April 25, 2018
By Greg Ostendorf
AuburnTigers.com
AUBURN, Ala. -- Kerryon Johnson has always loved football stadiums. He saw the Tennessee Titans play in their home stadium when he was 9 years old. As a freshman in high school, he played in the state championship game at Bryant-Denny Stadium. The next year, he won a state championship at Jordan-Hare Stadium in Auburn.
But nothing quite compared to the first time Johnson ever suited up for Auburn. It was the 2015 season opener, and the Tigers were playing Louisville in the Chick-fil-A Kickoff game at the old Georgia Dome, which has a capacity of 71,228.
"I had never seen a stadium that packed before," Johnson said. "I don't know how many people that stadium could hold then, but seeing it (packed) and most of it being orange and blue, Auburn colors, it was like, `Wow, people care about football and come out.' That was the craziest thing to me and hearing how loud it got. It was insane.
"I was out there, my legs were shaking. I was just coming off a little nagging injury, and I was like, `Am I really ready?' Then running backs started getting hurt. I was like, `Oh boy.'"
Three-and-a-half years later, Johnson has played in or at least traveled to 13 different stadiums since that first game -- 14 if you include Jordan-Hare Stadium. He's played in 10 of the 14 SEC stadiums. He's played in the Mercedes-Benz Superdome, home of the New Orleans Saints, and the new Mercedes-Benz Stadium, home of the Atlanta Falcons.
After this weekend, the Auburn running back will have a new stadium to call home once he's drafted by an NFL team. He'll have a slew of new stadiums to add to his list next fall. But looking back, he wouldn't have traded his time on the Plains for anything.
"I had a coach ask me (if I had any regrets about Auburn), and I was like, `No.' Not everyone can say that," Johnson said. "I just felt like I did it right. I felt like I gave it my all. I felt like I gave my 110 percent and once you do that, you can't really regret anything that happened."
That memory of playing in his first college game will always stick with Johnson. It's the same with the first touchdown he ever scored as a freshman at Kentucky or the two touchdowns he threw -- one in last year's Sugar Bowl and the other against Alabama this past season. He'll never forget the game he had to lead Auburn past No. 1 Georgia five months ago either.
But when you ask Johnson, the SEC offensive player of the year in 2017, about what stands out from his time at Auburn, it's not a specific play or a game.
"I think my teammates stand out the most," Johnson said. "I think what we built or what we have here in terms of brotherhood, in terms of looking out for each other, that's what stands out.
"I told them the same thing when I came back. That's the thing I miss most. Obviously, you're not going to miss bubble workouts or conditioning, but you miss playing in a stadium, you miss playing in front of your fans, you miss college life. But I miss the team atmosphere most. Just going and hanging out with those guys, all living within a close distance from each other. That's the stuff I miss most."
The other part that sticks out from the past three years are the fans.
Johnson was a fan favorite before he ever stepped foot on campus. He was the No. 1 player in the state. He picked Auburn over a scholarship offer from the other school in the state. And when he finally got to school and began playing, he didn't disappoint. Now he can't go anywhere without being recognized by somebody.
Even while he was training for the NFL draft down in Pensacola, Florida, he had Auburn fans reaching out and wanting to meet him for lunch or dinner.
"They're everywhere," Johnson said. "They are literally everywhere. I went to Pensacola, and I'm getting greeted by Auburn fans. I've got people tweeting me, `Hey, come here with us.' The fans are everywhere. I had one big year here. I go out now and it's like everywhere I go, somebody knows me. It's crazy how many there are.
"So we go out to Missouri this year, and Tiger Walk is still packed out. Last year with Mississippi State and Ole Miss, Tiger Walk is packed out. We went up to Kentucky my freshman year, Tiger Walk was packed out. They're everywhere. They never stop. They never sleep."
All those fans will be watching this weekend to see which NFL team drafts Johnson.
The draft itself begins Thursday with the first round. The latest buzz has Johnson projected to hear his name called Friday in either the second or the third round, but regardless of which round he goes in or which team selects him, he's just days away from realizing his childhood dream.
So what's that moment going to be like when he gets the call from an NFL team?
"I don't know," Johnson said. "I really don't. You've been working -- for me 20 years -- for this, but at the same time, the journey's not over yet. Now you really have to go to work.
"Of course, I'm going to be happy, ecstatic, but at the same time, in the back of my mind, I have to realize that I can't get the `I've arrived' mentality or `I've made it.' The contract's only three years. They don't have to keep you for any of that time. So you've got to go out there and earn it. It's not just going to be given to you."
Spoken like a true Auburn running back. If you ask Joe Cribbs or Bo Jackson or Ronnie Brown or even more recently, Peyton Barber, they'll all tell you the same thing. Nothing is handed to you in the NFL. You have to go out and earn it.
Johnson is excited about his opportunity to do just that and to join the list of Auburn running backs that have paved the way before him.
"I saw something where people consider me one of the top-five Auburn running backs of all time or just their top-five favorites, and that's incredible," Johnson said. "To know the lineage that we've had and trying to continue that, I feel like that's what I'm supposed to do. I feel like I have to uphold my name. I feel like I have to uphold that (Auburn) name. I feel like Auburn running backs are always tough, always trying to fight for the extra half an inch, half a yard.
"So I just look forward to trying to continue that. It will be a challenge, but you've got to embrace it."
Greg Ostendorf is a Senior Writer for AuburnTigers.com. Follow him on Twitter: Follow @greg_ostendorf