Sacred Heart Prep of Atherton's Liam Johnson: Boys' Soccer Player of the Year

A four-year varsity starter for Sacred Heart Prep, the University of Santa Clara-bound Johnson has shown over the last four years he is adept at playing any position for the Gators. His freshman season he was a center defensive back. He took on more of defensive midfield role sophomore year, transitioned to an offensive midfielder last season and this season featured as a striker for the Gators.

The move paid off as Johnson scored 24 goals and added 20 assists as SHP finished the 2019-2020 with a record of 20-2-2, advanced to the Central Coast Section Open Division championship game and the semifinals of the Northern California Division I tournament.

“It sucks to defend against him. He’s 5-10, but thick. He’s good in the air, timing is really good and he’s really quick and explosive,” said SHP co-head coach Armando Del Rio. “He is a nightmare to defend. He has excellent dribbling ability, can strike (shots) left, can strike right (footed), and he’s strong.”

Johnson has taken a little bit from all the positions he has played to turn himself into one of the best all-around players in the Bay Area. In addition to his offensive prowess for the Gators, he also plays right back for his club team, which is the position he will play at Santa Clara. All that time playing defense has translated into a strong offensive instincts as well.

“A lot of things I do in attack, I see them doing against me (as a defender),” Johnson said. “It allows me to understand, ‘If I was there, where would I be (positioned)?’ [Playing multiple positions] does help me understand other [positions’] mindsets, which helps me become a more well-rounded and high-IQ player.”

Del Rio puts in a lot more succinctly.

“He’s like a coach who is in the game,” Del Rio said. “The fact he was a center back and then turned into a right back, in addition to midfield … he knows exactly what he can do and what the defense in struggling with.”

What makes Johnson so lethal is that fact that even as a striker, he has more than one way to beat you. He can either play as a target forward, one who chases after through passes, or he can drop more central to receive the ball and make runs at the defense.

“He’s the perfect false (No.) 9 — essentially a player who can be up there as a central target, but actually can come back to the ball,” Del Rio said. “[Defenders] don’t know if they should follow him inside or stay put, so it creates a lot of confusion (for opposing defenses).”

As lethal and dominant Johnson has been at times this season, he recognizes that he can’t do it without the help of his teammates, especially fellow striker Kyle Nilsson, a junior. The two developed such a chemistry that they know what the other is doing and will trade off being the target forward.

“He and I became so close and our chemistry was through the roof. The chemistry we had allowed us to flow super easily,” Johnson said. “The game is never set. It’s about learning in the moment and then adapting in that moment.

“We had players around us with a great scheme. … I was put in position where it was easy to take the opportunity to score.”

It’s no coincidence that Johnson’s emergence as an offensive force helped the Gators reach heights seldom seen as SHP has compiled a two-year, regular-season record of 33-0-4.

“It was so much fun being a part of that,” Johnson said. “My sophomore year, we didn’t really have that good a league season. To come back my junior year to go undefeated and then proving to a lot of people (this year) we can continue to play at a high level was great.”

Unfortunately for the Gators, the one win that eluded them was a CCS title. Last season, they were the No. 1 seed in Division I, losing in the semifinals. This year, they were No. 4 in the Open Division and advanced to the championship game, falling 1-0 to Bellarmine.

“I know the coaches and players on the team really wanted to win CCS. And I know that to some people, making the Open Division was enough for our program, but for us, it wasn’t enough,” Johnson said. “It’s unfortunate (to fall short of a CCS title), but on the bright side, I’ve never had so much fun in a season before. … There are so many positives that came out of the season.”