One That Got Away

The sun has set on an almost deserted football field at Cleveland High, but the sparkle in Keith Johnson’s eyes is enough to light up the entire San Fernando Valley.

Days before his final hurrah as a high school athlete in the Valley Youth Conference all-star football game Saturday night at Birmingham High, Johnson is reminiscing about the four years he spent as a wide receiver and defensive back at Taft High and Montclair Prep.

Johnson, who will start at safety for the West squad, praises the coaches who have helped him along the way. He talks about the dedication and hard work that helped him earn a scholarship to Oregon State. He recalls his eight career interceptions and his 1994 Southern Section Division X championship season at Montclair Prep.

But when asked what he will remember the most about his high school days, he looks to the ground, smiles and shakes his head.

“That I dropped the interception,” Johnson says.

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Johnson played his first 2 1/2 years at Montclair Prep, but when his family moved to Chatsworth, he spent a semester at Chatsworth High before transferring to Taft for the 1996 season.

Known as one of the best man-to-man coverage players in the region, he helped Taft’s defense and provided an added threat at wide receiver.

The Toreadors, who lost in the first round of the 1995 playoffs, exceeded the highest expectations for the 1996 season by reaching the City Section 4-A championship game.

Taft Coach Troy Starr said the addition of Johnson was crucial to the team’s success.

“Any team that has been successful over the last couple of years has been helped by some transfers,” Starr said. “And he was as big a transfer as you can get.”

Johnson made big plays all season. He was second on the team with 716 receiving yards. His acrobatic, 36-yard catch on third-and-20 kept alive Taft’s fourth-quarter, game-winning drive in the semifinals. He also led the Toreadors with two interceptions.

But the play Johnson can’t forget came in the section final before 7,000 at the Coliseum and others watching on local television.

Taft trailed, 16-13, late in the third quarter and San Pedro had just crossed midfield.

Pirate wide receiver Tim O’Donnell ran a deep route, but Johnson had him covered all the way.

With perfect timing, Johnson stepped in front of O’Donnell and tipped the ball . . . right into O’Donnell’s hands, who ran the remaining five yards into the end zone for a 22-13 San Pedro lead. The Pirates won, 22-20.

“Man, I can still see it,” Johnson said, dropping his equipment bag and reenacting the play, step-by-step.

“I could see it coming the whole way. I had so much time to react,” he says while backpedaling. “It was almost like it was set up.”

To Johnson’s dismay, the play was shown on the large video screen at the Coliseum several times. If that wasn’t enough, his parents taped the television broadcast and he watched it over and over that night at home.

“I still think about that play every time I step on the field,” Johnson said. “But I’ve got to learn from my mistakes, I can’t dwell on them. I’m still going to be aggressive and react to the plays. You have to have a short-term memory, especially when you play cornerback.”

Johnson, who has Saturday’s game left in a high school career in which his teams were a combined 35-3, looks to erase that memory.

“This is it,” Johnson said. “I want to put on a show for my friends and family.”

Does that mean he’s going to make some big plays on defense and exorcise the demons of that missed interception?

“I can’t predict that,” Johnson said. “But it would be nice to get a pick . . . or two.”