Toreros quarterback turning heads
By: TOM SHANAHAN - For The North County Times | ∞
SAN DIEGO ---- Most West Coast football fans know Marshawn Lynch is a candidate for the Heisman Trophy, college football's most prestigious award. But this week the Cal All-American running back's mind has been on the Walter Payton Award, Division I-AA's Heisman equivalent.
Lynch is ineligible for the lower-division award, of course, but he has learned University of San Diego quarterback Josh Johnson, his high school teammate at Oakland Tech, was added to the Payton watch list. In fact, given a choice, Lynch would prefer Johnson earn the Payton than him the Heisman.
That's how much he thinks of his friend since kindergarten, a talent that was overlooked in the recruiting game by Division I-A schools. Johnson was a 5-foot-11, 145-pound high school senior who has since grown into a 6-3, 195-pound college junior and NFL prospect.
"If Josh can win that award, I'll take it and run with it," Lynch said. "He's my boy, my cousin ---- he's family to me. He might be surprising people, but not me. Growing up as kids, we called him, 'The head coach.' He was always the one who took charge. He made everything right."
Johnson is making everything right at USD, too, where the Toreros are 5-0 and have won 13 straight games entering a Pioneer Football League contest against Valparaiso at 7 p.m. Saturday night at Torero Stadium. The streak dates back to last year when USD was 11-1 and crowned mythical national champion for mid-major schools by The Sports Network, the most recognized poll for Division I-AA football.
"What's more important to me is the award means more people will realize what type of program we have here," Johnson said. "I wasn't expecting this opportunity, but I'll take it if I win it."
USD has topped the mid-major poll all season, but last week the Toreros joined the national Top 25 for all Division I-AA teams for the first time in school history, making an at-large Division I-AA playoff berth realistic. USD, a non-scholarship program, was first ranked No. 25 in The Sports Network overall poll that features Division I-AA schools that offer 63 scholarships.
USD climbed to No. 21 this week after a 56-3 win over Butler. Johnson accounted for 296 total yards despite sitting out the fourth quarter. He passed for touchdowns of 9, 22 and 4 yards and ran one of 4.
"I know our West Coast offense is quarterback friendly, and I have talent around me," Johnson said. "My mindset is to get the ball to my teammates and let them do the rest."
Johnson has completed 105 of 155 passes (67.7 percent) for 1,321 yards with 15 touchdowns and only two interceptions. Although he is a classic dropback passer, he has enough speed to run with the ball when the defense commits to covering receivers and the field opens up. He has scampered for touchdown runs of 7, 29, 15, 46, 20 and 4 yards.
A year ago Johnson finished the season as a Division I-AA mid-major All-American. He completed 70.1 percent of his passes (260 of 371) for 3,256 yards with 36 touchdowns and only eight interceptions while running for four touchdowns.
"He's a lot faster now," Lynch said. "We worked out last summer, and he was keeping up with me."
Harbaugh, who played quarterback in the NFL for 15 seasons and coached quarterbacks for the Oakland Raiders, first stated last year he considered Johnson an NFL prospect. Now Harbaugh adds, "You don't have to go by what I say."
That's because New Orleans assistant coach John Morton, a former USD assistant on Harbaugh's staff, recently told Harbaugh that New Orleans scouts asked him about Johnson because they consider him a possible first-day draft pick. That would put him in the first three rounds of the draft.
USD assistant David Shaw, who coached quarterbacks and wide receivers with the Baltimore Ravens the last four years and previously worked with Harbaugh on the Oakland staff, told Harbaugh that Johnson "is better than some NFL quarterbacks right now."
Although Johnson's late growth spurt cost him a chance to be recruited by Division I-A schools, Harbaugh said Johnson would start for any Pac-10 team.
But one Pac-10 guy disagrees.
"He could start for any program in the nation," Lynch said. "Josh is the type of quarterback who gives you confidence. You're never nervous in the huddle with him. That's the type of vibe he gives off. He's a great quarterback."
USD center Jordan Paopao, an El Camino High alumnus, echos Lynch, saying Johnson keeps the Toreros out of third-and-long situations with his ability to find the hot receiver, throw out of bounds or scramble.
"Josh is heaven sent as a quarterback," Paopao said. "If I make mistake, it won't have a big impact, and I know I can rebound on the next play. You're going to see good things from him on Sundays."
Robert wrote on Oct 13, 2006 9:09 AM:The USD team as a whole is really something to see. Get out to see these kids and you will soon see they are the class of both the league and college football in the southwest.
jack wrote on Oct 13, 2006 12:27 PM:Let's take the whole program and move it to SDSU. The Aztecs could learn lots.
Chim RIchalds wrote on Oct 13, 2006 2:00 PM:USD is probably a decent program, but I find it hard to believe that they could even beat the best Junior College team in California. Long Beach CC or Palomar probably has 5-10 division 1 recruits. USD doenst have any, mainly the reason for the kids attending a non-scholarship program. Perspective is always nice to keep in mind.
Robert wrote on Oct 16, 2006 3:08 PM:Ironically, I am a graduate of both JCs mentioned above, and I also graduated from SDSU at about the same time that John Maffei did. (Hello John). What the writer above (Richalds) says is correct, and in fact, the City College of San Francisco has had up to 30 or 40 players on the same team who would later transfer to Div. I-A schools, and an assistant coach there told me that their 2001 team would have beaten the then D2 UC Davis. I have also seen the USD Toreros play several games in the past few years, and this QB Josh Johnson must be pretty good. Last year Dixie State was a JC, but they only returned 10 out of 56 freshmen and 7 out of 24 sophs to play for their new D2 team, beaten Sept. 9 by USD 41-7. Dixie's best 2005 RB had transfered to Wash. St., and two of their '05 frosh are now playing for the Utah Utes, and they probably had many other Div. I calibre players transfer away who did not stay around for Dixie's move over to D2. So, they were stripped of talent from the top and the bottom. But a 2006 game between USD and a great JC, like Saddleback, with Patrick Gates at RB for the Gauchos would be a heckuva ballgame. I would not be predicting a winner. USD has come a long way since they lost to the USC Trojan Freshmen 20-17 in 1985 on the Torero field. The Dayton team which came to USD several years ago and whipped the Toreros 27-17 reminded me of Bakersfield's great teams, down to the color of their jerseys.
Thomas wrote on Jan 21, 2008 2:48 PM:Why are you hating on my big cousin like that just because he went to a school without receiving a scholarships does not mean anything
First name only. Comments including last names, contact addresses, e-mail addresses or phone numbers will be deleted. Attempts to misrepresent your identity or impersonate any person will not be approved. All comments are screened before they appear online, so please keep them brief. Comments reflect the views of those commenting and not necessarily those of the North County Times or its staff writers. Click here to view additional comment policies.
Advertisement