Notre Dame S Tae Johnson Undergoes Foot Surgery
Notre Dame freshman safety Tae Johnson will miss an extended period of time with a foot injury he suffered during practice per a university release.
The Fort Wayne native had surgery last week to correct the fifth metatarsal injury with Dr. Thomas Bemenderfer.
Johnson, who played just about every position in high school, was spoken highly of by Notre Dame staff during fall camp.
Irish defensive coordinator Al Golden felt the 6-foot-2, 175-pounder was on the right track coming out of fall camp.
“Tae has really made a lot of progress,” stated Golden. “Tae cares about it. He really wants to do better and he’s trying to improve. It’s just a challenge back there when you’re young. Again, we’re building it for the long haul.”
Defensive backs coach Mike Mickens was also encouraged by Johnson’s fall camp as his athleticism was starting to show itself as he got more comfortable in the position.
“He’s coming along great,” said Mickens. “He’s a quick learner, very athletic. This is his 13th practice, so he’s hitting his stride and getting comfortable with the defense and the schemes and the techniques. I’m very, very pleased with what we’re seeing so far.”
Johnson didn’t figure to be in the rotation this season as several experienced players, including All-American Xavier Watts, were in front of him. The most significant loss will be the reps Johnson will miss as he needed to learn and master the position this fall to put himself in a strong position for spring ball.
“He's done well,” stated defensive backs assistant Mary Biagi. “He's had a really good camp. We've been really impressed with what he's been able to do. Again, learning the playbook is something that we just want to continue to make sure he made huge strides in fall camp and has been doing well on special teams.”
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