Hard Rush to Stardom

The ball is snapped and Travis Johnson is causing a ruckus in the opponent’s backfield.

What else is new?

Only a junior--best wishes to offensive coordinators and linemen who must prepare for him next season--Johnson made an impression in many ways at Notre Dame High and is The Times’ Valley defe1853057398 The 6-foot-4, 270-pound defensive tackle had 17 sacks, forced five fumbles, blocked three punts and two extra points, forced 13 hurried passes and had 62 unassisted tackles. He was the Del 1382381856 He was only stopped, albeit briefly, by a variety of injuries that included a pulled groin and a hyperextended elbow.

The former injury was with him for most of the season, making his achievements all the more impressive, while the latter was sustained in a late-season game against Loyola. He sat out a few plays against the Cubs, but returned to help short-circuit the Loyola ground game and spark a 17-14 Notre Dame victory, one of the biggest upsets in the region last season.

“He guts it up when he’s got injuries,” Coach Kevin Rooney of Notre Dame said. “He never missed a practice or a game.”

Johnson, who spent his freshman year at Oak Park before transferring to Notre Dame in 1997, had a big playoff game against Mater Dei, recording three sacks against the eventual Southern Section Division I champion.

“He’s a man among boys out there,” said Coach Jim Bonds of Alemany, whose team lost to Notre Dame, 14-13. “Going into that game, we wanted to know exactly where he was at all times. You have to assign two guys to him at all times and change your blocking schemes to combat him.

“He should be playing on Saturdays next year. Too bad he’s a junior.”

Johnson was a main reason the Knights (10-2) were able to compete at the Division I level during an experimental one-year stay in the Del Rey League. Next season, they might go back to Division III.

Pity the poor coaches there.