By Grant Clark
The Woodland High School defensive front didn’t budge. Claiming to a slim one-point lead in the second quarter of last year’s Class 2A state football preliminary game against visiting W.F. West, the Beavers appeared to have stonewalled Bearcats quarterback Elijah Johnson right at the goal line for no gain.
Woodland’s defense had been stout all season, posting three shutouts and holding seven of its nine regular season opponents to two touchdowns or less. It was because of this stellar defense that the Beavers were enjoying one of their best seasons ever.
On this particular play, it appeared as if Woodland’s defense had come up with yet another clip for the highlight reel as they initially appeared to turn away Johnson’s quarterback sneak, preserving the lead.
Johnson, however, was far from finished.
“He’s tough,” said W.F. West coach Bob Wollan about Johnson. “If I had to pick one word to describe him, it would be tough. He’s a quarterback, but he has a linebacker’s mentality.”
Johnson’s grit and steadfastness were on full display during this play as he twisted and turned and continued to powerfully drive his legs even while having a Woodland defender wrapped around his ankles.
With one final lunge, Johnson was able to break the end zone plane with the football. The touchdown reclaimed the lead for the Bearcats. Johnson would finish with a game-high 153 rushing yards on 23 carries, but more importantly, his squad left Woodland with a 28-21 playoff victory over the Beavers.
The win advanced the Bearcats to the state tournament for the fifth time over the last six seasons, while the scoring play perfectly summed up Johnson as a player – head down, powering through and finding a way to get the job done.
“He’s more of a running back playing quarterback than a quarterback who can run,” Wollan said. “He’s not your typical quarterback. He’s not going to run out of bounds. He’s always looking to get that extra yard.”
It doesn’t take Johnson much to find the motivation to fight for that extra yard. Maybe that’s because the Bearcats football team is something he’s been a part of for as long as he can remember.
His father, Chris, is a long-time assistant coach on Wollan’s staff, coaching defensive backs and running backs.
Ever before he slipped on a W.F. West jersey, Johnson served as both a ball boy and water boy for the team.
“He kind of grew up around football,” said Chris Johnson, who also coached his older son, Toby, in both football and baseball at W.F. West. “It’s been great to see them both go through the program and to be able to coach them. Just to be there with him on Friday nights, there’s nothing like it. It’s a special thing.”
Johnson knows his Bearcats football history. Growing up watching former W.F. West greats like Griffin Squires and Nathan Overbay play only whet his appetite more to become a member of the team.
He was in eighth grade when the Bearcats advanced to the state semifinals for the first time in school history – a memory among many that sticks out.
“I have a lot of great memories (about W.F. West football) from when I was a kid,” Johnson said. “I just wanted high school to hurry up and get here so I could play there.”
Johnson wasted little time making his own memories. During the second game of his sophomore season, he returned an interception 16 yards in W.F. West’s 58-24 dismantling of perennial state power Archbishop Murphy.
More importantly than plays like that, however, was the fact that he got to play in the same defensive backfield as his brother, Toby, who was a senior during the 2013 football season.
“Being a sophomore and getting to play safety with him, with both of us being coached by our dad, that was pretty cool,” Johnson said. “That is definitely an experience I will always remember.”
One thing that Johnson has a hard time recalling, however, is his first career start at quarterback, which occurred last year in a 27-14 victory over Kingston.
“I don’t really remember it too much. It’s kind of a blur,” Johnson said. “I’m sure I was nervous though. I always seem to get butterflies before every game. That hasn’t changed. They go away once the first play happens, but they’re always there during pre-game.”
Johnson continued to pile up wins last season before losing in the first round of the state playoffs to eventual state champion Sedro Woolley. At season’s end he was honored as a first-team all-Evergreen 2A Conference selection at quarterback.
Now as a senior, he has sights set on continuing the Bearcats’ winning ways.
“This is a football town. It always has been,” Johnson said. “You can just feel the energy that the community brings to our games when you step onto the field. You dream so long of playing here and then suddenly you’re a senior. You just try to take advantage of everything because it goes fast.”
