Four-Star Signee Jeremiah Johnson Reaffirms Commitment to Oklahoma State after Coaching Change

A coaching change isn’t going to keep Jeremiah Johnson away from Stillwater.

Johnson told PFB on Monday that he is sticking with his commitment to Oklahoma State after the program fired Mike Boynton and hired Steve Lutz. Johnson is ranked as highly as the No. 133 player (Rivals) in the 2024 recruiting class after spending this past season at Phoenix Prep and with the Diamond Doves in the Overtime Elite league.

“When I came to Oklahoma State, of course I came for who was coaching, but I also came for the community and just wanting to play in an Oklahoma State jersey, just wanting to always do that,” Johnson told PFB. “And also Coach (Keiton) Page is here also, so even with the new coach coming in, me and Coach Page got a good relationship with each other to where I know even with a new coach coming in, I know that I’m going to still get treated the right way.”

Keiton Page being retained on Lutz’s staff was thought to be a big deal as it pertains to in-state recruiting, and Johnson sticking with Oklahoma State certainly backs up that theory. Johnson is an Oklahoman, having played high school ball with Putnam City North and Norman North before heading out to Wasatch Academy in Utah and then the aforementioned opportunity in the Overtime Elite league.

“[Page staying on staff] was real big just because of the fact that like, he’s been recruiting me since middle school, really,” Johnson said. “So just knowing that if Coach Page is genuinely trusting the new coach, then I should, too.”

Johnson averaged 18.7 points a game in the Overtime Elite league, making him the league’s sixth-leading scorer. He did that while averaging 4.9 rebounds, 4.2 assists and 1.5 steals a game. He put up a season-high 29 points in a December game, going 9-for-13 from the field. He also had 10 rebounds, three assists and three steals in that contest.

Boynton provided Johnson his first college offer, doing so all the way back in July of 2020. He then garnered offers from OU, Texas, Illinois, Texas Tech, Arkansas, TCU and others. He committed to OSU back in September and signed with the Cowboys during the early window in November.

Johnson said Lutz reached out within a week of being appointed and had been in to watch Johnson work out. But it wasn’t the first time the two crossed paths. Johnson said Lutz recruited him when Lutz was an assistant at Purdue, making the coaching transition a little easier.

“The crazy thing is when he used to be an assistant at Purdue, he recruited me to come to Purdue,” Johnson said. “So I already kind of know him a little bit by the fact that he’s kind of been recruiting me, too, since I was younger. So, we already have somewhat of a relationship basketball-wise, so now just him learning my game more and more and also just learning me as a person, too. It’s going great so far. He’s came to a couple workouts already and just interacted with me. We text all the time.”

So, Johnson is one of four players currently on OSU’s roster — joining Bryce Thompson, Jamyron Keller and Connor Dow — after five players entered the transfer portal and three more exhausted their eligibility.