Published Sep 21, 2019
Johnson brings size, skill to A&M's '20 DB class
Mark Passwaters  •  AggieYell
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Saturday's commitment of East St. Louis (Ill.) S Antonio Johnson was a big one for Texas A&M. Not only does it add to their haul of Rivals 100 commits, they pick up one of the nation's best safeties in the process. 

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The first thing that jumps out at you when you watch Johnson's highlights is his size. He's a legit 6-foot-3 and is already 180 pounds, so he could easily be 200 by the time he hits the field in 2020. He has a frame that reminds me of Laron Landry -- at least before Landry became a ridiculous steroid abuser in the NFL.

For a guy of his size, Johnson has excellent ball skills. You can see that on offense as well as on defense. He finds the ball, positions himself properly and obvious wins more than his fair share of 50/50 balls. Playing wideout will actually be a huge plus when he's a full-time defender at the next level, because he's already used turning to find the football. He'll also have a better idea of what opposing receivers are trying to do.

Johnson doesn't look like he has tremendous speed, but he has those really long strides that allow him to cover a lot of ground per step. And perhaps more importantly, he recognizes plays quickly and breaks to the ball well. And once he gets there, he doesn't mind hitting someone. I would, however, liked to have seen a few examples of him wrapping up and taking an opponent to the ground.

In all, though, the Aggies picked up somebody with a lot of God-given talent, football smarts and athleticism. Johnson is clearly a playmaker, and you can never have enough of them. With Demani Richardson, Leon O'Neal, Brian Williams, Kendrick Carper and now Johnson, the Aggies are stacking up 4-stars at safety and are developing impressive depth. He doesn't have to see the field in 2020, but I wouldn't count him out.