Overshadowed by the loss this weekend ...

[Bornthrilla]

... Was the strong play of Wilbert Johnson at outside linebacker. Dude was really laying the lumber out there, providing a physical presence that we were sorely missing with the absence of Hemphill.

You guys might not want to believe it, but the defense has really shown improvement during the last two weeks. The tackling is more sure and the line is getting a lot better push off the snap.

If Adams would just install a couple of blitz packages to the defensive scheme, I think Blue Death could start forcing a few turnovers.

We have got to be proactive and not just reactive.

[AggieMike]

I don't know if yall saw the article we wrote a couple weeks ago...I couldn't write it b/c I went to West Charlotte with Lil Will but I definitely noticed his work ethic


Aggies look to Johnson for leadership
Coaches hope his unselfishness rubs off

By Darrick Ignasiak
September 27, 2006

Will Johnson will play football at any cost, even if it means changing position to make his defense stronger.

“He’s kind of playing out of position right now,” said first year A&T coach Lee Fobbs. “We have moved him to outside linebacker to give us some depth at that position.”

His biggest motivation came during his freshman year with the birth of his daughter, Saniya.

Saniya can be found at the home games with Will’s mother wearing a shirt that has “I love daddy” and the number 27 on it.

She also wears a bandana that says “my daddy is number 27.”

“He is a great father,” said Saniya’s mother Sabrina. “He loves his daughter very much. Their chemistry is so good. Everytime he comes home she is the first person he wants to see.”

Johnson’s family also has a yellow banner that has his number on it. After the game, he carries Saniya around and often keeps her for weeks at a time.

Johnson used that motivation to get past the scout team his freshman year. Johnson, normally a free safety has seen three coaches come through A&T, was originially recruited by legendary coach Bill Hayes.

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Saniya Shine, daughter of Wilbert Johnson, cheering for her father.

Hayes was fired and Johnson was told that he had to start over again. He was not able to lift with the team and joined the team the fourth game of the season.

Johnson proved himself to the coaches and saw time in the MEAC championship game in 2003.

He played on special teams that game and proved to himself and his family the quality of player that he is.

While Johnson was on the scout team, he did everything possible to get the coaches’ attention.

“All of the offensive coaches were telling them how good I had been doing day in and day out,” Johnson said. “My first day out there, I knocked the started running backs’ helmet off. I had this chip on my shoulder because I felt like I should have been on the other side with the starting defense.”

Johnson — a West Charlotte high school graduate – was the defensive MVP in the 2005 Aggie-Eagle Classic. He recorded seven tackles and one 19-yard interception.

Johnson was the lone member of his high school team to be selected to participate in the East-West Shrine Bowl at Grimsley High School. Aside from football, Johnson blossomed in basketball his senior year, averaging 15 points a game.

Johnson, a sports medicine major, is not your average linebacker. Opponents should not mistake his 195 pounds and 5’9” stature.

“If I’m out in Greensboro when people recognize me they say, what position do you play,” said Johnson, who played linebacker his senior year of high school. “I tell them linebacker. They say are you sure you’re big enough to play. It’s not how big you are. It’s how big you play. That has always been my philosophy.”

Dwike Wilson, A&T’s linebacker coach, said that his first impression of Johnson was, what is this little boy going to do.

“Everybody talks real well of him saying he is a good ball player and we moved him to linebacker,” Wilson said. “He plays with a chip on his shoulder because everybody told him he’s too small. He’s proved it today.”

Lee Fobbs needed more depth at linebacker. That meant a change for Johnson.

“Me being a player I’m suppose to accept that responsibility and roll with the punches,”said Johnson, who has recorded 18 tackles for the Aggies in their first three games.

Johnson is respected by his team members. Just ask freshman Spencer Spane.

“He is one of those leaders that leads by example,” Spane said. “He is a shorter linebacker, he is real quick, real shifty. He is strong for his size. He has a lot of things going for him.”

The Johnson family will travel to Saturday’s game against Norfolk State, but without Saniya due to the long drive.