28 Days To Purdue Football: Josh Johnson

Everyone is talking about how good Ricardo Allen is, but a big reason for that is his running buddy on the other side of the field. While everyone remembers Allen's two pick sixes last season, Johnson quietly had a pretty good season of his own. Both of these guys have emerged as solid cornerbacks.

Josh Johnson - Jr.

Hometown: Dade City, FL (Pasco HS)

Cornerback

5'11", 191 pounds

2011 Projection: starter at cornerback

A year ago at this time Johnson's job was up for grabs. Mike Eargle, Allen, Normondo Harris, and Charlton Williams were all battling to win the starting job. Johnson had appeared in 11 games in 2009, but only made two tackles. Eventually, Johnson emerged as a solid player with 10 starts and 53 tackles. he also added a sack, three forced fumbles, a fumble recovery, six pass breakups, and an interception. That's quite a resume of being a disruptive player. If we send the opposition's best receiver out to Ricardo Island, Johnson can cause havoc on the other side too.

It is a bit of a surprise that Josh Johnson has ended up playing football. Plus, if it doesn't work out he might be able to step over to baseball and provide Doug Schreiber's team a boost when they move into the new Lambert Field. Jay Jay, as he is called, was one of the top 100 juniors in the nation back in high school after leading the Tampa area in home runs. He would be following in the footsteps of the Marlins' current ace if he played baseball. It was a bit of a surprise when he chose football, too. He was a second team all-state selection as a senior.

Boilermakings Note:

Getting To Know You: Purdue's Danny Hope - A Less Than Critical Look at the Big Ten's Football Coaches - Maize n Brew
Getting To Know You: Purdue's Danny Hope - A Less Than Critical Look at the Big Ten's Football Coaches