By: D. Scott Fritchen
"Give me a yell and then flex your biceps!" the videographer says inside a dark makeshift studio at Allegiant Stadium.
"Ahhhhh!" Avery Johnson yells, flexing for the camera.
Johnson stands in his purple Kansas State jersey, the white No. 2 proudly beaming from his chest. The sophomore quarterback stands upon a green carpet. He tosses a football into the air, catches it, tosses it again wearing a carefree smile as golden locks dance across the back of his jersey.
"This is pretty cool," Johnson says, leaving the video studio. "Cool experience.
"Every step is new for Johnson along this path as he shuffles in and out of similar makeshift studios at Big 12 Football Media Day inside the NFL stadium in Las Vegas, Nevada. It's 9:03 a.m. Time is precious. Must stay on schedule. He ducks into one room, and another, where cameras await his arrival.
Now, it's 10:34 a.m. and Johnson finds himself in a chair under a spotlight. The man behind the camera asks him his favorite pregame meal (steak and pasta), his favorite Halloween candy (Twix and Snickers), his secret talent (math), and Johnson answers each inquiry without batting an eye. He smiles. This is fun.
Next, he's taken onto the football field to radio row and takes a seat besides two hosts.
"How excited are you for the upcoming season?" one of the hosts asks?
"Man," Johnson replies, "I'm really excited.
"It's 11:34 a.m. and Johnson sits in a studio where an employee at a major TV network pelts him with questions. Finally, the host asks one of the questions on everybody's mind: "You guys are one of the favorites in the new Big 12. What mentality are you bringing into this season?
"Unhesitatingly, Johnson replies, "The same mentality you have to bring each and every week: Attacking each week like a one-week season and not looking too far ahead. We're trying to ignore the predictions and just try to focus on what's going on inside our walls."
Johnson, 19, appears mature beyond his years at his first Big 12 Football Media Day. He appears comfortable. He wears a gray suit, purple pocket square, white dress shirt, and white sneakers. He's thoughtful. He's direct. He's without a doubt the star of the show.
It's precisely what K-State head coach Chris Klieman envisioned when he recruited Johnson, one of the nation's top quarterbacks, out of Maize, Kansas.
"I told him when we recruited him that he was going to be the face of the program, and it came up late in his first year where he ended up truly being the face," Klieman says. "I'm excited because he's taken that mantle really well, and for a young player he's been a great, great leader.
"It becomes most evident at 3:05 p.m. when a throng of reporters surround Johnson. The face of the program is mature beyond his years.
How does Johnson plan to deal with outside expectations as one of the top playmakers in the Big 12 this season?
"You have to carry yourself with some sort of humble confidence and know I'm no better than anybody else, but in my head believe I'm the best player on the field," he says. "It's about working and ultimately having the utmost confidence in yourself and the players around you to know you're going to execute whenever the play is called."
Johnson assuredly rises to the challenge when called to execute. He arrived at K-State last spring as the top dual-threat passer in the Class of 2023 and the first Elite 11 quarterback to sign with K-State since Josh Freeman in 2005. Last season, he saw time in eight games with two starts, completing 56.1% (37-of-66) of his passes for 479 yards and five touchdowns and no interceptions. He rushed 52 times for 296 yards (5.7 yards per attempt) with seven touchdowns, the most by a true freshman quarterback in 2023. Just the fifth true freshman to start at quarterback in K-State history, the 6-foot-2, 192-pounder made his first true start at quarterback while leading the Wildcats to a 28-19 win over NC State in the Pop-Tarts Bowl. He threw for 178 yards and two touchdowns and added 71 rushing yards and a score to earn game MVP honors in the bowl victory.
His breakout performance arrived when he came off the sideline to rush for a school record-tying five touchdowns in a 38-21 win at Texas Tech. It marked the most rushing touchdowns by any true freshman since Samaje Perine had five against Kansas in 2014 and the most by any true freshman quarterback since at least 1995.
"He had an 'it' factor," Klieman says. "You can tell the guys who have an 'it' factor. There's a confidence but not arrogance and he was confident, and I knew that. I believe it and he believes that he should be the best quarterback in this league. Now we have to go out and prove it but there's a belief that's there.
"How much has the game slowed down since last season?"
It's definitely a lot slower," Johnson says. "When I first stepped on campus that first spring practice, things were all over the place and flying around for me. Definitely, I feel like I took big strides this spring already knowing the offense and deepening my knowledge of the offense. Even as the season went on, the game slowed down. Preparation was a big role in that."
Klieman lauds Johnson's maturity and competitiveness.
"He's always had a great maturity about him, but he's a humble guy and works his tail off," Klieman says. "He's the best competitor I've been around since Easton Stick, who was at North Dakota State for five years and is now with the Chargers. Avery is that kind of competitor. If you come out and watch a morning run, he's not losing any of the competition drills, he's not losing any of the races, and he finishes first in everything he does, and he brings his teammates and says, 'Stay on top with me,' because he wants to be the best.
"He's hard-working, humble kid who has huge goals but I'm excited because he has those habits that would allow him to reach those goals.
"Somebody asks Johnson about proving his ability to the world. Johnson replies, "I know what I'm capable of doing and everybody in our facility knows what I'm capable of doing. At the end of the day, it's just going out there and playing my game and not trying to do too much.
"But Klieman and Johnson expect his game to expand during his first year as a full-time starter. Already Johnson has formed a tight relationship with new quarterbacks coach Matt Wells, the former Texas Tech head coach who developed Jordan Love while at Utah State. Wells brings more than 25 years of coaching experience and will serve as associate head coach and co-offensive coordinator with Conor Riley, the longtime offensive line coach who enters his first year as offensive coordinator.
"When they were going through the process of picking a (quarterbacks) coach I got on the phone with Coach Wells and we clicked right away," Johnson says. "I spent all of January all the way until spring ball in his office chopping it up and watching ball and he's definitely helped me grow as a leader and as a person and as a quarterback as well."
Part of the mission this season? Simple.
"Just proving to everybody that I'm a passer and I don't just run the ball," Johnson says. "I can stay in the pocket. I worked a lot this spring on pocket presence and not getting too happy-feet and get outside of the pocket. I'm excited to showcase that ability.
"It's been 194 days since K-State played in the Pop-Tarts Bowl. To some, it might seem like a small lifetime ago, but…"It doesn't feel too long ago," Johnson says. "The summer has gone by really fast and next season is already about to be here. Everything is kind of speeding by right now.
"Yet after an early-morning flight from Manhattan to Las Vegas, and after walking some eight miles back-and-forth across the football field and in the TV studios at Big 12 Football Media Days, Johnson's day finishes sitting in front of a Powercat backdrop at Allegiant Stadium. He and Klieman and his teammates will soon board a shuttle and ride to the airport to their awaiting jet to fly back to the Little Apple.
But not before this: Johnson, the face of the program, and a quarterback who's in the conversation for the Heisman Trophy, is asked about his individual goals for the 2024 season. "To be honest, I want to win the Big 12 Championship, I want to go undefeated, and I want to play for a College Football Championship," he says. "All the other goals will fall into place.
"Someday soon, Johnson will flex for the camera again. This time likely after scoring a touchdown. The K-State crowd will erupt.
And Johnson, the pride of the Sunflower State, might let out a yell that is heard across the college football nation.