
Recruiting in-state high school players had been a subject for several weeks leading up to the Gopher menâs hoops job opening. It certainly came up during Ben Johnsonâs March 23 introductory press conference at the schoolâs Athletes Village.
Johnson told the small invited media contingent, including the MSR, âI canât do it by myself. It takes help. We want to do our jobâŠto keep those kids home.â
When we talked one-on-one later that day, Johnson spoke further on the recruiting subject. The Minneapolis native stated, âItâs our job to put out a product people can be proud of and a talent level people can enjoy watching.â
Attracting a lionâs share of Minnesota-born or -raised prep players isnât something new, but it remains a challenge for any Gopher coach. The stateâs largest university never had a lifetime lock on these players, especially Black players over the years.
Now, with NCAA restrictions still in place on recruiting on and off campus due to coronavirus protocols, âI think you got to be creative with our virtual game plan,â noted Johnson. âYou got to do a ton of Zooms. You got to be creative with your presentations. It is the new normal.â
Three years ago there were zero Black men coaching in the Big Ten. In less than two weeks, the conference now has three as Johnson joined Michiganâs Juwan Howard and Micah Shrewsberry, who Penn State introduced on Monday as its new menâs basketball coach.
Still, less than 20% of all Division I HCs are Black.
âGuys like myself havenât been offered these opportunities in the past,â said Johnson when the MSR asked him to briefly reflect on being the Gophersâ fourth Black MBB coach in school history and first Black head coach at the school since 2013. âThatâs the elephant in the room.â
Minnesota AD Mark Coyle later told us, âI canât tell you how great he wasâ in his interviews with Johnson. âI absolutely love his vision. He is going to give us every ounce of energy and everything he has.
âWe hired the best person for the job,â he said.
âIâm not Tubby [Smith] or Richard [Pitino],â said Johnson of his two immediate predecessors. âIâm myself. I got to be who I am.â
Many PWMs (primarily White media) have brought up the fact that this is Johnsonâs first head coaching job, but he has 15 years of coaching experience that include five seasons as a Minnesota assistant coach (2013-18), and he left a similar job after three seasons at Xavier (2018-21).
Johnson admitted interviewing for other head coaching jobs in the past. âIâve been on interviews where I thought that I absolutely crushed it, thereâs no way Iâm not getting this job. And I didnât get it,â he recalled. Although he ultimately got the winning call from Coyle, Johnson said he was prepared for the worst. âI had a little sense of calm because I knew there was nothing more that I could have done. I thought [the interview] was convincing. I was confident and at ease.â
He said heâs a better coach now than a few years ago and ready to run his own program. âIf I had become an HC five years ago, I donât know if I would have been successful.
âWith age comes growth. Because of what I learned over those five years, I am confident.â And ready. âWe got to do it the right way.â
Breaking news: Indiana announced Sunday they’re hiring a longtime Black NBA assistant as their new men’s basketball coach.
Charles Hallman is a contributing reporter and award-winning sports columnist at the Minnesota Spokesman-Recorder.