LSU coach Jay Johnson matches wits with former high school teammate in midweek game

Tuesday night’s game not only marked the first matchup between LSU and Central Arkansas but also represented a dream come true for LSU coach Jay Johnson and Central Arkansas coach Nick Harlan.

The last time Harlan and Johnson had shared a baseball field was in 1995, when they were both infielders for the Oroville High School Tigers in northern California.

Then 28 years later, they both somehow ended up down south coaching against each other in a midweek game.

“I still remember taking groundballs together at the old practice field right across the street from the high school,” Harlan said. “Honestly, what I remember the most as a young kid was how passionate he was about what he did. Whether it was football, basketball and baseball, he was just the ultimate competitor.”

Johnson and Harlan are in only their second years as head coach of their programs, but Harlan spent six years prior as an assistant coach at Central Arkansas. But his coaching journey, like Johnson’s, began at a community college in California — his at Feather River Community College while Johnson went to Shasta Community College.

Johnson’s dad, Jerry, was the head football coach at Oroville who also coached track and field and baseball, among other sports. Harlan attributes much of his success to the fundamentals of coaching he learned during their time living in a small, blue-collar California town.

“Jay’s dad was awesome, a really good coach for football and baseball and track, and we both played for Scott Johnson, who was a really good baseball coach,” Harlan said. “I actually talked to him today — he preached fundamentals and a lot of his teachings I still apply today.”

Johnson tries to give his team an RPI boost when building a schedule. While Harlan and Johnson are close, both of them view each other as a worthy midweek opponent.

“I know he’s a good coach and I figured they’d win games,” Johnson said. “He was at York in Nebraska, and I think he got down to the NAIA World Series and won a bunch of conference championships. He’s one of those guys who is great at what he does, and he’s a great person.”