A relatively new recruiting process can still be fast-moving, which is the case with Chris Johnson II. It's only been a couple of months since the initial contact was established with the Aledo, Tex. defensive back, and in turn, not only did he unofficially visit Tempe a couple of weeks ago but now has the Sun Devils as one of the most serious contenders for his services.

“I really like talking to Coach BC (cornerbacks coach Bryan Carrington) a lot,” Johnson said. “I stay in touch with him on the daily, and I also talk with coach (Isaiah) Williams, the recruiting coordinator. I talk frequently with coach Dillingham. So, I keep in touch with all of them a lot.

“Coach Carrington is on the younger side, and I can relate to him a little bit more. He’s more energized. I don’t really like coaches that are laid back. I’m someone who comes with a lot of energy. So, it’s just really cool to have a coach who recruits you that has all that energy.”

The 6-foot-1, 175-pound Johnson plays for the 5A D1 Texas State champion Bearcats. In that 2022 season, he posted 29.5 tackles, two for loss, as well as two interceptions and two fumble recoveries. He was named second-team All-District following that campaign.

“Coach Carrington said that I’m No. 1 on his board,” Johnson remarked. “He said that I’m the overall best guy for it for his room. He just likes everything about my game. He likes how I hit, play man and off-man, play zone, and all of that. Last year was my first one on Varsity, and I improved on playing more man and more disguised coverages. So, I feel like I’ve really grown in that aspect of the game. In my senior year, I definitely want to get more interceptions. I’ve been working on my speed this offseason, running track, and hopefully, I can display my speed a little bit more in the open field.”

Johnson said that Arizona State offered him in January when Carrington was recruiting the Fort Worth area and ventured to Aledo, which is located some 20 miles from there. The defensive back said that the communication from the Sun Devils was a pleasant surprise.

“He said that he was planning on getting on the plane to go back (to ASU),” Johnson recalled, “but when he saw my film, he decided to stay an extra day and come visit my high school. I don’t even know how he got my number (laughs), but he came down to my school, and my coach called me into the office after he (Carrington) left and told me that Arizona State had offered me. So ever since January, we’ve been keeping in close connection, and it just grew from there.

“The first time I talked to him, he taught me something. He said, ‘Don’t chase logos; chase people.” That really stuck with me, and I felt I could learn a lot from him. I see him as a leader and a friend at the same time, and that’s really cool.”

That recent but formidable recruiting relationship Johnson and Carrington built led to Tempe being one of the first unofficial visits the Lone Star State prospect scheduled.

“I told coach Carrington that before any other offers came,” Johnson stated, “that I was gonna come down there as soon as possible. With a busy school schedule and running track every week when I had a week off, I knew I had to make that trip out there. I loved the campus, and it’s a really pretty campus. The staff was showing me around, I was hanging out with the DB’s on their off time, and they were showing me the dorms; the city and the vibe around Tempe is way different than some other colleges I visited. I really liked that a lot.

“I definitely liked the energy in practice. They caries that for the whole practice and never let their foot off the gas. The energy coach Dillingham has is something everyone said that it was a whole different energy than the old coaching staff had at Arizona State. If the players didn’t run out between breaks and huddles, he makes them go back and do it again. I really love that high energy is required because I love bringing the energy.

"When I talked to coach Dillingham, he said the same thing coach BC said and that he really wants me there. I know they want me there really bad, and they have very high on my board. My biggest question is always, because coaches move around a lot, is how long do they (coaches) see themselves staying there? Coach Dillingham said that his whole family lives near Tempe, and he went to Arizona State and said, no matter what, he’s staying there. I asked coach BC the same question, and he said he could see himself there for my four years if I went there. So, as long as those coaches are there, they’re always gonna be on my board.”

Johnson’s father, Chris Johnson, who was on the ASU visit, is an NFL veteran cornerback who played in the league for ten years, mostly with the then-Oakland Raiders and later with the Baltimore Ravens, where he won a Super Bowl. Needless to say, the Arizona State prospect is thankful to have his dad as an invaluable resource both in his personal development as a player, as well as navigating the recruiting process.

“He’s definitely dug into me because, at first, I wanted to play basketball,” Johnson said. “Middle school and high school freshman year, I didn’t play football. My sophomore year, I was getting back into football, and he saw something in me that I truly didn’t even see in myself. So, he dug into me more than I dug into myself in my sophomore year. And that’s why I see a progression, and I picked up where I left off.

“At the end of the visit, he was really high on Arizona State like I am.”

Arkansas is another school that Johnson recently visited unofficially, and Louisville is another college he plans to check out during the spring; both schools who, along with Arizona State, have extended offers.

“I definitely plan on having an official visit out to Arizona State and an official out to Arkansas,” Johnson noted. “Those are the two officials I have set as of right now. I plan on committing before the football season. When I make my decision, I’m definitely going to look at aspects outside of just football. My dad tells me that with one play, your football can be over, and then you go from being the star player at the university to becoming a normal guy.

“I’m gonna go to a college where coaches can still do things for me other than football and who see me as more of a man who can get my degree. Being a football player is still important but not as important as turning me into a man and getting my degree.”

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