Penn State Football Recruit Spotlight: CB Joseph Johnson
Hailing from Virginia, Joseph Johnson is used to being the big man on campus and will hope to slide into the cornerback rotation quickly for the Nittany Lions
The Penn State football team hauled in a big-name, big-frame commit when they had CB Joseph Johnson sign his letter of intent last December. Johnson enters the fold at cornerback standing at 6-foot-2 and 175 pounds, ranking as the state of Virginia’s ninth-best player overall.
Follow along with our Penn State football recruit spotlight series:
TE Theo Johnson
S Enzo Jennings
RB Caziah Holmes
DT Cole Brevard
WR KeAndre Lambert
WR Jaden Dottin
He had several big-school offers as well including NC State, Texas A&M, Baylor and Duke to name a few. Johnson played his high school football at Life Christian Academy in Colonial Heights, Virginia, and immediately steps into a cornerback room that is now void of nearly 10 plays on the ball and over 600 snaps from John Reid a season ago.
Johnson had previously committed to NC State lat March but decommitted in May only to commit to Penn State on July 2 after a visit in June. His recruiting path is one thing but his play on the field is another. He quickly climbed the recruiting rankings after being a relative unknown in his first few seasons to cap out his career as the 10th-best player in the state according to Rivals.
He heads to Happy Valley now after Penn State had also signed several four-star cornerbacks just last season and should add vital depth at arguably the most important position on defense. He has an insanely long frame and a crazy leaping ability, bringing with him a championship mentality.
"“We’re about business,” Johnson said of the class. “We’re trying to come in and win a national championship. We’re trying to come in and win the Big Ten, trying to take over. We’re trying to be the best Penn State team ever. With that being said, we’re coming in with a mentality to work, to win, to fight. We’re ready.”"
He also told 247Sports that he is always in position thanks to his long arms:
"“I haven’t always been the tallest but I’ve definitely been the longest. It helps me out tremendously. You know, I’m not perfect. Everybody makes mistakes. I might misread or take a false step, but my arms are definitely gonna always be there in position. … My arms are long enough so I don’t know where (the quarterback) could put it at that I can’t get to. It’s definitely a great tool for for me.”"
We’ll see how much playing time he receives this fall but one thing is for sure, with more comments on how good he thinks this class can be and how high he wants to take this 2020 recruiting class, we’re here for his attitude. If he can back it up on the field as well with his length, count us as even bigger fans of Joseph Johnson.