If Washington's injury is worse than expected Stafon Johnson is ready to take the helm.
It was only a few weeks ago that that we were in awe of all the depth we had at running back. There were all sorts of stories of having too much talent, only so many carries per RB, someone is going to be disappointed...how times have changed. You can say a lot about how things are done at USC, the competition level is always high and only top producers rise to the top. It has been noted time and again that Pete Carroll goes after the best talent and he finds a way to get these guys to compete. Each years recruiting class is different and it does not matter what he has in the arsenal he continues to go after top talent.
You never know how things are going to work out. Last seasons goat may be this seasons stud. Stafon Johnson has done a 180 in how he makes himself a part of the team. Last season he came in with a swagger thinking he would be the next Reggie Bush. Pete Carroll buried him on the bench until he got his act together, I would not have been too upset had he had been the one to transfer in the off season, a head case always gets in the way of his own talent and Johnson was following that playbook step by step. He was clearly in the outhouse.
But now he is in the penthouse! Something clicked and he has gone from being buried to rising to the top. Yes, injuries have help moved him up and the Moody transfer removed another roadblock but in the end a lot of this is all Stafon as he did the necessary work to make move. Injuries or no injuries Johnson made people aware that he was back in the game on sheer will and hard work. His efforts have proven that you can always sway people's opinion of you by simply being humble and doing the necessary work to be a part of the team. I live by the adage that I don't get paid for my methods, I get paid for my results. I look at Johnson the same way, I don't care how he did it, I don't care about what motivated him to change, I only care that he made the change and now a major piece to the puzzle for this team in 2007.
By the time the top-ranked Trojans play Idaho next week, the sophomore could be sitting atop it.
[...]Johnson, the former Dorsey High star, impressed throughout training camp and rushed the ball well during the Trojans' final scrimmage on Wednesday at the Coliseum.
"I feel as if all of us are confident to actually start because of the preparation that they put us through," Johnson said Thursday. "But whatever happens, happens. And whatever happens, you have to be ready for it."
Johnson is not dwelling on last season's disappointment, when his attitude and work habits put him on the scout team.
"Whatever happened last year, I really kind of put it behind me. . . . I'm trying to look forward and steadily progress," he said.
There is no doubt that he has put it behind him and now he gets to get show us the talent that caught SC's eye in the first place. I don't what made him change I'm just glad that he made the change.
Great Job Stafon!
FIGHT ON!