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New QB Johnson breath of fresh air for Wildcats
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Monday August 20, 2001 |
New QB Johnson breath of fresh air for Wildcats
Jason Johnson isn't Richie Cunningham from "Happy Days." At least I don't think he is.
But it's hard to talk to the Wildcats' starting quarterback and not think of the popular television character - the clean-cut, freckle-faced, "aw-shucks" kid - who was the poster boy for a generation of do-gooders.
After all, not many Division I college quarterbacks have the patience to stand around for nearly an hour after a scrimmage in which the offense sputtered like a poorly tuned El Camino and answer every question, no matter how ridiculous.
And though Johnson admitted that he was nervous - "I had butterflies," he said, "but I'd like to think they were all in formation" - it's hard to see the junior not succeeding at Arizona, both on and off the field.
Johnson exudes a positive energy that you can't help but buy into. Even when he completes just 7-of-14 passes for 95 yards with a pick (as he did Saturday), Johnson seems uncharacteristically confident, as if he knows something you don't.
"Everyone has doubters," he said. "I try not to notice mine."
He's humble, that's for sure. Maybe it's his religious beliefs - Johnson is a devout Christian - or maybe it's a knowledge of what it takes to win.
When asked what a quarterback's role is, Johnson smiled and quickly passed off any sort of credit to his teammates.
"The job of the quarterback is to lead the team and get the ball to the other
guys," he said. "I'm surrounded by such great guys - (sophomore running back) Clarence (Farmer), who had a great game as usual, (junior wide receiver) Bobby Wade and (senior wide receiver) Malosi (Leonard). "
Don't let some of that humility fool you, though. Johnson didn't become the starting quarterback at Arizona by respecting his elders and drinking his Ovaltine. The kid can flat throw a football, regardless of what Saturday's statistics seemed to show.
At Rogers High School in Puyallup, Wash., the 6-foot-2 quarterback was a three-sport letterman who threw for more than 5,200 yards in his final two seasons on the football team. In fact, he impressed then-UA head coach Dick Tomey so much that he was the only quarterback UA signed in 1997.
As a Wildcat, Johnson has been the one quarterback to truly grasp head coach John Mackovic's complex, pass-happy offensive scheme. He has beaten out two highly touted freshmen, John Rattay and Nic Costa, by doing what good quarterbacks do. But teammates say Johnson's best trait might be his smarts in the pocket.
"He knows when to throw the ball away and when to just take it," sophomore safety Clay Hardt said. "He's great. I've been impressed with the way he's handled everything."
Part of his smarts under center might have to do with his pedigree. His brother, Chris, is a quarterback at Pacific Lutheran University, where he plays under Johnson's grandfather, Frost Westering, the winningest active coach in NAIA history.
In addition, Johnson's uncle, Gary Spani, was a linebacker for the Kansas
City Chiefs, and his sister is a two-sport high school athlete.
Then again, Johnson's smarts might also have to do with his intellect. The business and public administration junior is a three-time Mary Roby Academic Achievement Award winner at UA and was a member of the National Honor Society in high school, where he served as senior class president.
I'm not even sure Richie Cunningham did that.
Guys like Johnson often don't survive in college football, for one reason or another, and are often overshadowed by more arrogant, flamboyant players.
But the junior has already cleared a major hurdle by getting Mackovic - a man Johnson calls "an offensive genius" - on his side.
"Jason Johnson continues to understand the 'why' and the 'when,'" Mackovic said. "He is trying hard, and he is going to be a player who is going to make things happen. He is smart, and that's important because the quarterbacks call the formations and the protections."
That's like having Fonzie himself in your corner.
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