By Rick Kozlowski

rkozlowski@journal-news.net

Martinsburg Journal

 

SHENANDOAH JUNCTION -- James Jett left quite a legacy at Jefferson.

 

State high school sprint records, an Olympic gold medal in track, a football scholarship to West Virginia University and a nine-year career as a wide receiver in the NFL.

 

While Christian Johnson has a long way to go to catch up to all of Jett's feats, the current Jefferson wide receiver star had a season on the football field that not even Jefferson's greatest athlete achieved.

 

Johnson hauled in 65 passes for 1,418 yards (21.8 per catch average) and 26 touchdowns.

 

The 6-2, 180-pound Jefferson junior also established a pair of records -- most touchdown receptions in a game (seven) and most for a 10-game season (24).

 

Johnson's season ultimately leads to him being named the first winner of the Randy Moss Award as the top receiver in the state, a new prep football honor being bestowed by the West Virginia Sports Writers Association.

 

Moss was a standout wide receiver in high school at DuPont, in college at Marshall and in the NFL with several clubs.

 

Johnson didn't start the season thinking he could break any records. The possibility quickly entered his mind when he hauled in five touchdown passes in his first game for a Jefferson team that eventually returned to the Class AAA playoffs and finished with a 7-4 record.

 

"It was always in the back of my mind, 'How much can I catch,'" Johnson said. "I thought maybe I could get six, maybe get seven. When people brought up the record, definitely in the back of my mind it was, 'Definitely, I can do that."

 

The Jefferson coaching staff didn't see the statistical numbers coming either.

 

"We figured 40 or 50 catches," said Jefferson coach Craig Hunter, a teammate of Jett's back in the 1980s. "We definitely didn't anticipate all the TD catches.

 

"We saw sparks of what he could do, but he matured and got better. Still, we never thought he could do the things he did this year."

 

Being in a pass-oriented offense also definitely helped the first-team all-stater. Three of his teammates combined to catch 100 passes, while quarterback Andrew King threw for 2,750 yards on his way to being named as the second-team all-state quarterback.

 

"It's a great honor to say I hold the record, but it was all my quarterback and my team. Without them, I couldn't have accomplished what I accomplished. A big shoutout to them. They did a great job in helping me get the record."

 

The two records Johnson broke were held by Brandon Barrett, a Parade All-American who went to West Virginia University.

 

When Johnson started catching passes the way he was, he started hearing the names, like Eastern Panhandle high school stars Jett and Barrett, and the comparisons naturally followed.

 

Like Jett, speed is a big attribute to Johnson's game, though he showed his ability to go up in traffic to haul in passes and that he could be acrobatic, as well.

 

"Just the thing about me is heart," Johnson said. "You go out there and know you got to catch the ball. You know you always got to do your job. My passion for the game helps me a lot."

 

Johnson honed his skills last summer at a prestigeous camp at Florida State and tutored under Jefferson assistant Josh Brown, a former Jefferson standout who started his collegiate football career in Division I.

 

"When I caught that record pass, I walked over to Josh Brown and thanked him," Johnson said. "He helped me get there."

 

There's no debating Johnson's talent and skill, but whether he can get there again certainly is up in the air.

 

Jett's best statistical year in football came his junior year. He worked with a new quarterback during his senior year -- same as Johnson will. Jett found more coverages focused on him as a senior -- same as Johnson likely will.

 

"Everybody's going to know about him," Hunter said, "and we're going to see what we saw toward the middle and end of the season, a lot of double-teams. It's going to be harder for us coaches to find ways to get him the ball. We're going to have to move him and around and get him the ball in space, where he can do damage."

 

Johnson looks forward to next season's challenge, one Hunter said could include less emphasis on the pass,

 

"I don't even know," Johnson said. "Whatever comes; I have faith in the two quarterbacks who are coming up to varsity."

 

Still, Hunter, who witnessed Jett's exploits, thinks the sky can be the limit for Johnson, whose size is as much as an attribute as his speed.

 

"Your goal is to come out and be better than you were this year," Hunter said.

 

In two segments this past season, his two state records, Johnson proved to be the best.