HARRISONBURG – The belief Cole Johnson clings to keeps him at James Madison.
“I do think eventually I’ll be the starter here,” the Dukes redshirt junior quarterback said.
It likely won’t be Aug. 31 when JMU opens its 2019 campaign at West Virginia – returning starter Ben DiNucci has taken the majority of first-team reps through two weeks of training camp.
So earning the starting role might never come this season for Johnson, who has served as the primary backup for the past three years, but he said by the time he graduates he thinks he will have played as the top quarterback for the Dukes.
“That’s my motivation,” Johnson said. “I’ll always work to improve, so when it’s my time I’ll be ready.”
Both DiNucci and first-year Madison coach Curt Cignetti have praised Johnson for his efforts in practice this month whether his snaps have come with the first- or second-team offenses.
“Cole has done a great job this camp in terms of pushing me and you can see it out there,” DiNucci said.
About Johnson, Cignetti said: “He’s a lot better runner than he’s given credit for being. He’s an excellent down-the-field thrower. He throws the intermediate and deep ball extremely well. He makes good decisions and he does not get flustered. And he’s done a really nice job in the 2-minute drills when he’s had those opportunities and I have 100 percent confidence in him.”
With Johnson’s skill set growing to a greater level, but DiNucci, an All-Colonial Athletic Association choice last year with FBS starting experience under his belt, ahead, the Cox High School grad, Johnson, could’ve looked to play elsewhere and no one would’ve blamed him. There are probably other FCS programs that gladly would add Johnson to their roster.
And for quarterbacks, it’s not rare to explore options if they’ve lost a position battle or the playing time they wanted didn’t come to fruition. More than 80 quarterbacks at FBS and FCS levels transferred from one school to another this offseason.
“It’s always crossed my mind,” Johnson admitted. “But it’s the more selfish ego in my mind. I think it’s hard to leave all my guys, but you think about [leaving]. It goes through your mind. But I’m happy with my decision. I was able to redshirt last year, so I still have two more years.”
Johnson enters his fourth season in the program having played in 14 games and started one. His lone start came in the regular-season finale of 2016 and he threw for 274 yards and two touchdowns while filling in for injured former starter Bryan Schor.
“It’s just so crazy at the position because there is only one quarterback on the field,” Johnson said. “Everybody wants to be the guy and that’s hard.
“So a lot of the quarterbacks, you see them not start the first year they’re at a school and they’re already transferring.”
Johnson said his pursuit of earning the starting job, enjoying his teammates and being happy on campus at JMU has always outweighed the idea of resetting at another school.
“My family I lean on,” Johnson said. “My brother plays football at VMI and then my sister plays volleyball at Duke, and they’re going through the same thing. They’re competing for their spots and it’s hard, and it’s something in college athletics that’s different.
“In high school, you know you’re going to play, but college athletics is cutthroat and competitive. And I like it because you’re always competing to be the best, but if I’m feeling down, I can call my parents and they’ll help me through it, so you go through some of those days.”
He said he also remembers advice Schor, a former CAA Offensive Player of the Year and national-title winning quarterback, passed along before Johnson embarked on his quest to become the starter early last year.
“[Schor] sent me a text and it said, ‘When you go out there, don’t worry about if you make a good throw and Ben makes a bad throw,’” Johnson said. “‘That’s not what you should be worried about. You should be worried about improving yourself every single day and being the best version of yourself.’ And that’s what Bryan did. When he had to compete for his position, he worked on improving himself and worried about himself, making himself better and making the team better. So that’s what I’ve really focused on.”
Johnson said one reason he has faith in himself to elevate to the No. 1 role is because he fits what Cignetti and first-year offensive coordinator Shane Montgomery want to do offensively.
“There’s a little bit of running with the quarterback, but I don’t think it’s too much,” Johnson said. “It’s not strictly a running offense, and it uses everything that the defense is doing and tries to exploit what [the defense] is leaving open. So I think it’s been really good and it uses the quarterback’s mind to be able to check and audible as much as they can and make the right read.”
The Virginia Beach native said he’s studied the system and that he thinks he’d be able to execute well in a game regardless of when that time comes.
“I just look at it as I’ll be the best version of myself,” Johnson said, “and help this team win as much as I can to achieve that national championship again and win that CAA championship again.”
