By Courtney Baumann
A standard brick weighs around five pounds. Now imagine running into a stack of 62 of them. That’s what it’s like trying to get past Jaleel Johnson.
He’s a big guy. Standing 6-4 and weighing 310 pounds, Johnson isn’t someone a person would look at and think, “Yeah, I’m going to mess with him.” It just wouldn’t end well.
Actually, that’s kind of what happened when Michigan running back De’Veon Smith tried to get past him last weekend. It didn’t work out so hot.
It was midway through the second quarter, and the Iowa football team was down 10-0. Hawkeye punter Ron Coluzzi pinned the Wolverines very close to their own end zone — just 2 yards away, in fact. When Smith attempted to gain some yardage on the ground, he ended up on his back, behind the goal line.
Iowa’s No. 67 walked away, his hands above his head, signaling the safety.
Johnson is an image of solidity, both in his stature and in what he has done for the Iowa football team throughout his career as a Hawkeye. The senior defensive tackle has started every game since the beginning of the 2015 season, and he saw action in 20 more during his first two seasons.
That he did not start at all during his first two seasons was not for lack of talent. Johnson backed up third-round draft pick Carl Davis, who now plays for the Baltimore Ravens.
“[He’s one of our] senior guys, and he’s played a lot of football for us the last several years,” Iowa head coach Kirk Ferentz said about Johnson in early October.
Johnson has always been a big guy. His scouting profile on ESPN.com has him listed at 6-2 and 290 pounds — as an offensive guard, believe it or not.
He did play on both sides of the ball in high school, though. As a senior in his only year at Montini Catholic, Johnson earned first team all-state, all-conference, and all-area honors, in addition to prep All-American recognition. He received offers from 10 schools other than Iowa: Arizona, Boston College, Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Michigan State, Minnesota, Tennessee, Vanderbilt, and Wisconsin.
Although he briefly contemplated attending Michigan State, Johnson made only one official visit: Iowa. The Hawkeyes were always his first choice.
Since being in Iowa City, he’s gotten bigger and stronger but hasn’t lost any of his mobility.
Even with his size, Johnson can move. He’s quick on his feet and has the ability to move side-to-side well.
He has a pop in his step that not many other defensive tackles have.
Junior linebacker Josey Jewell said his first impression of Johnson was, unsurprisingly, his size. What he noticed next, though, was his energy and his competitive nature.
While he makes it tougher for the opposing offense, Johnson makes the defense’s job behind him just a bit easier.
“He’s a great player, he can give us a lot of energy during games, and he can make things easier for us on the back end,” Jewell said. “He takes on his blocks, and sometimes [the offense] has to worry more about him than somebody else and puts more attention on him. Maybe they’ll double team him and give the linebackers an easier time to get back there.”
Johnson has been a sort of unsung warrior during his time with the Hawkeyes. He isn’t talked about all too much — Ferentz only mentioned his name twice the entire season during press conferences before the Michigan game.
Since then, Ferentz has doubled that number.
His Big Ten Defensive Player of the Week award was one of the first times Johnson was recognized for his play up front collegiately. Other than that, the only other honor he had received was an honorable mention All-Big Ten after the 2015 season.
Johnson knew from the first snap on defense that Iowa would take the game.
“It’s always about if you have belief, odds are you may win because you have the belief, because you’re never going to stop going hard,” Johnson said after the upset. “It was the first play of the game that I knew.”
Even with that firm belief he had, he was still pretty nervous as freshman kicker Keith Duncan lined up for what turned out to be the game-winning 33-yard field goal as time expired.
“I said a little prayer; I wasn’t really thinking about much,” Johnson said after the game. “I didn’t watch it. My eyes were closed.”
The Lombard, Illinois, native played a major role in Iowa’s win, and it all started with the safety.
Johnson recorded a career-high 9 tackles on the night — 6 of which were solo — including 2 tackles for a loss and a sack.
It was pretty easy for Ferentz to say Johnson’s best game of his career so far took place on Nov. 12.
The importance of how well the guys in the middle play is often forgotten, Ferentz said.
“The way we played defense, those guys up the middle are important to our success. When they’re doing their things well, linebackers have a chance to play,” Ferentz said. “So anytime we’re playing good defense you can assume that those inside guys are doing a great job.”
Johnson leads his team in tackles for a loss of yards; he has racked up 8.5 for 47 negative yards. He is tied for No. 15 in the conference with Ohio State’s Tyquan Lewis, Michigan’s Maurice Hurst, Rutgers’ Julian Pinnix-Odrick, and Illinois’ Gimel President.
Of the 8.5 tackles for a loss, 6.5 of those were sacks, which is also a team high. In this category, Johnson moves all the way up into a tie for fourth in the Big Ten with Penn State’s Garrett Sickels and is tied for No. 41 nationally with 10 others.
Johnson’s role on the leadership front takes place off the field, too. As a veteran, he has taken it upon himself to teach the younger guys on the defensive line how things work.
“You could say that,” Johnson said when asked if he’s embraced his role as a leader to the newer players. “I’ve just showed them the ropes a bit, showed them how we do things during the season, show them the routine we do as veterans.”
It wouldn’t be surprising to see Johnson go somewhere in the middle rounds of the 2017 NFL Draft. In fact, it would be more surprising to not see him picked by a professional team.
Johnson is ranked No. 10 at the defensive tackle position by CBSSports.com, No. 106 overall. He is projected to go somewhere in the third or fourth round.
Right now, though, Johnson, like the rest of his team, is looking to the game ahead of him.
He may not have said it specifically about Illinois, but Johnson has said it numerous other times about other teams.
“It’s a brand-new week, a whole new team,” or a variation of those words, is something that has been heard a few times from the fifth-year senior.
People can talk about the Michigan game, or the Big Ten Defensive Player of the Week title, or his upcoming draft stock, but Johnson’s focus is laid upon his immediate future, because he needs to be mentally prepared for the game.
“If you’re not mentally prepared for the game, then there’s no point in even going out and playing,” Johnson said. “The physical part is there, but if you’re not mentally prepared to play in a game, then you shouldn’t be in the game.”
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