FAYETTEVILLE -- Nobody last summer dreamed Taiwan Johnson would be the Arkansas Razorbacks' starting nose tackle heading into a December game to be played in Houston, near his hometown of Manvel, Texas.
And that includes Johnson.
He entered the fall as third-year sophomore defensive end who had yet to earn a college letter, possessing a slightly undersized frame by football standards, but never dreaming of taking over a position where he would battle behemoth 300-pounds plus centers and guards inside.
But on Dec. 29, Johnson, listed 6-2, 255 pounds, starts his 13th game at nose tackle for these 6-6 Razorbacks. He will do so at the NFL's Houston Texans' NRG Stadium, site of the Texas Bowl pitting Arkansas against the Texas Longhorns.
"This has been a great year," said Johnson, who thought he was done playing in Texas after trips to Lubbock and Arlington earlier this season. "I give a lot of glory to God. He has really blessed me. To give me the best Christmas present, the best bowl present, to play a game in front of my home fans, in front of my family for Arkansas against Texas, I couldn't ask for anything better. This is my first time I am actually playing in Houston since I left. And this is my first time playing in NRG Stadium. So I am pretty excited."
Johnson never previously pondered coming home other than to visit family and friends.
"It's a great feeling knowing I get to play in the stadium I grew up in cheering on other guys," Johnson said.
Johnson has heard cheers this year he never heard previously at Arkansas, totaling 26 tackles, including 8 for lost yardage, 4.5 quarterback sacks and 1 fumble recovery, after redshirting as a true freshman in 2012 and spending 2013 mostly as a scout-team apprentice.
Second-year Coach Bret Bielema stunned everyone by personally promoting Johnson from third-team end to first-team nose tackle during two-a-day practices in August.
"Taiwan has jumped out to me since I've been here," Bielema said at the time. "He goes 100 mph. He really gets it. I thought with his explosion that this is kind of a unique deal."
Bielema can only smile now when asked if Johnson had fared even better in the middle than he anticipated.
"No," Bielema said, "Because I thought of it."
How Bielema thought Johnson would cope with behemoth blockers indeed came true.
"It's all about heart in the trenches," Johnson said. "You can be the biggest guy out there, but if you have no heart, you have no technique, you are not going to survive."
That Johnson not only survives but thrives at nose guard hits close to home with Bielema, as it does Johnson, who gets to play in a bowl game at a position he never dreamed of playing close to where he grew up.
Sports on 12/15/2014