Post season interview with Koury Johnson Offensive coordinator/QB coach Wilmington High School

[LICKING COUNTY FAN]

Name: Koury Johnson

School: Wilmington High School

Position: Offensive coordinator/QB coach

1) Heading into the 2022 season, what were the biggest obstacles standing in your way as far as the offense goes?

One of the biggest obstacles was getting the individual players and coaches to reach their full potential and blend it with the collective. We all know that offense takes the longest to work together. Our objective was to come into a program that ran the same system for 6+ years and create an explosive offense.

2) As an offensive coordinator, what is the toughest defense to prepare for?

The toughest Defense for me to prepare for is a defense that is a base 3 down front, stunt and twist, and will drop one of their outside backers down and create a 4 down front. It could be tough when you base gap schemes. Getting the O-Line to understand the rules and responsibilities for the odd front vs. the even front and how they can shift quickly to gain a front-side advantage. They can also cause havoc on zone if the interior guys aren’t patient enough to stay on their tracks.

3)In the first three games of the 2022 season, you guys averaged 13 points but starting in weeks four through eight, the offense averaged 59.5 points per game. What else changed besides the competition?

As previously stated, the offense always takes a little longer to click than the defense does. We were able to click at the right time. We began to really see who we were as an offense and what we believed in schematically. We cut back on schemes and hung our hat on what we were really good at. Also, Though we started 0-3, 2 of those games were 6 points or less. They were able to see that we could actually have some success as a unit and as a team. The other part is when you have a head coach, a defensive staff, and an offensive staff that supports your vision and how you operate, it helps promote buy-in from the kids.

4) This is one of those questions that I ask because I hear so many fans talking about it at games. What are the advantages of running or passing to the short side of the field? If you can expand on the answer, would you also talk about the biggest disadvantage of the play going in that direction?

One of the advantages of running to the short side of the field is that a lot of teams seem to favor the field more than the boundary. They look at the sideline as an extra defender. Where it could be an issue for the defense is when you have a back that is really good at getting north and south quickly. With passing it could be the same situation. If you have a really good wide receiver, you can put him to the boundary. A lot of teams will man the single WR up unless it's like a cover 6 type of situation. If he can win on individual routes, it would be a cheap way to get your dude the ball. Also, it isn’t as long of a throw for the QB than it is for him to throw to the field. I think the biggest disadvantage is that it is the shortest portion of the field. If you have a kid that only wants to hit the sideline then, north and south, it’s much easier to force him out of real estate.

5) Why don't more teams use the fullback and/or tight end more in the passing game? I ask this because the few times I see a fullback or tight end screen (for example), it usually picks up a nice chunk of yards.

I think this is something that is based on the individual coach. I am a true power-spread air raid guy. Prior to this season, I was a big believer in the TE being the number 6 lineman on the depth chart. We didn’t use a true TE or fullback. However, an H back was that guy for us. I am one that believes in sending all available receivers on a route and truly force the defense to cover every blade of grass. What the H was for us in the run game helped in passing concepts when he was on the field. Being 10P and now being more of 11P and even 20P, it has given us a lot of flexibility.

6) Every coach has a list of trick plays, or so I am told. How often are you guys able to practice running those plays?

I am really just now starting to look into trick plays. I’ve not been one that believed in trick plays. I’ve seen a lot more bad things that off-trick plays than good things. I’ve stayed away from them for the last 2 years. Moving forward, I would like to look more into trick plays or funky formations and have one ready for every game.

7) Staying with the play-calling theme, all coaches have certain plays they like to run in certain situations, but with everything on film today and easily accessible, do you find yourself trying to come up with new wrinkles to those plays or running a play you think will overwhelm the defense?

Partially yes and no. I am more of a rinse-and-repeat type of coach. For example, if power is my base play, I may rep power read, i may run 1 back power, or I may even attack a RPO to it. All of these have been in since the install period. Yes, there is a lot of film going around, but using different adjustments makes it easier on our players while making it look very different for the defense. I do think sometimes we can out-coach ourselves trying to out-coach the defense. I think the other part to this question is I am a believer that a team knows what is coming. Now you have the task of stopping it. While tags and adjustments are great, we have to be careful not to out-coach ourselves and put our players in a situation where they can’t execute.

8) What was the most satisfying thing about the 2022 season?

The most satisfying thing about the 2022 season is what we were able to accomplish. Many thought that we would lose 7 or 8 games. Not a lot of people believed in our ability as a staff and as a team. The only people that really believed in us were us. We were able to meet a milestone that hasn't been met in a while. Now we want to take another step next season and win a playoff game.

9) Where did you begin your coaching career?

I started helping coaches in 2009-2010 at the pee-wee level. At the time I didn't think it would be something I actually cared about. I stepped away for about 7 years until my son started playing flag football. From there I coached his pee-wee team for a few years and started coaching high school in 2019 at Northwest high school. From there I was at Hughes high school for a year and now at Wilmington HS.

10) What sport or sports did you play in high school and then at the college level?

I was a 3 sport athlete in high school. Football was my main sport. My father told me that I didn’t have to worry about working because I only have 1 opportunity to be in high school. Though I didn’t value high school or academics, I lost the opportunity to play ball at the next level. Thus, my love for the game now. I use it as a tool to motivate the young people I’m coaching and working with.

[VetteMan]

Name: Koury Johnson

School: Wilmington High School

Position: Offensive coordinator/QB coach

1) Heading into the 2022 season, what were the biggest obstacles standing in your way as far as the offense goes?

One of the biggest obstacles was getting the individual players and coaches to reach their full potential and blend it with the collective. We all know that offense takes the longest to work together. Our objective was to come into a program that ran the same system for 6+ years and create an explosive offense.

2) As an offensive coordinator, what is the toughest defense to prepare for?

The toughest Defense for me to prepare for is a defense that is a base 3 down front, stunt and twist, and will drop one of their outside backers down and create a 4 down front. It could be tough when you base gap schemes. Getting the O-Line to understand the rules and responsibilities for the odd front vs. the even front and how they can shift quickly to gain a front-side advantage. They can also cause havoc on zone if the interior guys aren’t patient enough to stay on their tracks.

3)In the first three games of the 2022 season, you guys averaged 13 points but starting in weeks four through eight, the offense averaged 59.5 points per game. What else changed besides the competition?

As previously stated, the offense always takes a little longer to click than the defense does. We were able to click at the right time. We began to really see who we were as an offense and what we believed in schematically. We cut back on schemes and hung our hat on what we were really good at. Also, Though we started 0-3, 2 of those games were 6 points or less. They were able to see that we could actually have some success as a unit and as a team. The other part is when you have a head coach, a defensive staff, and an offensive staff that supports your vision and how you operate, it helps promote buy-in from the kids.

4) This is one of those questions that I ask because I hear so many fans talking about it at games. What are the advantages of running or passing to the short side of the field? If you can expand on the answer, would you also talk about the biggest disadvantage of the play going in that direction?

One of the advantages of running to the short side of the field is that a lot of teams seem to favor the field more than the boundary. They look at the sideline as an extra defender. Where it could be an issue for the defense is when you have a back that is really good at getting north and south quickly. With passing it could be the same situation. If you have a really good wide receiver, you can put him to the boundary. A lot of teams will man the single WR up unless it's like a cover 6 type of situation. If he can win on individual routes, it would be a cheap way to get your dude the ball. Also, it isn’t as long of a throw for the QB than it is for him to throw to the field. I think the biggest disadvantage is that it is the shortest portion of the field. If you have a kid that only wants to hit the sideline then, north and south, it’s much easier to force him out of real estate.

5) Why don't more teams use the fullback and/or tight end more in the passing game? I ask this because the few times I see a fullback or tight end screen (for example), it usually picks up a nice chunk of yards.

I think this is something that is based on the individual coach. I am a true power-spread air raid guy. Prior to this season, I was a big believer in the TE being the number 6 lineman on the depth chart. We didn’t use a true TE or fullback. However, an H back was that guy for us. I am one that believes in sending all available receivers on a route and truly force the defense to cover every blade of grass. What the H was for us in the run game helped in passing concepts when he was on the field. Being 10P and now being more of 11P and even 20P, it has given us a lot of flexibility.

6) Every coach has a list of trick plays, or so I am told. How often are you guys able to practice running those plays?

I am really just now starting to look into trick plays. I’ve not been one that believed in trick plays. I’ve seen a lot more bad things that off-trick plays than good things. I’ve stayed away from them for the last 2 years. Moving forward, I would like to look more into trick plays or funky formations and have one ready for every game.

7) Staying with the play-calling theme, all coaches have certain plays they like to run in certain situations, but with everything on film today and easily accessible, do you find yourself trying to come up with new wrinkles to those plays or running a play you think will overwhelm the defense?

Partially yes and no. I am more of a rinse-and-repeat type of coach. For example, if power is my base play, I may rep power read, i may run 1 back power, or I may even attack a RPO to it. All of these have been in since the install period. Yes, there is a lot of film going around, but using different adjustments makes it easier on our players while making it look very different for the defense. I do think sometimes we can out-coach ourselves trying to out-coach the defense. I think the other part to this question is I am a believer that a team knows what is coming. Now you have the task of stopping it. While tags and adjustments are great, we have to be careful not to out-coach ourselves and put our players in a situation where they can’t execute.

8) What was the most satisfying thing about the 2022 season?

The most satisfying thing about the 2022 season is what we were able to accomplish. Many thought that we would lose 7 or 8 games. Not a lot of people believed in our ability as a staff and as a team. The only people that really believed in us were us. We were able to meet a milestone that hasn't been met in a while. Now we want to take another step next season and win a playoff game.

9) Where did you begin your coaching career?

I started helping coaches in 2009-2010 at the pee-wee level. At the time I didn't think it would be something I actually cared about. I stepped away for about 7 years until my son started playing flag football. From there I coached his pee-wee team for a few years and started coaching high school in 2019 at Northwest high school. From there I was at Hughes high school for a year and now at Wilmington HS.

10) What sport or sports did you play in high school and then at the college level?

I was a 3 sport athlete in high school. Football was my main sport. My father told me that I didn’t have to worry about working because I only have 1 opportunity to be in high school. Though I didn’t value high school or academics, I lost the opportunity to play ball at the next level. Thus, my love for the game now. I use it as a tool to motivate the young people I’m coaching and working with.

I guess it's obvious that I do enjoy your interviews. I've been meaning to ask you how do you determine who you are going to interview, being that you travel pretty good distances most of the time to do your interview.

[LICKING COUNTY FAN]

Name: Koury Johnson

School: Wilmington High School

Position: Offensive coordinator/QB coach

1) Heading into the 2022 season, what were the biggest obstacles standing in your way as far as the offense goes?

One of the biggest obstacles was getting the individual players and coaches to reach their full potential and blend it with the collective. We all know that offense takes the longest to work together. Our objective was to come into a program that ran the same system for 6+ years and create an explosive offense.

2) As an offensive coordinator, what is the toughest defense to prepare for?

The toughest Defense for me to prepare for is a defense that is a base 3 down front, stunt and twist, and will drop one of their outside backers down and create a 4 down front. It could be tough when you base gap schemes. Getting the O-Line to understand the rules and responsibilities for the odd front vs. the even front and how they can shift quickly to gain a front-side advantage. They can also cause havoc on zone if the interior guys aren’t patient enough to stay on their tracks.

3)In the first three games of the 2022 season, you guys averaged 13 points but starting in weeks four through eight, the offense averaged 59.5 points per game. What else changed besides the competition?

As previously stated, the offense always takes a little longer to click than the defense does. We were able to click at the right time. We began to really see who we were as an offense and what we believed in schematically. We cut back on schemes and hung our hat on what we were really good at. Also, Though we started 0-3, 2 of those games were 6 points or less. They were able to see that we could actually have some success as a unit and as a team. The other part is when you have a head coach, a defensive staff, and an offensive staff that supports your vision and how you operate, it helps promote buy-in from the kids.

4) This is one of those questions that I ask because I hear so many fans talking about it at games. What are the advantages of running or passing to the short side of the field? If you can expand on the answer, would you also talk about the biggest disadvantage of the play going in that direction?

One of the advantages of running to the short side of the field is that a lot of teams seem to favor the field more than the boundary. They look at the sideline as an extra defender. Where it could be an issue for the defense is when you have a back that is really good at getting north and south quickly. With passing it could be the same situation. If you have a really good wide receiver, you can put him to the boundary. A lot of teams will man the single WR up unless it's like a cover 6 type of situation. If he can win on individual routes, it would be a cheap way to get your dude the ball. Also, it isn’t as long of a throw for the QB than it is for him to throw to the field. I think the biggest disadvantage is that it is the shortest portion of the field. If you have a kid that only wants to hit the sideline then, north and south, it’s much easier to force him out of real estate.

5) Why don't more teams use the fullback and/or tight end more in the passing game? I ask this because the few times I see a fullback or tight end screen (for example), it usually picks up a nice chunk of yards.

I think this is something that is based on the individual coach. I am a true power-spread air raid guy. Prior to this season, I was a big believer in the TE being the number 6 lineman on the depth chart. We didn’t use a true TE or fullback. However, an H back was that guy for us. I am one that believes in sending all available receivers on a route and truly force the defense to cover every blade of grass. What the H was for us in the run game helped in passing concepts when he was on the field. Being 10P and now being more of 11P and even 20P, it has given us a lot of flexibility.

6) Every coach has a list of trick plays, or so I am told. How often are you guys able to practice running those plays?

I am really just now starting to look into trick plays. I’ve not been one that believed in trick plays. I’ve seen a lot more bad things that off-trick plays than good things. I’ve stayed away from them for the last 2 years. Moving forward, I would like to look more into trick plays or funky formations and have one ready for every game.

7) Staying with the play-calling theme, all coaches have certain plays they like to run in certain situations, but with everything on film today and easily accessible, do you find yourself trying to come up with new wrinkles to those plays or running a play you think will overwhelm the defense?

Partially yes and no. I am more of a rinse-and-repeat type of coach. For example, if power is my base play, I may rep power read, i may run 1 back power, or I may even attack a RPO to it. All of these have been in since the install period. Yes, there is a lot of film going around, but using different adjustments makes it easier on our players while making it look very different for the defense. I do think sometimes we can out-coach ourselves trying to out-coach the defense. I think the other part to this question is I am a believer that a team knows what is coming. Now you have the task of stopping it. While tags and adjustments are great, we have to be careful not to out-coach ourselves and put our players in a situation where they can’t execute.

8) What was the most satisfying thing about the 2022 season?

The most satisfying thing about the 2022 season is what we were able to accomplish. Many thought that we would lose 7 or 8 games. Not a lot of people believed in our ability as a staff and as a team. The only people that really believed in us were us. We were able to meet a milestone that hasn't been met in a while. Now we want to take another step next season and win a playoff game.

9) Where did you begin your coaching career?

I started helping coaches in 2009-2010 at the pee-wee level. At the time I didn't think it would be something I actually cared about. I stepped away for about 7 years until my son started playing flag football. From there I coached his pee-wee team for a few years and started coaching high school in 2019 at Northwest high school. From there I was at Hughes high school for a year and now at Wilmington HS.

10) What sport or sports did you play in high school and then at the college level?

I was a 3 sport athlete in high school. Football was my main sport. My father told me that I didn’t have to worry about working because I only have 1 opportunity to be in high school. Though I didn’t value high school or academics, I lost the opportunity to play ball at the next level. Thus, my love for the game now. I use it as a tool to motivate the young people I’m coaching and working with.

I guess it's obvious that I do enjoy your interviews. I've been meaning to ask you how do you determine who you are going to interview, being that you travel pretty good distances most of the time to do your interview.

I try and get coaches from the teams I have covered and from there if I catch them on Twitter or if they are in the high school football group that I am in on Facebook. After that, it is coaches from schools that I want to see. Right now I am sticking with Ohio only for the post season. I might try and do some post season with some players too.

[VetteMan]

Name: Koury Johnson

School: Wilmington High School

Position: Offensive coordinator/QB coach

1) Heading into the 2022 season, what were the biggest obstacles standing in your way as far as the offense goes?

One of the biggest obstacles was getting the individual players and coaches to reach their full potential and blend it with the collective. We all know that offense takes the longest to work together. Our objective was to come into a program that ran the same system for 6+ years and create an explosive offense.

2) As an offensive coordinator, what is the toughest defense to prepare for?

The toughest Defense for me to prepare for is a defense that is a base 3 down front, stunt and twist, and will drop one of their outside backers down and create a 4 down front. It could be tough when you base gap schemes. Getting the O-Line to understand the rules and responsibilities for the odd front vs. the even front and how they can shift quickly to gain a front-side advantage. They can also cause havoc on zone if the interior guys aren’t patient enough to stay on their tracks.

3)In the first three games of the 2022 season, you guys averaged 13 points but starting in weeks four through eight, the offense averaged 59.5 points per game. What else changed besides the competition?

As previously stated, the offense always takes a little longer to click than the defense does. We were able to click at the right time. We began to really see who we were as an offense and what we believed in schematically. We cut back on schemes and hung our hat on what we were really good at. Also, Though we started 0-3, 2 of those games were 6 points or less. They were able to see that we could actually have some success as a unit and as a team. The other part is when you have a head coach, a defensive staff, and an offensive staff that supports your vision and how you operate, it helps promote buy-in from the kids.

4) This is one of those questions that I ask because I hear so many fans talking about it at games. What are the advantages of running or passing to the short side of the field? If you can expand on the answer, would you also talk about the biggest disadvantage of the play going in that direction?

One of the advantages of running to the short side of the field is that a lot of teams seem to favor the field more than the boundary. They look at the sideline as an extra defender. Where it could be an issue for the defense is when you have a back that is really good at getting north and south quickly. With passing it could be the same situation. If you have a really good wide receiver, you can put him to the boundary. A lot of teams will man the single WR up unless it's like a cover 6 type of situation. If he can win on individual routes, it would be a cheap way to get your dude the ball. Also, it isn’t as long of a throw for the QB than it is for him to throw to the field. I think the biggest disadvantage is that it is the shortest portion of the field. If you have a kid that only wants to hit the sideline then, north and south, it’s much easier to force him out of real estate.

5) Why don't more teams use the fullback and/or tight end more in the passing game? I ask this because the few times I see a fullback or tight end screen (for example), it usually picks up a nice chunk of yards.

I think this is something that is based on the individual coach. I am a true power-spread air raid guy. Prior to this season, I was a big believer in the TE being the number 6 lineman on the depth chart. We didn’t use a true TE or fullback. However, an H back was that guy for us. I am one that believes in sending all available receivers on a route and truly force the defense to cover every blade of grass. What the H was for us in the run game helped in passing concepts when he was on the field. Being 10P and now being more of 11P and even 20P, it has given us a lot of flexibility.

6) Every coach has a list of trick plays, or so I am told. How often are you guys able to practice running those plays?

I am really just now starting to look into trick plays. I’ve not been one that believed in trick plays. I’ve seen a lot more bad things that off-trick plays than good things. I’ve stayed away from them for the last 2 years. Moving forward, I would like to look more into trick plays or funky formations and have one ready for every game.

7) Staying with the play-calling theme, all coaches have certain plays they like to run in certain situations, but with everything on film today and easily accessible, do you find yourself trying to come up with new wrinkles to those plays or running a play you think will overwhelm the defense?

Partially yes and no. I am more of a rinse-and-repeat type of coach. For example, if power is my base play, I may rep power read, i may run 1 back power, or I may even attack a RPO to it. All of these have been in since the install period. Yes, there is a lot of film going around, but using different adjustments makes it easier on our players while making it look very different for the defense. I do think sometimes we can out-coach ourselves trying to out-coach the defense. I think the other part to this question is I am a believer that a team knows what is coming. Now you have the task of stopping it. While tags and adjustments are great, we have to be careful not to out-coach ourselves and put our players in a situation where they can’t execute.

8) What was the most satisfying thing about the 2022 season?

The most satisfying thing about the 2022 season is what we were able to accomplish. Many thought that we would lose 7 or 8 games. Not a lot of people believed in our ability as a staff and as a team. The only people that really believed in us were us. We were able to meet a milestone that hasn't been met in a while. Now we want to take another step next season and win a playoff game.

9) Where did you begin your coaching career?

I started helping coaches in 2009-2010 at the pee-wee level. At the time I didn't think it would be something I actually cared about. I stepped away for about 7 years until my son started playing flag football. From there I coached his pee-wee team for a few years and started coaching high school in 2019 at Northwest high school. From there I was at Hughes high school for a year and now at Wilmington HS.

10) What sport or sports did you play in high school and then at the college level?

I was a 3 sport athlete in high school. Football was my main sport. My father told me that I didn’t have to worry about working because I only have 1 opportunity to be in high school. Though I didn’t value high school or academics, I lost the opportunity to play ball at the next level. Thus, my love for the game now. I use it as a tool to motivate the young people I’m coaching and working with.

I guess it's obvious that I do enjoy your interviews. I've been meaning to ask you how do you determine who you are going to interview, being that you travel pretty good distances most of the time to do your interview.

I try and get coaches from the teams I have covered and from there if I catch them on Twitter or if they are in the high school football group that I am in on Facebook. After that, it is coaches from schools that I want to see. Right now I am sticking with Ohio only for the post season. I might try and do some post season with some players too.

Thank you. You do a very good job.