Jamari Johnson

Updated October 24, 2026 | Sources: ESPN box scores; USC Athletics box score; GoDucks.com

Availability Jamari Johnson is currently listed Available. The full picture, with who said what and when, is on the injury report.

At USC (Sept 26, 2026): Johnson was a game-time decision on Oregon's gameday availability report after missing two straight games, a late scratch at Oklahoma State and out against Portland State. He started (official box score) and led Oregon with 7 catches for 119 yards, including a 37-yarder from Dante Moore on the second-quarter touchdown drive and a 34-yarder from Dylan Raiola on 3rd and 9. His status is on the injury tracker. Sources: ESPN box score and play-by-play (Sept 26, 2026); USC Athletics official box score; Big Ten gameday availability report (Sept 26, 2026). In the opener against Boise State he caught 4 for 57, and his 27-yard touchdown from Dante Moore with 19 seconds left in the first half cut the deficit to 17-14. That makes 11 catches, 176 yards and a touchdown in the two games he has played. While he was out, Andrew Olesh played 48 snaps in each game and freshman Kendre Harrison went from 12 snaps to 39 with his first career touchdown. Sources: ESPN box scores (Sept 5 to 26, 2026); snap counts, Ducks Wire / Yahoo Sports (Sept 14 and Sept 19, 2026). Johnson is the TE1 after Kenyon Sadiq went R1/16 to the Jets. The Louisville transfer (13/158/1 as a redshirt freshman in 2024) played all 15 games in his first Oregon season with 10 starts and put up 32 catches, 510 yards and 3 TDs, sixth in single-season Oregon tight end history for receiving yards, with All-Big Ten honorable mention from the coaches. He turned down the 2026 NFL Draft to come back, and made the Walter Camp preseason All-America second team.

Week 8 at Illinois, Oct 24, 2026

Started at tight end at Illinois and caught 7 passes for 69 yards, including catches of 16 and 22 on the first two snaps of Oregon's last field-goal drive.

Oregon Athletics official box score; ESPN play-by-play, Oct 24, 2026

7-119

at USC, Sept 26

Led Oregon in receiving

12-189-1

2026, through UCLA

Two games played

32/510/3

2025 (Oregon)

15.9 ypc, 6th in single-season TE history

HM

All-Big Ten 2025

Coaches honorable mention

The Sadiq Successor

Kenyon Sadiq was the highest-drafted Oregon tight end since Russ Francis in 1975 (R1/16 to the Jets, April 2026). Johnson does not have to be Sadiq, and at USC he showed what he is instead: a big target the quarterbacks look for when the down matters. Two of his seven catches came on third down, and the 34-yarder on 3rd and 9 moved the chains. Another catch, a 33-yarder to the USC 1 just before halftime, was wiped out by a holding call. Sadiq was the vertical seam threat; Johnson averaged 15.9 yards a catch in 2025 and 17.0 at USC, so he stretches the field too, just from a different spot.

The Tight End Room Without Him

Johnson missed Oklahoma State and Portland State, and the room held. Andrew Olesh played 48 snaps in each game and caught a touchdown against Portland State. Five-star freshman Kendre Harrison (6-7, 243) jumped from 12 snaps at Oklahoma State to 39 against Portland State, with 4 catches for 53 and his first career touchdown. Harrison was also a game-time decision for USC, played, and did not record a catch. Our read: Johnson is TE1 again, and Olesh and Harrison give Oregon two real options behind him.

Why He Came Back

Johnson had the option to declare for the 2026 NFL Draft and explored it. He chose another season in Eugene as the clear TE1, and the preseason lists noticed: the Walter Camp All-America second team, plus the Mackey and Lombardi watch lists. A 119-yard game on the road in the Big Ten opener is the kind of tape that decision was for.

Watch List for 2026

1

Availability: he was a game-time decision for USC. His current status is on the injury tracker.

2

Third-down targets: two of his seven catches at USC came on third down, and one moved the chains.

3

Snap share with Olesh and Harrison once post-USC snap counts are published.

4

Red zone: Sadiq caught 8 touchdowns in 2025. Johnson has 1 in two games.

5

Block grade: TE1 in this offense has to be at least average in the run game.

Frequently Asked Questions

He led Oregon with 7 catches for 119 yards, including a 37-yard catch and a 34-yard catch on 3rd and 9, after being listed a game-time decision and missing the previous two games.

He missed Oklahoma State and Portland State, was a game-time decision for USC, then played and led the team in receiving. His current status is on the injury tracker.

Johnson had 32 receptions for 510 yards and 3 TDs in his first Oregon season (2025), averaging 15.9 yards per catch. His 510 yards rank 6th in Oregon single-season TE history. He was named coaches' All-Big Ten honorable mention.

Johnson explored the draft but chose to return to Oregon. With Kenyon Sadiq off to the Jets, Johnson took over as TE1, and he opened 2026 on the Walter Camp preseason All-America second team.

Johnson redshirted his true freshman season at Louisville in 2023, played as a redshirt freshman in 2024 (13 catches, 158 yards, 1 TD), then transferred to Oregon for 2025.