App State Men’s Basketball head coach Dustin Kerns on Wednesday announced the hiring of Tim Johnson to his coaching staff ahead of the 2025-26 season.

Johnson, who joins the Mountaineers after spending the 2024-25 season with the Indiana State Sycamores, brings more than a decade of coaching experience at the Division I level. He has also made coaching stops at Wyoming, Wofford, James Madison and Furman.

“We are super excited about Tim Johnson being added to the App State Basketball family,” said Kerns, who coached with Johnson for four seasons at Wofford. “Tim has impacted a lot of winning as a player and coach in college basketball. He is a great fit for App State, our staff and our players. Tim is the total package and will help our program in many ways. Tim has proven himself as an elite recruiter and is exceptional at player development. Most importantly, he is a great person and role model for our players. Please welcome Tim, his wife Brittany, and three beautiful children, Westin, Londyn, and Jasmin, to Boone and the High Country.” 

At Indiana State, Johnson helped guide the Sycamores to the highest-scoring offense in the Missouri Valley Conference, averaging 80.1 points per game. They boasted one of the best offenses in the country in Johnson’s first season, as they finished in the top 50 in the NCAA in bench points (29.1, 22nd), 3-pointers made per game (10.1, 22nd) and effective field-goal percentage (55.1 percent, 37th).

Johnson was essential in helping develop Samage Teel into a first-team All-MVC player and an NABC All-District second-team selection last season. Teel finished third in the league in scoring, averaging 16.9 points per game. Teel was also one of the best passers in the Missouri Valley, finishing third in assists per game.

“I am filled with gratitude for the opportunity to join Dustin Kerns and his staff at App State,” Johnson said. “Over the years, they have built a winning program sustained by high-level people, institutional cohesiveness and shared values. My wife and I could not think of a better place to raise our family. We are very excited to return home to the Carolinas.”

Prior to his time at Indiana State, Johnson helped lead the Furman Paladins to one of the most successful runs in program history from 2019 to 2024. While at Furman, he was part of 108 wins and a 62-25 record in Southern Conference play. He also was part of Furman’s record-breaking 28-win season in 2022-23, which culminated in a SoCon regular season title, the program’s first NCAA Tournament berth in 40-plus years via a SoCon tournament title and an NCAA win over No. 4 seeded Virginia.

During his five years in Greenville, S.C., Johnson coached seven all-conference players and the 2023 SoCon Player of the Year in Jalen Slawson. Slawson was also named a finalist for the Lou Henson Mid-Major Player of the Year Award and selected in the second round of the 2023 NBA Draft by the Sacramento Kings.

Johnson is known as a relentless recruiter, and that proved to be true during his time with Furman, as he served as the lead recruiter for JP Pegues, the 2023 Southern Conference Tournament MVP. Pegues was a first-team all-conference selection in 2023-24 and scored more than 1,000 points in just three years.

Before joining the Furman staff, Johnson served for two seasons on the staff at James Madison. He helped coach the Dukes to the No. 2-rated defensive team in the Colonial Athletic Conference (CAA) and a win increase by 30 percent each season. Johnson was also the lead recruiter for Julien Wooden, who finished his James Madison career as the program’s leader in games played (146) and wins (91).

Following a successful playing career at Wofford from 2006-11, with one stop in between, Johnson joined the Terriers’ staff in 2013, when he and Kerns coached together for four seasons under head coach Mike Young. Johnson helped guide the Terriers to back-to-back Southern Conference titles in 2014 and 2015. Johnson was part of Wofford’s most successful season in program history in 2014-15, which saw the team win a program-record 28 games and a SoCon regular-season title.

Working primarily with the Terriers’ post players, Johnson helped guide Lee Skinner to Southern Conference Tournament MVP honors in 2015 and an all-conference selection. Additionally, Johnson helped Cameron Jackson become one of the top forwards in the SoCon in 2016-17. Jackson went from averaging four points per game in 2015-16 to 12 points per game in 2016-17.

After his graduation from Wofford in 2011, Johnson got his start in coaching as a graduate assistant at Wyoming, where he spent two seasons. Johnson helped lead the Cowboys to consecutive postseason appearances in 2011-12 and 2012-13.

Johnson was able to mentor and aid in the development of Larry Nance Jr. at Wyoming during his freshman and sophomore seasons. Nance averaged 10.7 points and seven rebounds in his sophomore season and went on to become an All-Mountain West Conference player as well as the 27th pick in the 2015 NBA draft.

A native of Memphis, Tenn., Johnson is a 2016 Wofford Hall of Fame inductee who ended his four-year playing career as the only player in the program’s Division I era to record 1,000 career rebounds. He helped lead the Terriers to their first two SoCon Tournament championships and the program’s first two NCAA Tournament appearances. He was also a two-time All-SoCon selection.