A&M coach Kevin Sumlin says it’s Jarrett Johnson’s time at defensive end.
Veteran defensive end will get first crack at replacing friend on the line
COLLEGE STATION — Jarrett Johnson and Myles Garrett have more in common than playing defensive end at Texas A&M.
“He does paleontology, I do geology,” Johnson said of the duo’s respective studies. “They pretty much go hand in hand.”
Put another way, Johnson added, “I do rocks, he does dinosaurs.”
Now, with Garrett gone to the Cleveland Browns as A&M’s first No. 1 NFL Draft selection, Johnson suddenly has cleats to fill the size of a tyrannosaurus stomp.
“You’re not going to replace the first pick in the draft,” A&M coach Kevin Sumlin said, “although we’d love to every year.”
That task will be left to a committee, and with the Aggies opening their season at UCLA on Sunday night trying to improve on three consecutive 8-5 finishes, Johnson is the group supervisor.
“He’s worked hard, and it’s his time,” Sumlin said of Johnson, a senior from Seven Lakes High.
While other longtime backups sometimes transfer in search of more immediate playing time, Johnson patiently waited the past three seasons for his chance behind the All-American Garrett, whom he considers a close friend.
“I love the guy, and I learned so much from him; he’s just an amazing player,” Johnson said of Garrett, who exited A&M after three seasons and 32½ sacks. “Being able to watch Myles play and perform, it kind of took away some of the heartache of not being able to play as much as I wanted to.”
Garrett, too, isn’t the only starting defensive end the Aggies lost to the NFL. Daeshon Hall was a third-round pick of the Carolina Panthers after collecting 16 sacks in his A&M career. Hall finished last season with 4½ sacks, which as Sumlin has pointed out is the same amount as Johnson in 2016, with the latter on the field less time.
“People forget that Jarrett played a lot of snaps last year because Myles was hurt for a couple of games,” Sumlin said. “Jarrett has experience, he’s savvy at the position and has gained some weight to hold his point a little more, instead of just being a pass-rusher. He’s an every-down guy now.”
Plenty of experience
Defensive end didn’t endure a dramatic dip in experience with the exits of Garrett and Hall, as Johnson (6-3, 265) has played in 36 games over the past three seasons,
and fellow senior Qualen Cunningham (6-3, 250) has played in 37 in the same span. They each have 4½ sacks in their careers.
Two newcomers — at least to the position — also should contend for plenty of playing time. Sophomore Justin Dunning started his A&M career as a safety, suffered his third torn ACL (including high school) a year ago and redshirted, and he has since shifted to linebacker and finally defensive end. Micheal Clemons (6-5, 255) is a sophomore transfer from Cisco Junior College, where he was one of the top-rated junior-college players in the nation, and he should be a key part of the foursome tasked with filling in for Garrett and Hall.
“Micheal Clemons had an exceptional last week,” Sumlin said this week of the Aggies wrapping up camp with the Bruins on their minds. “With that whole group of guys, you’re not looking for just one player to replace those two, but the top four guys give you an opportunity to approach that (past) production, and if they do that, that’s what you’re looking for.”
Solid on the interior
The Aggies’ interior defensive line should be solid with returning starters Zaycoven Henderson and Kingsley Keke and sturdy backups Daylon Mack and Justin Madubuike. The A&M defensive line and defense as a whole will get a stiff test right out of the gate, as UCLA junior quarterback Josh Rosen projects as one of the top selections in the 2018 NFL Draft, should he turn pro early.
“He’s a great player, so hopefully it will be me sacking him this time, instead of Myles and Daeshon,” Johnson said of A&M’s 31-24 overtime victory against the Bruins a year ago at Kyle Field. “A good pass rush is a premium in any game, but especially this one.”