UAB commitment Tyler Johnston, the state's Mr. Football winner for 2015, will have Tommy John surgery on his right elbow Thursday morning.

The news does not come as a huge surprise, nor should it be a tremendous setback since the Blazers don't resume football games until 2017.

Johnston, the Spanish Fort quarterback who went 35-0 in his career, injured his elbow while being tackled in the waning seconds of the first half during the Toros' Class 6A semifinal win over Benjamin Russell.

He played the second half of that game and was the MVP in Spanish Fort's 31-28 victory over defending champ Clay-Chalkville in the championship game the next week.

Johnston visited renowned orthopedic surgeon Dr. James Andrews in December. An MRI revealed damage to his ulnar collateral ligament in his right elbow. At that time, Johnston had platelet-rich plasma injection to help promote healing in hopes of ultimately avoiding the surgery.

On Monday, the Johnstons returned to Andrews for the planned checkup.

"Dr. Andrews just looked at it again and said, 'Let's go ahead and get it fixed,'" said Johnston's father, Tyler Jr. "They were hoping it would be closer to full strength. It wasn't. So they wanted to go ahead and do the surgery."

By having the surgery this week, Johnston should be able to throw again in June and practice with UAB - likely without contact - in August. Tommy John surgery is another turn for ulnar collateral ligament (UCL) reconstruction, and it features a surgical graft procedure in which the ulnar collateral ligament in the medial elbow is replaced with a tendon from elsewhere in the body.

Former Los Angeles Dodger pitcher Tommy John was the first baseball player to have the surgery in the 1970s.

"He'll be able to throw and learn the offense, and that is important," Johnston Jr. said. "This is a better rehab than if you were a baseball pitcher because of the way the ball comes out, the release. This injury was caused by a hit and not by actual throwing."

Johnston said his son was ready and willing to have the surgery now.

"He's excited," Tyler Jr. said. "He didn't want to rest it all year and then start playing this summer and have to have the surgery. He is ready to get it over with and start his college career."

Returning from injury will be nothing new for Johnston. He suffered a torn knee ligament, which cost him the final nine games of his junior season. He recovered as a senior and enjoyed the best year of his career.

In leading Spanish Fort to a 15-0 season in 2015, Johnston completed 67 percent of his passes for 3,619 yards and 39 touchdowns. He also ran for 750 yards and 13 scores. In addition to Mr. Football - the state's top high school football award, Johnston also was named the AL.com Player of the Year and the Coastal Alabama Player of the Year.

The surgery was put on hold until Thursday so he could enjoy signing day Wednesday.