Jeremy Johnson’s freshman season didn’t go as planned. He arrived at SMU as the reigning East Texas Player of the Year and District 11-5A Most Valuable Player, honors he won playing quarterback at John Tyler High School in Tyler, Texas.

Almost from the start of the Mustangs’ 2010 preseason workouts, or even before that, speculation swirled about how fast Johnson — known in the Ponies’ locker room as “Worm” — would make the transition … from high school to college … from quarterback to receiver … from unquestioned team leader to member of a group at his position.

After starring at quarterback in high school, Jeremy Johnson made the adjustment to receiver when he got to SMU (photo by David Mojica).

Talk to those around Johnson — teammates or wide receivers coach Jeff Reinebold — and Johnson did make those transitions. He showed that the hype around his athletic ability was based on fact, not myth, and he showed a maturity in his effort and work habits that some freshmen lack.

But it didn’t show up on the field. It wasn’t that he couldn’t play — during preseason workouts, even SMU head coach June Jones talked about the possibility of getting Johnson on the field early and often. But the way Jones runs his offense, opportunities for backup receivers are few and far between. At SMU, the starting four receivers rarely come off the field all game long, and Aldrick Robinson, Cole Beasley, Darius Johnson and Brad Haynes were pretty well entrenched in the starting lineup. Johnson played, catching one pass for minus-1 yard.

“I thought I was going to play a lot,” Johnson said. “It got frustrating. But I wasn’t going to let the coaches see me frustrated. I knew my chance would come.”

It’s one thing for a college freshman to preach patience; it’s another thing altogether to practice what he preaches. Johnson said he had help keeping his emotions in check.

“My dad was in my ear all the time, telling me to stay focused,” Johnson said. “He really made me keep my head on straight.”

Reinebold said he was impressed with Johnson’s ability to go about his job — practicing, lifting weights, studying film — while awaiting his chance, and to go about it without whining to coaches and teammates about playing time.

“That’s a credit to the kind of kid he is,” Reinebold said. “That’s another reason why, when you watch him go through that and come out unscathed, then you realize that he’ll be able to handle adversity very well as he goes through his career.”

Reinebold stopped short of saying he wishes Johnson had redshirted his first season with the Ponies, saying instead that he wished there had been more opportunities to get Johnson on the field as a freshman. Reinebold said that the experience of practicing and watching and waiting, while trying, should prove to be beneficial for Johnson as he develops throughout his career.

“I think it was good for Jeremy — and I think it will prove to be good in the long run — that he went through that experience, that he traveled with us, that he was a part of it,” Reinebold said. “He understands what it’s like to go on the road. All of those things are very important. I would hate for it to be the first time he gets on a plane and goes to play in a Div. I football game is next year at Texas A&M.

“Now, he has been through it, he has been a part of it, he has been on a bowl team, he understands what it takes, he has watched the older ones get ready to perform. He has watched how they handle the pressures of a game, how fast adjustments need to get made on the sideline. Had he not been part of all that, had he had to redshirt, he would not be nearly as ready as he is for what he’s going to face in the fall. I think he’s going to have a great career here.”

Johnson begrudgingly agreed with Reinebold that his limited role was better than redshirting the 2010 season.

“In a way, I wish I had (redshirted),” Johnson said. “But if I did, I would have been on the scout team. I would have been playing the other teams’ offenses each week, and not learning our plays, not learning our offense, not getting timing down with our quarterbacks.

“I didn’t like watching — I’m very competitive, and I don’t think anyone who likes to compete is going to be satisfied just watching.”

Johnson clearly has put in considerable work to prepare for the 2011 season; he has added about 10 pounds of muscle to his frame, raising his weight to about 174 pounds, and he put in a lot of hours during the offseason running routes and catching passes from the SMU quarterbacks.

While waiting his turn on the field, Johnson spent most of the 2010 season soaking up everything he could from veteran receivers like Aldrick Robinson and Cole Beasley (photo by Webmaster).

He also said that accepting his spot on the sideline while he adjusted to his new position might have been easier if his previous position hadn’t been the focal point of the offense.

“Part of what makes it hard is that I played quarterback in high school,” he said. “I’m used to having the ball in my hand on every play.

“But it also helped me handle (waiting), because as a quarterback, you have to be able to handle adversity, too.”

Johnson spent 2010 learning from — among others — Robinson, who led the receivers on and off the field. Who will replace Robinson?

“Vocally? I’ll say ‘Beas,’” Johnson said, referring to Beasley. “He doesn’t really talk a whole lot, but he makes plays, so when he talks, you listen. But as far as big plays? I can’t really say. I hope it’s me.”

Johnson said the idea that he should make the most big plays is a result of his speed is simply inaccurate.

“I’m pretty quick, I guess, but I’m actually one of the slowest receivers receivers we have,” he said. "I just know how to play football."

Johnson admitted that when he took the field for the first time in August, he had little idea how to run routes, or about the intricacies of Jones's Run-and-Shoot offense.

"I was a little lost," he said. "I think I pick things up pretty quickly, but my head was spinning when I got here. It's a new offense, a new position and the terminology is completely different.

"It wasn't what I expected, watching last year, but it probably was good for me. I didn't really know what I was doing then. From then to now, it's like night and day. I'm comfortable running routes, and I know where to be and where the ball will be. The terminology makes sense now. I'm stronger and I understand what I'm supposed to do now. I'm ready to play."