Ellis Johnson

Ellis Johnson, a longtime coach with an extensive resume filled with stops as a defensive coordinator at South Carolina, Clemson, Alabama, Auburn, Mississippi State and others, joined SportsTalk Friday for his weekly “4th and Goal” segment. Each week, Johnson offers his insight on the latest performances from the Gamecocks and Tigers and shares a perspective unique to those with decades of coaching experience.

On Friday’s segment, Johnson discussed both the Clemson-Boston College game and the South Carolina-Tennessee games, but caught the hosts off guard with his defense of the officials in the Florida-South Carolina game, “Everybody’s complaining about the holding call that was not called on the long run. I don’t think that was holding. There was constant contact, hand-checking like a DB-WR running down the field together.”

Johnson’s defense of a single call doesn’t mean he approved of the officiating on the whole, “But the pick down on the goal line … I just wish at some point they’d start calling some things in college football with consistency. That play needs to be officiated properly or it’s going to continue to be a problem. The guy didn’t even attempt to run a route.”

Johnson also commented on defending the RPO scheme, what Clemson may see against Boston College and the keys to stopping Tennessee. You can hear Ellis Johnson every Friday on SportsTalk at 7:05.

4th and Goal with Ellis Johnson on SportsTalk