Few were probably happier than Emmett Johnson that the MVP of the Pinstripe Bowl was a Husker running back other than him.
Emmett and Rahmir Johnson have spoken of their connection before. Emmett was one of the only players Rahmir had told of his mother’s passing. And no question there was happiness seeing his teammate finishing off Boston College – and his Husker career – with a determined 11-yard run not far from where he grew up.
«Rahmir’s showing him around … so those two guys are spending their last couple weeks together – it’s been pretty special,» running backs coach E.J. Barthel told Huskers Radio Network during a bowl site interview.
He took in a tour from his friends and took in his yards when it was time to ball too. During Nebraska’s 20-15 win over the Eagles to finish the Husker campaign with a 7-6 record, Emmett Johnson finished with 99 yards of offense – including 75 yards on 15 carries and another 24 receiving on four catches.
He also produced one of his best highlights of the season on an ankle-breaking 34-yard run late in the third quarter inside the Boston College 10. Johnson moved past the 1,000-yard rushing mark in his Husker career, getting to 1,009 with Saturday’s game.
Johnson finished 2024 with 598 on 117 carries (5.1 per rush) and added 286 yards receiving on 39 receptions. It was a step up from his 411 yards rushing, and 46 receiving in 2023.
Now bigger goals are ahead. And the numbers in the last four games, coinciding with the new offensive coordinator, suggest why Husker fans can lean into that idea.
«Like I’ve kind of been saying all along the last two seasons is he’s now I think in the final stage of his development,» Barthel said. «He’s kind of been through it last year as a guy who got in the rotation and worked his way to being the starter to where he’s at now. And here you’re looking at the final piece. Now he’s really got to take it and run with it.»
Certainly it seems he’s found a strong fit with Dana Holgorsen leading the offense.
After Holgorsen’s arrival, Johnson had 91 yards on 17 touches against USC, 198 on 24 touches against Wisconsin and 96 yards on 24 touches against Iowa.
Add in his 99 in the bowl game to those 385 yards in the previous three games and those 484 yards represented 54.7 percent of his yardage total since Holgorsen became the Husker OC.
He did show what could be prior to that. For instance, Johnson had 98 yards of offense on 11 touches against Purdue on 93 on just seven touches against Northern Iowa. But chances with the ball in his hands weren’t close to what they were the last four games – when he had 59 of his 117 rushes and 23 of his 39 receptions. The Huskers haven’t had a back with more than 35 receptions since Marlon Lucky in 2007 and Johnson’s receiving yardage ranked fifth most on the team.
«Just kept feeding him and challenged him to really work hard on really making people miss. And I thought the last two games he did a really good job of that … and getting yards after contact,» Holgorsen said earlier this month.
The coach said then he’s really happy he’s here and «we had some long talks after the season» which helped Holgorsen to get to know him better as a person. He did that with a bunch of players. But he was one of the first that came in and talked, excited about what they did.
«But there were some ‘buts.’ We had some long talks and I think he’s a great kid and he’s going to be a special player here. Excited to coach him.»
Johnson seems eager to extend off the finish too.
On social media on the final day of 2024, fourth-year junior-to-be posted pictures of him in the Pinstripe Bowl with the words «To be continued…….»
He’ll continue into a year, it seems, for the first time at Nebraska as the clear favorite at RB1.
«I think Emmett really played well down the stretch. He really fits Dana’s vision kind of what we are,» Husker head coach Matt Rhule said during one of the December press conferences. «We don’t want to have running backs who can only run the football and can’t catch. We don’t want to have running backs that can’t protect. So Emmett’s a guy that can run the football, catch the football, protect. I think when Dana got here he loved Rahmir … I think he really found value in him. I have been on the record many, many times talking about how I feel about Kwinten Ives. I think he’s really, really, really a good player. And I feel the same way about Mekhi Nelson.»
Other incoming backs include Jamarion Parker and Conor Booth.
Having had departures from Dante Dowdell and Gabe Ervin, and losing Rahmir to his eligibility expiring, would the Huskers wouldn’t look at another back in the portal? Rhule said in December that everything is just so ever changing now that you’re always looking at every spot what’s out there.
«But our running back room we can with and we feel very strongly we can win with them.»