West Virginia Mountaineers: Commitment 101: Minikon Johnson
West Virginia is still working to put together the current class but the Mountaineers received a boost in the future with a commitment from Pittsburgh (Pa.) Bishop-Canevin 2027 linebacker Minikon Johnson.
Johnson, 6-foot-2, 205-pounds, picked the Mountaineers over scholarship offers from Kent State and Akron and moved quickly in making his choice. That’s because the football program had only extended a scholarship offer to Johnson at the first 7-on-7 event of the summer in mid-June.
Johnson competed with his team and caught the eye of the coaching staff earning a scholarship offer from senior defensive analyst and assistant linebackers coach Andrew Warwick. He also was able to speak with defensive coordinator Zac Alley and head coach Rich Rodriguez.
The Mountaineers are slotting Johnson at the linebacker position and was impressed with his physical skill set as well as how he could move at the spot.
Johnson is the second 2027 prospect to commit to West Virginia at this stage of the process behind West Mifflin (Pa.) 2027 running back Armand Hill.
WVSports.com breaks down the commitment of Johnson and what it means to the West Virginia Mountaineers football program both now and in the future.
Skill set:
Johnson has a great frame to fill out and is an athletic linebacker that can operate in space but seems to be at his best on the edge. He can run well for his size and plays the game with awareness. He possesses good length and is a solid tackler off the edge when asked to disrupt the quarterback.
Plays with a good motor and is able to run down plays from behind given his athletic abilities. Shows good concentration and the ability to make plays on the ball when it’s in the air.
Johnson is an aggressive defender that is hard to block given his ability to run. His best football is certainly ahead of him and that’s exciting for both parties.
Fitting the program:
Johnson earned a scholarship offer after an impressive performance in a camp setting and has the frame and skill set to make the most of that. Of the 15 players on the roster at the linebacker and edge positions, a total of 10 of those will be cycled through by the time Johnson arrives on campus. That means that there is a pressing need at the position in the future although some of that could be back filled further with 2026 additions as well as mining the transfer portal.
Johnson was able to showcase what he could do in front of the coaching staff which led to his offer and is another pull from Western Pennsylvania in the 2027 class as the program looks to set down some roots there on the recruiting trail. The Mountaineers have long had success in that area in recruiting and it’s clear that will remain a focus of the current group moving forward, too.
Recruiting the position:
Truthfully there is too much time that will elapse between now and when Johnson and his recruiting class will come into focus to know exactly where the program will sit with needs at any position. But given the current upperclassman filled nature of the room, it’s a safe bet to assume that West Virginia will be looking at several linebackers in order to add more to what will be on the roster when Johnson arrives. That would appear to be almost a guarantee and while this is a key pickup at this early junction there are still likely more that will be in the mix moving forward.
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