Dionte Johnson grew up immersed in memorabilia from Rose Bowls and Super Bowls of years past – all of which belonged to his father, former Ohio State All-American linebacker Thomas “Pepper” Johnson.
This weekend, the senior fullback has a chance to add to his own collection.
“Everything is at my grandmother’s house,” Dionte Johnson said. “A little room for just my father’s awards and things like that. Everything from Rose Bowl to (New York) Giants to (New England) Patriots is in there.”
Pepper Johnson was on the losing end of the 1985 Rose Bowl as the Buckeyes fell 20-17 against USC but he eventually left Pasadena a winner after Super Bowl XXI two years later.
Now it is his son’s turn to bring home the hardware as he has the opportunity to do what no other senior class has since 1963 – beat Michigan four consecutive years.
“I already got one up on (Pepper’s two wins) but to do it four times in a row is crazy,” Dionte Johnson said. “Not just crazy for our family – but crazy period.”
Rare feats are the norm for the Johnson family. Pepper and Dionte are just the third father-son pair to have been named captain at OSU, joining James and Kirk Herbstreit and Jim and Jeff Davidson.
A win Saturday would mean a trip to the Rose Bowl and an opportunity to make more family history.
“Coming into this year, you can’t set your goals on wanting to get to the Rose Bowl, you want to be National Champions,” Dionte Johnson said. “But at the same time, I’m excited to have the opportunity.”
Should the Buckeyes make it to Pasadena, it would be their first trip back since their nail-biter against Arizona State a decade ago.
Bringing the tradition of the Rose Bowl back to OSU would mean much to the Johnsons and the team but first they must get past rivals Michigan.
“None of that matters without this week,” Dionte Johnson said. “If we don’t get it done this week it’s still a dream that didn’t come to reality.”
Should that reality come true for Dionte Johnson and the Buckeyes, it would mean their third consecutive Big Ten Championship – something the school has not done since winning five straight from 1972-1976.
“Growing up, it’s kind of awkward because you get kind of biased thinking the Big Ten is only two teams – Ohio State and Michigan,” Dionte Johnson said. “But we’re definitely focused on being outright Big Ten Champions because that’s a blessing within itself. Anytime you get to fight Michigan for it, it’s even more important.”
His father beat Michigan in 1982 and 1984, captained the team in 1984 and 1985 and currently ranks sixth all-time at OSU in tackles tallying 379 stops in his four years. Pepper Johnson’s accomplishments are even sweeter considering he grew up behind enemy lines in Detroit.
“He talks about how the papers wrote about him and dogged him for it a little bit,” Dionte Johnson said. “But he doesn’t regret it and that’s one of the things that really went over to me and made me who I am today. He loves this university. He couldn’t imagine playing anywhere else.”
Though things haven’t always been easy for Dionte Johnson, he doesn’t regret his choice either. The true senior saw little time his first two seasons – playing primarily on the special teams unit.
That play carried over into his junior season where he backed up then-senior Stan White Jr. as the Buckeyes made their run toward the National Championship Game.
Seeing regular time with the offense this season has made the wait worthwhile.
“It’s one of those things you can’t put into words,” Dionte Johnson said. “I love the physicality of ‘The Game.’ That’s one of the things that draws me to it – draws me to the Big Ten period. There’s nothing that replaces this game. Everything gets set aside, the records, the history – it’s all about the now.”
Unfortunately, “the now” means trying to regroup from last weekend’s heartbreaking loss to Illinois, but this captain has been around far too long to let a bump in the road steer him off course.
With everything on the line Saturday, there is no doubt that Dionte Johnson and company will be more than ready to take down their archrivals once again.
“A lot of seniors take (a loss) as their turning point and fold for the rest of the season or they can’t get refocused,” Dionte Johnson said. “All we can control is what we do on Saturday.”
Zack Timmons can be reached at [email protected].
