahoma State’s spring practices, Johnson was somewhat eased back into action, but physically, he feels ready for full-contact competition.

When he would hit moments of frustration during spring ball, he’d think about the tattoo on his right biceps.

“It basically says time flies,” said Johnson, a super-senior receiver who is taking advantage of the extra season of eligibility granted by the NCAA after the COVID-19 pandemic. “When I was 15, that’s when I started understanding how important time was. You can’t get time back. To me, that’s the most valuable thing on the planet. Money is cool, but time is irreplaceable.

“I came back because I love this place. I’m ready to get that work in.”

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Johnson was set to be a starter at slot receiver last year, filling that role for the season opener against Missouri State. He touched the ball three times, gaining 15 yards.

But he never saw the field again.

“I had something going on, just a little injury,” he said. “It wasn’t nothing too major.”

He took a unique path to recovery. With a full slate of online classes, he spent most of the fall semester in Houston. Once he was healthy, he began working with a personal trainer who specializes in footwork for football players.

Johnson ran routes, caught passes and remained on a physical training regimen that had him prepared to get on the field when he returned to Stillwater in January.

“The rust was knocked off,” Johnson said. “I was training so that when I came back, I was ready. I was itching to get back to it. I missed so much. I really got to figure out how much I love the game, because it was taken from me.

“I just want to take advantage of every opportunity. It’s a blessing, like even just to wake up and come out here.”

He also remained in close contact with his team from afar while they were blazing through a 12-2 season.

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“I called them. I talked to my coaches a lot,” he said. “We were still connected.

“It was definitely hard for me, but it was out of my control. I had to play with the cards I got dealt and just really lock in, just better my soul and my mental and get better physically so I could go back to work.”

OSU offensive coordinator Kasey Dunn wondered what type of player he would get back in the spring.

“You can go one of two ways off of an injury,” Dunn said. “You can be ‘Woe is me,’ and come back and you’re not ready to go, and you have to trick yourself into playing again. Or you come back chomping at the bit and you’re mature and you missed the sport.

“Braydon missed it. You can tell. He’s come back and he’s anxious to get out there every day and get out there and practice.”

Dunn sees Johnson as a player to be counted on because of his experience. Now entering his sixth season as a Cowboy, Johnson has played every receiver position, and moving forward, Dunn believes he could be a valuable veteran presence on the outside, where the Cowboys must replace 1,000-yard receiver Tay Martin.

Johnson has the speed and knowledge of the offense to step into that role and allow younger receivers to further develop alongside him.

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“It’s been really good having Braydon back,” said junior slot receiver Brennan Presley. “That leadership he brings — when he talks, everybody listens.

“Anybody can say the X’s and O’s and the stuff in the film room. But once you get on the field, that experience will take you farther than anything else. Him being able to share that and share his wisdom and stuff he’s endured during his time here, I think that’s the biggest thing he brings.”

Mentally, Johnson feels as sharp as ever.

“It was difficult at first, because this is the game I love, and it got ripped away from me,” he said. “I had to put it in God’s hands and come to grips with it myself, have a one-on-one with myself and see how I could move forward from it. Stay positive. There’s no point in me being down or getting negative. That’s not gonna help me or the team. I came to grips with it fairly quick and went back to work as soon as I could.”

The 23-year-old native of Arlington, Texas, took the season for self-reflection while preparing for his final year of college football.

“This is the most I’ve ever learned about myself,” he said. “I look at it as a blessing. I grew so much, just being one-on-one with myself. It was bad, but it was an opportunity for me to grow as an individual, to become a better man.”

This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Oklahoma State football: Braydon Johnson 'ready to get that work in'