{"id":722646,"date":"2026-06-08T08:28:22","date_gmt":"2026-06-08T08:28:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/722646\/"},"modified":"2026-06-08T08:28:22","modified_gmt":"2026-06-08T08:28:22","slug":"from-player-to-coach-micah-johnson-enjoying-new-role-with-roughriders","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/722646\/","title":{"rendered":"From player to coach, Micah Johnson enjoying new role with Roughriders"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a>Heywood Yu\/Regina Leader-Post Saskatchewan Roughriders defensive line coach Micah Johnson looks on during training camp at Mosaic Stadium in Regina, on Monday, May 25, 2026. <\/p>\n

Taylor Shire<\/p>\n

Regina Leader-Post<\/p>\n

Old habits die hard for Micah Johnson.<\/p>\n

Before the Saskatchewan Roughriders took the field in pre-season action last month during training camp, the former defensive tackle, who now serves as Saskatchewan\u2019s defensive line coach, was still preparing as if he were playing.<\/p>\n

\u201cI will share this and he\u2019ll probably be mad, but I don\u2019t care,\u201d Roughriders head coach Corey Mace prefaced his answer when asked about Johnson\u2019s adjustment to coaching during training camp last week. \u201cThe pre-season game, he\u2019s still got his headphones in like he\u2019s getting hyped.<\/p>\n

\u201cBut that\u2019s just who he\u2019s always been and how he is and that\u2019s how his group is going to be wired, which is awesome.\u201d<\/p>\n

Johnson admits \u201cgetting hyped\u201d by listening to music before games is a habit that\u2019s been hard to break after a 13-year CFL career.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s a lot of little things like that I\u2019ve got to break myself of,\u201d he chuckled. \u201cJust that energy before games (and to remember) you can chill out, right? All you\u2019re going to be doing is signalling (plays).<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve always been that type of guy to get in a different mindset when it comes to the game. (Coaching) is like that but it\u2019s just putting your energy in different places now, and that\u2019s what I\u2019m kind of learning and understanding.\u201d<\/p>\n

After receiving his fifth career CFL all-star nod at defensive tackle, Johnson, 37, believed he still had more in the tank when it came to playing another season.<\/p>\n

However, he was presented with an opportunity from Mace this off-season to retire and become the team\u2019s defensive line coach, which is ultimately a role he accepted.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s been really cool to see,\u201d said Mace, a former defensive lineman himself. \u201cHe\u2019s passionate about his craft and about his players\u2019 craft.<\/p>\n

\u201cSuper selfless guy. He understands how to coach guys not just as a blanket, but individually reach guys to play off of their strengths.\u201d<\/p>\n

Johnson said the biggest adjustment, aside from not blasting music in his headphones before games, has just been \u201cletting go\u201d of that players\u2019 mindset.<\/p>\n

\u201cFor me, last year when we walked off the field with the Grey Cup, I wasn\u2019t thinking it was going to be my last year, but obviously the opportunity presented yourself,\u201d said Johnson. \u201cIt\u2019s been real fun, especially since camp started, getting up with the guys and getting them rolling.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt feels crazy not being sore at all. I\u2019m not used to that \u2026 But it just kind of changes from physical to mental at this point.\u201d<\/p>\n

Johnson is now leading a group that has undergone some change this off-season as Mike Rose is the only returning starter from the Grey Cup still along the defensive line after Malik Carney and Habakkuk Baldonado left in free agency.<\/p>\n

However, Saskatchewan still has a group of returning players hoping for a larger role including Caleb Sanders, Ali Saad and Kendy Charles, while the club also added CFL veterans James Vaughters and Devin Adams this off-season. The Green and White also have American rookies Desmond Evans, Justin Weaver and Jaylen Pate, who were the three to make the roster following Saturday\u2019s cuts. Saskatchewan\u2019s defensive line group is rounded out by Canadians Lake Korte-Moore and Benoit Marion, who are both beginning the season on the injured list, while Liam Hoskins will start the year on the practice roster.<\/p>\n

\u201cI was big on the details,\u201d said Johnson, a three-time Grey Cup champion and seven-time divisional all-star who recorded 309 tackles and 71 sacks in his CFL career. \u201cI was big on film study. I was super big on understanding your opponent, and I\u2019m just kind of trying to relay that to the guys.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think a lot of people always look to me and look at the physical aspect of it, but it was so much mental that came to my game too. So just bringing the details to the guys and having to think the game the right way, I think it makes all the difference.\u201d<\/p>\n

And while he knows the position inside and out, he is still a rookie in the coaching ranks who is not afraid to ask questions.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf he doesn\u2019t have the answer, he\u2019s not too hard-headed to feel like he\u2019s got to just come up with something,\u201d said Mace, whose Roughriders begin the season on June 13 against the B.C. Lions. \u201cHe\u2019ll say, \u2018Hey, what do I got to do here?\u2019<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd that\u2019s the right thing to do, so that he can get led in the right direction, and he can steer his guys in the right direction as well.\u201d<\/p>\n

tshire@postmedia.com<\/p>\n

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