Inside The Panthers

Kenny Johnson Scores First Pitt Touchdown

The freshman wideout made an electric play to spark the Pitt Panthers
Stephen Thompson|
Kenny Johnson Scores First Pitt Touchdown
Kenny Johnson Scores First Pitt Touchdown

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Pittsburgh Panthers

PITTSBURGH -- Pitt Panthers freshman Kenny Johnson earned as much praise as anyone on the roster during training camp, but had been buried on the depth chart for the first three weeks of the season. 

But the Panthers finally found a way to get the ball in the electric freshman's hands and he rewarded them, taking a kickoff return 100 yards to the house for a touchdown - the first of his career - early in the third quarter. 

Johnson's special teams score was the first kickoff return touchdown since Israel Abanikanda took a kick back for 98 yards against Virginia in 2021, a win that clinched a Coastal Division title and eventually victorious trip to Charlotte for the ACC Championship game. It was also the first 100-yard kickoff return since Quadree Henderson did it against Miami in 2016. His burst was also the longest kickoff return from an ACC player this season. 

Johnson added two catches for 12 yards as the Panthers tried to battle back from a three-score deficit to the No. 17 Tar Heels in their ACC opener. 

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Stephen Thompson
STEPHEN THOMPSON

Stephen Thompson graduated with a bachelor's degree in communications and political science from Pitt in April 2022 after spending four years as a sports writer and editor at The Pitt News, the University of Pittsburgh's independent, student-run newspaper.  He primarily worked the Pitt men's basketball beat, and filled in on coverage of football, volleyball, softball, gymnastics and lacrosse, in addition to other sports as needed. His work at The Pitt News has won awards from the Pennsylvania News Media Association and Associated College Press.  During the spring and summer of 2021, Stephen interned for Pittsburgh Sports Now, covering baseball in western Pennsylvania. Hailing from Washington D.C., family ties have cultivated a love of Boston's professional teams and Pitt athletics, and a fascination with sports in general.  You can reach Stephen by email at stephenethompson00@gmail.com and follow him on Twitter. Read his latest work:

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