Jeremiah Johnson returns as UNI defensive coordinator after a year away: ‘This is home’

CEDAR FALLS — The proverbial “band” has gotten back together at 2501 Hudson Road.

After a report from ESPN’s Pete Thamel last Thursday, Northern Iowa football officially announced Tuesday the return of Jeremiah Johnson as the team’s defensive coordinator and linebackers coach.

Johnson, who spent the 2022 season at Kent State as the Golden Flashes defensive coordinator, joins Rick Nelson (offensive line) and Keelon Brookins (secondary) as former coaches who have been re-hired by head coach Mark Farley this offseason.

“(Rick) called me — actually before Coach Farley did — and said why don’t you come back here, let’s get the band back together? And I said, ‘shoot Nelly, if it’s you and me, it’s an 80s hair band as old as we are,” Johnson said. “I think Nelly called just to see if I would be interested in having a conversation with Coach (Farley).”

Johnson, whose previous stint with the Panthers dated from 2007-2021, revealed he and his family’s return to Cedar Falls and UNI has added to their closely held feelings for the town and program.

“I always knew that I loved this place, but sometimes maybe you take it for granted or whatever,” Johnson said. “When I came back in here (Monday) — it’s phenomenal.”

The pathway for his return to UNI began in December when Sean Lewis — Kent State’s former head coach who hired Johnson last offseason — left to become Deion Sanders’ offensive coordinator at Colorado.

After Kent State passed on incumbent offensive coordinator Andrew Sowder and hired Minnesota running backs coach Kenni Burns, Burns asked Johnson to stay on staff, but be reassigned as special teams coordinator. He initially agreed, but after calls from Nelson and Farley to return as the Panthers defensive play-caller, the conversation with his wife Nicki and children Lane and Drew was a quick one.

“I think (Farley) probably anticipated that he was going to have to recruit harder than he really (had to), but for us this is home,” Johnson said. “It would have been fun to stay (at Kent State) and do it again, but when Coach Lewis decided to leave, then I was like ‘man, what’s really the best thing for our family?’ Once (Farley) called, Nicki and I talked for about 15 seconds and said ‘let's do it.’”

Despite being away for only one season, the Lawrence, Kan., native said not having longtime colleagues Bryce Paup, D.J. Vokolek and Farley to lean on forced him to grow. Growth proven by the Golden Flashes improving from 106th to 31st in the FBS in adjusted run defense.

Beyond getting moved into his office, there isn’t much more for now that Johnson can speak to. He hasn’t yet been able to watch any of UNI’s games from this past season, but he knows two former Missouri Valley Football Conference honorees in Spencer Cuvelier and Bryce Flater will need to be replaced at linebacker.

Needless to say, there’s plenty to do between now and when spring practices begin on March 13.

There’s also big expectations for the 2023 season, but Johnson said that’s been the case ever since he first put on purple.

“Inside the program, the goal is never just to make the playoffs,” Johnson said. “The goal is to win the conference. The goal is to make a deep run and ultimately to win the (national championship). Over all the years we’d be really good in certain phases, but we were never able to put it all together, and hopefully this fall with the level of talent that we have on both sides of the football, hopefully we’ll be able to make a run and do some things that haven’t been done here for a long time.”