STrib: Ego-free, ready to go: SMB's Kaden Johnson is unlikely top football recruit
Everything about him screamed linebacker.
It’s for that position that college recruiters have relentlessly chased after him. He carries the only four-star grade among the current crop of seniors. Of the 14 Division I offers, 13 are from Power Five schools.
“It’s crazy to think I’m the No. 1 player in Minnesota,” Johnson says incredulously, without a shred of ego. “Of all the players out there, I’m No. 1. And think I’m, like, No. 9 in the nation at the outside linebacker position. That’s crazy.”
The outlier offer not from a premier league? Yale, an indication that he’s more than just a good athlete.
“Last year I had a 3.7,” Johnson recalled when asked about his grades. “Which is pretty good. They don’t play games here with academics. You’re going to need that education at the end of the day.”
There is a wealth of Division I talent on the roster at SMB, which also includes athletes from St. Paul Academy and Blake. Besides Johnson, there’s Suggs and Lockett, Johnson’s best pals. Sophomore defensive back Trevon Howard. Three hundred-pound defensive lineman Kevyan Anderson. Running backs Sanjay Redd and Dewayne Givens, both flashy underclassmen.
That doesn’t include defensive back Craig McDonald, who has committed to Iowa State but was declared ineligible for his senior season by the Minnesota State High School League because he repeated eighth grade and used up his eligibility before this year.
All that football skill has generated tons of interest and recruiting speculation. The SMB sidelines are busy places during games, a traffic jam of reporters and bloggers.
“It’s crazy,” Goodwin said. “You ever hear of a high school team having to issue sideline passes?”
Johnson knows a great deal of the attention is directed toward him. He’s patient with the constant inquiries about his collegiate future and feels no pressure to make a choice.
“It doesn’t bother me,” he said. “At the end of the day, I’ll go to the place that’s best for me.”
The Gophers and Wisconsin have long been considered front-runners. Johnson said both are in the mix but he wants to explore his options. There are still campus visits to take and football worlds he wants to see.
“Nebraska. Oregon State. I’ve been talking to Vanderbilt a little bit,” he said. “Tennessee. I like Tennessee football. Iowa State, which is cool. Michigan State. There are a lot of schools still in contact with me.”
http://www.startribune.com/ego-free...n-is-unlikely-top-football-recruit/560195902/
Go Gophers!!
