Johnson, UNI seniors leave indelible mark

NORMAL, Ill. - Years from now will probably be able to tell the full story on what the group of Northern Iowa football seniors meant to this era of the program.

Most especially what running back David Johnson meant to it.

The group made their last appearance for the Panthers on Saturday in a 41-21 loss to Illinois State, and took with them a host of records - more than a few belonging to the back who was now so famously forgotten by the big boys in Ames and Iowa City.

'The best thing I can say about David I've told you many times,” said Coach Mark Farley. 'He's a great football player and did great things as a football player. He's a better person. That says a lot about David Johnson. How he does things to help others as much as represent our university.

'That is what people will remember about David. I'll remember the runs, but David Johnson, what he did as a person, is more impressive than what you saw him do as a player.”

What he did as a player was pretty special, too.

Johnson finished with 15 individual career, season or single game records in his time at Northern Iowa. He finished the career rushing leader at 4,687, rushing touchdowns at 49, all-purpose yards at 6,753 and touchdowns scored with 64 - among others. He's in the top five (two of which he's top two) of four more individual records.

His contributions against FBS schools have been well-documented as well, most recently with a 199-yard receiving day against Iowa to open this season.

The fifth-year senior from Clinton remained as humble as he's always been while in Cedar Falls on Saturday night, deferring to those who helped him to where he is and deflecting personal accomplishments.

'It was just a great atmosphere I came into. I'm glad I chose here, I wouldn't choose any other school,” Johnson said. 'I'm not really thinking about the last four years, five years (yet), but just want to appreciate everyone who's brought me this far - the coaches and the players and everyone around me.

'So I'm down about losing this way, but I know I'm going to be connected to everyone in that locker room, everyone on the team.”

His coach got the closest to emotional following Saturday's loss when he was talking about Johnson and the rest of the senior class that's leaving, which includes his son, Jake.

The amount of serious injuries this group alone went through, Farley said, would've been enough to decimate most groups. Their will to return to the field reflected their will to lead the Panthers this far into the postseason after the also-well-documented rough start to this season.

'There's a special connection to this group because there's a lot of five year players in this group, then Jake got added into this group as well,” Farley said. 'It's a special group because they came in as a class, they're leaving as a class, and what and how they accomplished it is what I'll remember from this group.

'They've faced adversity in their own lives throughout the time they've been with us, then came back and played like this for us this season. We were 3-4 and turned this thing around to become one of the hottest teams in FCS because of how they played and how they responded to adversity. So yeah, there's a special connection to them because of who they are, but more so because they're great young men, not just football players.”

Whether it's Johnson's willingness to give credit he's earned 10 times over to his coaches and teammates or any one of Brett LeMaster, Jack Rummels, Kevin Vereen Jr or Jake Farley and the host of others to come back from injury, this group became the family teams hope to become.

And along the way, they said, they won some games, broke some records and learned a few things.

'The feeling in locker room is it's hard because this team, that UNI on your chest is what holds you together,” Jake Farley said. 'It's why you show up every day. We're a family, and when somebody's got to end it like that, it's hard because you may not see each other every day. You won't have that same - we're still a family and we'll always be like that - but it's just this is done and that's the hard part.”

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