Jayhawks land a commitment from D.J. Johnson on his visit
Darrell Johnson set an official announcement date of December 5th before he took his official visit to Kansas.
One day after Johnson finished his visit, he announced his commitment to KU.
“It went amazing,” Johnson said. “Me and my family, we met a lot of great people throughout the whole weekend and ate a lot of good food. The entire campus stood out and the coaching staff, a couple players that I met. And even the facilities stood out, even though they are about to get redone. They're still some nice facilities to me. So that was really some of the great things that I saw this weekend.”
Johnson, who goes by D.J., has been talking to offensive line coach Scott Fuchs. During the Jayhawks bye week Fuchs and Lance Leipold went to Dodge City to watch him practice.
The visit gave him the opportunity to spend more time around Fuchs and hear about the system.
“We talked about the offensive line schemes they run to set their offensive line up for success,” he said. “There were a lot of things that were new to me during that meeting, like the different techniques. But he's a really good guy and he knows a lot about the game of football. You could tell he genuinely cares about his players.”
Johnson was hosted by Michael Ford and Dre Doiron. Both are offensive linemen who transferred to Kansas from Buffalo.
“They are some really good guys,” he said. “I also got to meet Dominick (Puni) and a lot more players on the offensive line. And you could tell they really care for everyone. And you could tell they're just the closest group out of every position, and you know they just work to get better.”
He got to watch practice and speak with offensive lineman Earl Bostick. The last week of practices have been more with the younger players for development and Bostick was available to talk with him.
“I took a lot of stuff from the practice,” he said. “I got to talk to Earl Bostick on the sideline, and it was really good. He was just giving me a lot of info on how Coach Fuchs is really good as a person, and what he does. The different types of drills he does during practice and stuff like that. I was able to see how they practiced and what they do on a daily basis.
“He’s (Bostick) been there for a long time, and he told me this is the best coaching staff he has ever played for with his years in Lawrence. They have a lot of great coaches and I agree with him on that.”
Johnson is originally from Indiana and went to Monroe College before transferring to Dodge City Community College. He said KU is a six hour drive and puts him closer to home than his previous two colleges.
He thought about the positive selling points Kansas offers during his visit.
“What made me pick Kansas was just the environment,” he said. “They have a lot of people there to help you. They have the coaches to help make you a better athlete. And they really care about your education. There's just a lot of resources around. A bunch of tutors.
“So that's what really got to me. A lot of schools, they really just care about football. Of course, that's one of the biggest goals, but that's not the only goal. I want to get an education continue playing football.”
Before Johnson left campus, he told the coaching staff he wanted to be a Jayhawk.
“They all just gave me a big smile and hugged my parents and hugged me,” he said. “I already felt like a part of the family.
He plans to sign with Kansas in the early period and enroll in January. Johnson holds over 20 division one offers and is rated a three-star prospect in the latest rankings.