“Superstar to A Nobody In A Matter of Days”: My Interview with Iowa RB De’Andre Johnson

“Superstar to A Nobody In A Matter of Days”: My Interview with Iowa RB De'Andre Johnson

Things don't always go your way. In the case of Iowa RB De'Andre Johnson he knows this all too well. During his senior year of high school De'Andre missed most of the football season after he tore his ACL. After that the attention he was getting faded away.

“I went from a superstar to a nobody in a matter of days,” Johnson said.

As a junior, Johnson had 1,121 yards rushing and 10 TD's and was expected to have a stellar senior year. Unfortunately after the ACL tear ended his senior season, a lot of schools backed off, but Iowa did not.

Last year, Johnson redshirted for the Hawkeyes, allowing fellow freshman Marcus Coker to jump into the spotlight. This year De'Andre is hoping to do whatever he can to help the Hawkeyes move towards a Big Ten Title.

I was able to talk with De'Andre this week and get his take on becoming a Hawkeye:

De'Andre Johnson

Describe your feelings after tearing your knee back in high school and how your D1 expectations changed?

DAJ: It was a very bad feeling. I went from a superstar to a nobody in a matter of days. Most of my offers were pulled and at one point I thought I wasn't going to make it to college football.

Describe your being recruited by Iowa? Who talked to you most?

DAJ: I was recruited by Coach Kaczenski our D-Line Coach. What's funny about this story is that Iowa was my first offer. Before I hung up the phone with Coach K he said don't forget about us because now that Iowa has given me an offer other schools are going to start offering me. Sure enough by the end of the week I had 4 different offers already.

What was the biggest factor in coming to Iowa for you?

DAJ: The reason I picked Iowa was because I love the campus, the fans, and coaching staff. And although my ACL was gone they never stop believing in me.

Tell me about the first day of practice and how you knew you weren't in high school anymore?

DAJ: My first day of practice was crazy. Everything was high pace. There was no room for breaks. What really caught me off guard was when I went to talk to an upper classman teammate (not going to say who) he told me to be quiet and focus and at the time we were stretching. At that moment I realized that this isn't a joke. This is serious and everybody around me was about getting work done.

Describe your living in Iowa, and being a part of your first winter?

DAJ: Living in Iowa is cool to me. It was a culture shock but because of my personality I was able to adjust very well. The winter was bitter sweet for me basically because it was the first time I had ever seen snow and I was really looking forward to it, but bitter because I didn't prepare for it. My Miami coats wasn't doing the job of keeping me warm.

Expectations for yourself for 2011?

DAJ: Contribute to the team when and in any way I can. Whether it's being on scout team for another year or playing a great amount of snaps in the ball game.

Expectations for the team for 2011?

DAJ: We are always shooting for the Big Ten title.

What is the idea behind the YBE t-shirts I've seen you wear?

DAJ: YBE basically means “Young, Black and Educated.” It was started by one of my ex-teammates, Anthony Ferguson, who is no longer on the team.

I want to thank De'Andre for his time and good luck to him in spring practice and this upcoming season with the Hawkeyes. Hopefully this year the Iowa RB stable is as strong as ever. Go Hawks!!

Joseph Larsen

Community Contributor