Game log · Week-by-week
2026 season · 2 games
| Wk | Opp | CAR | YDS | AVG | TD | LONG | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wk 1 | L 0-40@ Iowa | 8 | 16 | 2.0 | 0 | 5 | |
| Wk 2 | L 24-28vs Illinois State | 22 | 83 | 3.8 | 1 | 14 | Season-high 83 yds |
| Total | 30 | 99 | 2.9 | 1 | 14 |
#45
Telly Johnson Jr.
Telly Johnson Jr. has built a role at Northern Illinois the hard way, one season at a time.
5′11″ · 215 lb · Augusta, GA
CFB Index 46 · #162 of 326 RBsHigh confidenceReturning to Northern Illinois for 2026
CFB Index
A single number blending on-field production (an EPA-based value lane) with box-score output for this player's position.
0-100, scaled within each position's own cohort — not directly comparable across positions.
The numbers
99
rushing yards · 2026
1 TD · 3.3 per carry · 4 catches
2 games into 2026 so far -- Best game: 83 rush yds, 1 TD, 10 rec yds, vs Illinois State
His career numbers, season by seasonThe story
3 running back for Northern Illinois. 2026: 2 games with a box-score line.
- Signed as a 3-star recruit to Northern Illinois in 2024.
Telly Johnson Jr.
Filling the Shoesas of 2026-09-15
Telly Johnson Jr. is a cornerstone for Northern Illinois — measured against the line he joined.
99RUSH YDS1RUSH TD30CARRIES
Read the story so far
AI-generated narrative · may contain errors · not journalism · updated 2026-09-15
His career
He was on the field for 3 seasons. That is rarer than it sounds.
20246 games
- Signed with Northern Illinois3-star out of Hephzibah
Career arc
HS
Recruit
★★★
CFB
College
Northern Illinois
NFL
NFL Draft
—
Coaching lineage · 2024–2026
2 coaches2024–2025
Northern Illinois
2026era →
Rob Harley
Northern Illinois
Coaching transition mid-career: Thomas Hammock → Rob Harley. Worth noting in scheme + development context.
2026 snapshot
Season context · Team result + system
2024Northern Illinois8-5HC: Thomas Hammock · Run-leaning
2025Northern Illinois3-9HC: Thomas Hammock · Run-heavy, slow tempo
2026Northern Illinois0-2HC: Rob Harley · Run-leaning, slow tempo
Where this profile ranks vs the RB cohort
Box-score percentiles
High confidence
Concern: rush yards (0th percentile).
Box-score rates (7)
Percentiles versus same-position peers with enough snaps this season, based on box-score rates.
Splits & context
Splits
Per-game splits
Through 2 games: 49.5 YDS/g, 2.9 YPC, 0.5 TD/g — splits start at 3 games.
Supporting cast · Scheme
Staff and system around the player
Head Coach
Rob Harley
Scheme reads (pass share, tempo, sack rate) need at least 3 team games — 2 games in so far.
Awards
Player standing · 2026
Backup
On the two-deep and pushing for snaps.
Recognition
Roster2-deepStarterRecognizedEliteApex
2026 outlook
In the mix for All-Mountain West
Based on 2025: #8 of 30 Mid-American RBs — his program moves to the Mountain West for 2026
How the All-Mountain West estimate is computed
35% estimated, 95% confidence interval 31–38%. Base rate measured from players who finished at a comparable rank in their conference and came back the next season. It is an estimate from a small sample, not a forecast of this player. The base rate was measured on players who stayed in the same conference; this estimate is not adjusted for the move to the Mountain West.
Career stats
| Season | Team | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | Northern Illinois | 30 | 99 | 3.3 | 1 | -- |
| 2025 | Northern Illinois | 124 | 690 | 5.6 | 4 | -- |
| 2024 | Northern Illinois | 103 | 480 | 4.7 | 4 | -- |
| Career | 257 | 1,269 | 4.9 | 9 | -- |
| Season | Team | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | Northern Illinois | 4 | 13 | 3.2 | 0 | -- |
| 2025 | Northern Illinois | 16 | 97 | 6.1 | 0 | -- |
| 2024 | Northern Illinois | 2 | 3 | 1.5 | 0 | -- |
| Career | 22 | 113 | 5.1 | 0 | -- |
Signature plays
Signature plays · top plays by |EPA|
The plays that mattered most
- Week 2 · Illinois State · 4&2 · Q3 · EPA -4.00(08:39) No Huddle-Shotgun #45 T.Johnson Jr. rush middle for 1 yard loss to the ISU10 (#46 T.Niekamp; #76 V.Garcia), TURNOVER ON DOWNS
- Week 2 · Illinois State · 3&1 · Q4 · EPA +2.45(07:27) No Huddle-Shotgun #45 T.Johnson Jr. rush right for 1 yard gain to the ISU00 TOUCHDOWN, clock 07:24 PENALTY ISU Offside declined #33 J.Schlenhardt kick attempt good (H: #36 J.Ference, LS: #43 J.Evans)
- Week 2 · Illinois State · 3&4 · Q2 · EPA +1.52(01:05) No Huddle-Shotgun #45 T.Johnson Jr. rush middle for 5 yards gain to the ISU02 (#4 L.Brown; #14 M.Kaplan), 1ST DOWN
- Week 2 · Illinois State · 3&2 · Q2 · EPA +1.46(02:17) No Huddle-Shotgun #45 T.Johnson Jr. rush middle for 4 yards gain to the NIU47 (#76 V.Garcia; #97 A.Cannon), 1ST DOWN
- Week 2 · Illinois State · 1&10 · Q1 · EPA -1.19(05:53) No Huddle-Shotgun #45 T.Johnson Jr. rush middle for 3 yards loss to the NIU27 (#35 A.Corona; #46 T.Niekamp)
- Week 2 · Illinois State · 1&2 · Q2 · EPA -1.12(00:45) No Huddle-Shotgun #45 T.Johnson Jr. rush middle for 2 yards loss to the ISU04 (#14 M.Kaplan; #44 D.Niekamp)
- Week 2 · Illinois State · 1&10 · Q2 · EPA +0.93(11:10) No Huddle-Shotgun #45 T.Johnson Jr. rush middle for 10 yards gain to the NIU49 (#6 S.Oduma; #4 L.Brown), 1ST DOWN
- Week 2 · Illinois State · 2&4 · Q1 · EPA +0.69(14:27) No Huddle-Shotgun #45 T.Johnson Jr. rush middle for 6 yards gain to the NIU37 (#14 M.Kaplan; #6 S.Oduma), 1ST DOWN
- Week 2 · Illinois State · 1&10 · Q1 · EPA +0.69(06:20) No Huddle-Shotgun #5 T.Dickens pass complete short right to #45 T.Johnson Jr. caught at NIU25, for 10 yards to the NIU30 (#91 B.Harman; #3 J.Coleman), 1ST DOWN
- Week 1 · Iowa · 1&10 · Q3 · EPA -0.64(04:09) Shotgun #5 T.Dickens pass complete short right to #45 T.Johnson Jr. caught at NIU30, for 2 yards to the NIU38 (#20 T.Hudkins; #23 L.Van Kekerix)
Game log
How he plays
Play style
Does a little of everything without one standout trait.
CFB Index positional classification
2026 Outlook
Northern Illinois
2026 Depth chart
Projected starter
Running back · Northern Illinois
Returning around him
- 44% of 2024 offensive production back (Moderate turnover)
- Transfer portal: -15 net (7 in / 22 out)
2026 Award watch
No preseason watch lists yet (most drop June 15 – July 15)
Northern Illinois · Last season: 3-9 · Talent rank #126 · 2026 recruiting class #82
DNA match
Player DNA
Balanced Back
Plays within the scheme — consistent production without a dominant dimension.
RB
His 2025 production profile sits closest to Camryn Edwards’s 2023 season.
77%match
Matches Camryn on
EPA / carry (adj)
Total rush EPA (college ability)
Yards / carry
Differs from Camryn on
Yards / reception (lower)
Through 3 college seasons, his career arc tracks closest to Tyler Purdy’s path through James Madison.
98%match
Matches Tyler on
Height
Yards per carry
Weight
As a sophomore, his production profile tracks closest to Leo Pulalasi's sophomore season at Washington State (2024).
Matches Leo on
Total rush EPA (college ability)
Yards / carry
Weight
Differs from Leo on
Height (lower)
Recruiting rating (lower)
Player DNA
Players who play like Telly Johnson Jr.
The backfield · Northern Illinois
- #45Telly Johnson Jr.690 rushing yards · 2025
- #24Elijah Porter80 rushing yards · 2025
- #11Romelo Ware1 rushing yard · 2025
- #8Triston White1 game · 2026
- #30Da'sean Howardno box-score line yet
2 more on the roster · Northern Illinois team page
Stats from CFBD · ESPN · fan discourse. Every figure computed from source tables — not invented. Methodology