Jaguar Highlights: Named second-team preseason all-Sun Belt Conference by Phil Steele Publications ... Expected to start at inside linebacker for the second year in a row ... Led the Blue squad to a 17-10 win in the annual spring game with a game-high six total stops, also intercepting a pass he returned five yards ... Missed the first scrimmage of the spring due to illness, but in the second paced all defensive players with seven tackles — that total included two for loss.
As A Junior (2011): Voted the Jaguar Male Student-Athlete of the Year while sharing the football program’s “Heart of a Jaguar Award” at the Pete Tolbert Night of Champions ... Led USA with 83 stops in his first season as a starter, finishing second on the squad with 6½ tackles for loss ... Finished among the top 80 in the country at the NCAA Football Championship Subdivision in tackles per game while ranking among the top 10 among FCS Independent players in that category as well as in stops for loss per contest ... Credited with a pair of sacks, one forced fumble and one fumble recovery as well ... Had three games with a double-figure tackle total while leading the Jags in stops on five occasions ... Had a program game-record 17 stops at Kent State, and also forced a fumble against the Golden Flashes ... Led the team with 12 stops in double-overtime victory at Texas-San Antonio, posting three tackles for loss including a sack in the contest, and shared game-high honors in the category after making 14 stops in the season finale against Cal Poly ... Tied for the team lead with eight tackles at North Carolina State — which included two stops behind the line of scrimmage — while also forcing a fumble ... Credited with nine stops in season-opening victory over West Alabama with 1½ tackles for loss, tying for team-high honors the next week in a win over Lamar ... Collected six stops in Tennessee-Martin win and five in defeat of Mississippi Valley State.
As A Sophomore (2010): Saw action in all 10 games in his first season with the program ... Tied for fifth on the squad with 31 total tackles, tying for third with 21 solo stops ... Paced the Jaguars with four sacks, which totaled 25 yards in losses ... Also intercepted a pass, broke up another, and forced a fumble ... Collected a season-best five tackles on three occasions, against Nicholls State, Missouri S&T and Arkansas-Monticello in the season finale ... Recorded a sack in the UAM contest also ... Posted three unassisted stops against Kentucky Wesleyan and at Lamar, intercepting a pass that led to a first-quarter touchdown against the former and forcing a fumble on a sack that set up a field goal against the latter ... Also credited with three tackles in wins over Edward Waters (Fla.) and Georgia State, breaking up a pass against the Panthers as well ... First USA sack came against EWC ... Only tackle in UC Davis victory was a sack for a loss of eight yards in final two-and-a-half minutes to help lead to a punt as Jaguars held on for 24-21 win.
Virginia Tech Highlights (2008-09): Played his first two seasons at the collegiate level at Virginia Tech, seeing action both years ... Appeared in 11 contests, starting eight, as a sophomore while helping the Hokies to a 10-3 final record and a 6-2 mark in the Atlantic Coast Conference’s Coastal Division ... VT defeated Tennessee in the Chick-fil-A Bowl in his final game with the program ... Tied for fifth on the team with 55 total tackles and broke up three passes in 2009 ... Was credited with 4½ tackles for loss including a pair of sacks ... Paced the Hokies in tackles in three games, including in their season-opener against fifth-ranked Alabama when he collected a career-best 13 stops (nine solo) ... Posted a team-leading seven stops in 52-10 win over Marshall the following week ... Had eight tackles in defeat of ninth-ranked Miami (Fla.) ... Led the Hokies with seven tackles in Maryland win in November ... Played in 11 games as a freshman the previous fall, helping the Hokies go 10-4 on the season — VT earned victories in both the ACC championship game and the Orange Bowl ... Saw action on three different special teams units, making the first tackle of his career at Nebraska.
High School Highlights: Was a four-year letterwinner at Stafford HS ... Ranked among the top linebacker prospects nationally by SuperPrep and Rivals.com ... Rated among the top 30 players in the state by SuperPrep and Scout.com as well ... Ranked as the 24th-best player in the Commonwealth by The Roanoke Times ... Named second-team all-metro by the Washington Post as a senior after recording more than 110 total tackles and 20 stops for loss despite suffering a collarbone injury prior to the start of the season ... As a junior, earned all-district honors after collecting 125 stops — 27 of those were for loss, including nine sacks — while rushing for 369 yards and three scores on 53 carries.
Personal: Full name is Jacob Jarosz Johnson ... Born July 29, 1990, in Fairfax, Va. ... Son of Tom and Debbie Johnson ... Favorite movie is “Jay And Silent Bob Strike Back” ... Favorite team is the Pittsburgh Steelers ... Favorite player is Jared Allen ... Favorite foods are pasta and steak ... Would like to work as a strength coach at the collegiate level when he is done playing football ... Also recruited by Tennessee, West Virginia, Virginia, Connecticut and Maryland out of high school ... Majoring in exercise science.
