There is no doubt that Central Holmes Christian School’s Wykece Johnson is a special player.
The only doubt Johnson is getting these days are from the college recruiters.
Johnson enters his senior year at Central Holmes poised for another big season, making him the latest in the Star-Herald Eleven Players To Watch for the upcoming football season. Already recognized among the 11 are Antonio Harmon of Kosciusko, Izik Stewart of Ethel and Thomas Costilow of Winona Christian School.
Johnson is coming off a monster season for the Trojans in which he rushed for 1,550 yards and 21 touchdowns and led the team to a 6-5 record and a first-round playoff berth, despite playing hurt the last part of the season.
Second-year coach Jim Crowder has nothing but praise for his star running back.
“First thing, he is a leader and he leads by example,” Crowder said. “He is a max-effort guy and a better kid than he is a player and everybody knows what they are getting with him. He’s one of those guys that eat, sleeps and drinks football.”
Johnson stands 5-foot-11 and weighs in at 203 pounds, giving him a frame big enough to pound inside the tackles but enough speed to pull away from defenders. Johnson is strong in the weight room as well, with a benchpress max of 285 pounds, 510 on squat and 265 to power clean. He said he runs a low 4.6 in the 40-yard dash.
“I guess the one question I get or ask is what is keeping them from offering him today, the only question is top-end speed,” Crowder said. “You got a guy out of Georgia that led the SEC in rushing (Elijah Holyfield) and he ran a 4.8 in the combine. We had a game last year, a guy that won every 100 meters and maybe the second fastest guy in the association and Wykece runs off and leaves him. So I get the numbers, but at the same time, he’s not a slow back by any means. He has the speed to be a good back at the next level. I have coached some real good ones.”
What is even more impressive to Crowder is Johnson’s efforts off the field. Johnson is sporting a 4.0 GPA in the classroom and already has a 22 on the ACT. Crowder said Johnson has gotten a wide variety of interest, all the way from the Mississippi junior colleges to the “smart” schools like Samford, Millsaps and Belhaven.
“As smart as he is academically, he’s not closed off to any school,” Crowder said. “That will really help him. It’s kind of wide open right now. I do know this, I think when he commits, he will stick with it. I think with his character, once he commits, he will stick with it. That school that targets him, they will reap the rewards of that. In one way, his grades have hurt him with the junior colleges because none of them think they are going to have a shot at him so they aren’t recruiting him that hard. But I don’t think that the jucos are out of the question.”
Crowder, who coached at Mississippi Delta Community College before going to Pillow Academy and eventually Central Holmes, thinks Johnson has the right mindset and athletic ability to play at the next level.
“It is a business to him,” Crowder said. “So many kids, you wonder if they are going to be there in a year or two. With him, you know what you are going to get. He is going to come in the program and make it better and he is going to be there the full time. He’s going to do what he needs to do academically and is not going to get in trouble off the field. He’s just so accountable. Beside his athletic ability, he is going to make you better in so may other places as well. He’s going to make somebody look real smart when they sign him.”
As for the upcoming season, Crowder is already sharpening his pencil thinking of new ways to use Johnson as he will put an offensive line on the field that averages nearly 300 pounds. On defense, Johnson played linebacker last year but Crowder said he could easily end up at safety, depending on what the team needed.
“He is going to have to carry the load for us, no question about that,” Crowder said. “He’s going to have to help us defense. He also has to lead in the locker room and on the field and that’s something we have talked about. He is a quiet leader but he is getting more vocal. He has to help us in all aspects. We count on him on and off the field.”
Johnson also starts on the basketball team where he averaged a near double-double in points and rebounds for the Trojans. He also ran track for the Trojans, participating most of the sprints and relays.
Johnson said he hopes to lead the Trojans deeper in the playoffs this season.
“I plan on leading the team to be better than we were last year,” Johnson said. "Ultimately, I want to win a championship. I think it will take more effort from the whole team and have to get better on defense. The summer is going well, workouts basically every day. We will have two-a-days in a couple of weeks and I’m feeling pretty good about what we have coming back.”
Johnson said when he is not lifting weights, he is working at the school during the summer, getting plenty of experience in painting. Johnson said he would like to major in physical therapy and perhaps be an athletic trainer so that he can stay around athletics.
