Nebraska Football Spring Spotlight: Emmett Johnson

EJ is set to be THE GUY at running back for Nebraska in 2025.

Author

TJ Birkel
March 26, 2025

Spring practice is underway for the Nebraska football team. The Big Red begins spring ball with different offensive, defensive, and special teams coordinators than the ones they had a year ago at this time, in addition to having dozens of new players on the roster. Even amidst all the change, optimism is high heading into year three for Head Coach Matt Rhule. 

On the Common Fan Podcast, we recently looked at five players poised for a breakout season in 2025. In a similar vein, over the course of the next several weeks, we will occasionally spotlight a player or group of players we’re excited to see in the coming season. 

Today’s Spotlight: Running Back Emmett Johnson

From huskers.com: “Emmett Johnson played in all 13 games in 2024 with five starts. He ranked second on the team with 117 carries and 598 rushing yards and led Nebraska with 908 all-purpose yards. Johnson added 39 catches for 286 yards and two touchdowns, setting career highs in each of those categories. His 39 receptions were the most by a Husker running back since the 2007 season.”

View from the Common Fans: I’ve been high on EJ for a long time. Going into last season, we identified him on the podcast as the best back on the roster. For most of the season, however, it was really hit or miss. In the opener against UTEP, he had eight carries for 71 yards. The very next week, in Nebraska’s decisive win over Colorado, you couldn’t even find him on a milk carton, as he tallied just one carry for three yards. And so it went for the first nine games of the season. He would flash at times, and then seem to disappear for reasons passing understanding. Nebraska couldn’t decide on one (or even two) backs, with Dante Dowdell, Rahmir Johnson, and Gabe Ervin all seeing snaps in addition to Emmett. 

Then Dana Holgorsen arrived. The new offensive coordinator…