By JONATHAN GREENE
Bluefield Daily Telegraph
RICHLANDS, Va. —
There was one person missing from Devon Johnson’s side when he signed his National Letter of Intent to play college football at Marshall. Yet, that one person made the biggest impact and helped push Johnson to this point.
Devon’s father, Albert Johnson, passed away in the summer of 2010 in between his son’s sophomore and junior seasons. It was Albert who uprooted his family from War to Richlands to give Devon and his brothers an opportunity to play at the next level.
“He probably wanted this more than anybody in the world,” Devon said. “He probably wanted this more than me. That was his dream to get me to play [Division I] football.
“I wish that he was here today. I miss him. He wanted this so bad and I know he’s happy right now. I wish he could have been here with me.”
On Wednesday morning in front of numerous friends, family members and coaches at the Richlands High School library, Devon made his father’s dream come true when signed to continue his football career with the Marshall Thundering Herd.
“This is my dream to be able to sign a D-I scholarship, he said. “Anything is possible and that’s what everyone has been telling me. So I worked real hard in the classroom and on the football field to make my dream come true.”
Johnson did more than work hard on the football field, he excelled.
The 6-foot-3, 229-pound senior rushed for 4,342 yards and 63 touchdowns in three seasons with the Blue Tornado while taking them to the Group AA, Division III state championship once and winning the Region IV title once.
“I always wanted a state championship,” Devon said. “I wanted to get the state championship before I leave here. Some things just don’t happen for you. I just have to learn from this and make up for it in the future.”
Johnson ran for 1,083 yards and 13 touchdowns as a sophomore before gaining 1,431 yards and scoring 26 touchdowns as a junior. In his final season playing through numerous injuries, he galloped for 1,826 yards and 24 touchdowns. His career numbers set the all-time school rushing record.
“He’s been the face of Richlands football,” Richlands head coach Greg Mance said. “You don’t get players like Devon Johnson. He’s a special young man.
“He’s touched of all his teachers and he’s touched our community. He’s probably the best football player to ever play here. You look at some the things he’s accomplished in three years; his stats are just totally amazing.”
On top of his stats, Johnson was named to the first-team all-Southwest District three years. He was an all-Region IV first team honoree for three years and will most likely be a two-team first-team all-State player.
Johnson became the second player to ever win the Pocahontas Coal Association/ Bluefield Daily Telegraph Football Player of the Year two years in a row, joining former Graham and Marshall standout Ahmad Bradshaw. This year he added Southwest District Offensive and Defensive Player of the Year awards to an ever growing list.
Despite the numerous awards and many accolades, Johnson said being a “team leader’ was his greatest accomplishment.
“I hope I take that with me up to Marshall,” he said. “At first I wasn’t a team leader. I didn’t know anything about team leadership.
“They turned me into a team leader. I just want to lead everybody and I want everybody to do well. They made me a better person then a better football player. I love that.”
Richlands also turned him into a complete football player.
“When he first came to us, he had a hard time understanding our system,” Mance said. “We had to tell him what to do basically every play his first year. His senior year, he was an actual leader on the football field.
“He called our defenses. He called our slants. He called our checks. Offensively, he was calling pass protections. He became a leader in the locker room — an inspirational player at practice.”
Johnson joins a select group of Blue Tornado greats to have signed a full scholarship to play Division I football on national signing including Mike Compton (West Virginia) and Austin Fuller (Virginia Tech).
“In the history of the school, he’s the third one,” Mance said. “It’s a big day for Richlands High School, our community and our football program. His dad’s goal was for him to play on Saturday.
Devon knows that’s one of the things his dad brought him over here for.
“He wanted to play in our program and thought that’d get him great exposure. I couldn’t be happier for him. He’s worked hard in the classroom. He’s on the honor roll now. He was making C’s and D’s when he first came here and now he’s making A’s and B’s.
“We’ve watched him grow on the football field, we’ve watched him grow as a person and watched him grow in the classroom. It’s been special to watch his development.”
Johnson chose Marshall over offers from the University of Virginia and Wake Forest. He said others would have offered him a scholarship if he went to their camps, but he was never going to waiver from the Herd.
“People there are so nice and the place is beautiful,” Johnson added. “When I went up there, they asked me how I was doing. They don’t want to hear good. They want to know actually know how you’re doing.
“They don’t want to hear one word. They want to know about your whole day. It’s just nice people there and I love it.”
Despite racking up over 4,000 yards on the ground rushing, Johnson will be manning the linebacker position while in Huntington. And he’s okay with that.
“That’s going to being great,” Johnson said with smile. “For once I won’t be taking a beating on my legs anymore. I’ll be doing all the beating. It’s going to be great and I can’t wait.”
Johnson plans on majoring in Sports Marketing and Business and enrolling at Marshall this June.
While he’ll be trading his blue in for green starting next season, he won’t forget his time in Richlands.
“Where I came from, I just grabbed the football and ran,” Johnson said. “When I got here, they actually taught me how to play football. Not just cause I had athletic ability, they taught me mentally how to become a great football player.
“They make you feel great here. The team loves you when you get here. It’s like they’ve known you forever. It’s a great place to be. It was an honor to play football at Richlands.”
— Contact Jonathan Greene
at jgreene@bdtonline.com
