By Jim Walker

jim.walker@irontontribune.com

It wouldn’t be surprising if Josh Johnson’s favorite music group was the Muppets Dr. Teeth and the Electric Mayhem.

The Ironton Fighting Tigers’ senior defensive back causes a lot of mayhem with his lockdown coverage and his hard-hitting which caused him to actually knock his own tooth out when he made a hit on a receiver for St. Francis of New York.

“I was out the first three weeks (with an injury) and all I wanted to do was at that point was just play football. Nothing else mattered. I wanted to be out there with my guys. I couldn’t watch my senior year fly by,” said Johnson.

“It was a long time coming. It was built up energy. I started moving my tongue around and I felt my tooth was gone. So I stuck my hand in my mouth and it was completely gone.”

That kind of hard-hitting along with his ability to cover receivers attracted a lot of Division 1 programs and he made his decision to sign with the Penn State Nittany Lions.

The 6-foot-3, 185-pound Johnson was rated by 247Sports as the No. 49 cornerback in the country and No.17 in Ohio.

He originally gave a verbal commitment to Louisville but later changed his mind as Penn State continued its pursuit.

Penn State began its recruitment of Johnson last year and was joined by other programs such as Boston College, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Mississippi State, West Virginia and Tennessee..

Johnson said he used the recruiting process as a learning experience.

“It really just gave me options and helped me weigh out everything and look at everything and give me a deeper depth at the thought process going into it,” said Johnson.

“Going to Penn State and coming back and going to everyone else, I just knew Penn State was different and for me.

Johnson said the similarities of College Park, Pa., and Ironton contributed to his decision.

“The family. It was really just like Ironton. The family vibe and coach (Dennis) Franklin made it really big about family and I knew that he would have my back but also my family’s,” said Johnson.

Ironton head coach Trevon Pendleton said that patience was the key for Johnson who developed into an outstanding defensive back.

“He’s a kid between his sophomore and junior year who took a huge growth spurt and continued to work in the weight room. We saw his progression competing against people like Shaun Terry and Aris Pittman on a daily basis just made him better and better,” said Pendleton.

“He’s just worked himself into that position and he’s getting everything he deserves. He’a testament to what hard work can do for you. He trusted the process and now he’s able to do that and now you’re seeing everything come to fruition for him.”

Johnson agreed with his coach that he just had to trust the process.

“Really, it was all just coming for a long time. Nothing goes unnoticed. I just had to put in time and when I got my opportunity I made the most of it,” said Johnson.

Johnson had 2 interceptions and returned one for a touchdown. As the lockdown cornerback, receivers were rarely targets in his direction. He had 57 tackles with 34 solo stops.

Johnson said Penn State believes Johnson can play either cornerback or safety.

“That’s really up in the air right now. They see me fitting in as a safety and they see me fitting in as a corner or even a nickel position or a hybrid linebacker,” said Johnson.

“It really looks promising for me. I could really just make my way up working. Coming in, it’s a restart. I’m the freshman, fresh meat, so I’m just going to have to come in everyday ready to work.”

The process for Johnson included continuing to grow and stay focused as Ironton kept making runs at a state title. The team lost in the state finals his sophomore year but the team avenged itself with a state championship this season.

“Growing up here all you want to do is play for Ironton Fighting Tigers. Getting up there (to the state finals) and  making a run and not getting it done hurt a lot and I remembered that for a very long time,” said Johnson.

“My junior year we fell short again and that hurt more because I was starting and I felt the loss was on me. Coming into my senior year, we all knew what we had to do to get it done, so coming in with the right mindset every day to work hard and get after it and you see that the work pays off.”

Although he had run track, Johnson said he began playing football a year earlier than he was supposed to play.

“Football my mind is free. I don’t think about nothing. I’m just out there living in the moment,” said Johnson.

One moment Johnson won’t forget was a hit in the fourth quarter that caused a fumble that Ironton recovered to stop a potential scoring drive deep in Fighting Tigers’ territory.

“I seen (the running back) coming around the corner It was third-and-three and they were moving the ball down the field into critical position and big time players make big time plays so I just had to step up and make the tackle,” said Johnson.

And for Josh Johnson, that’s the tooth.