whorehouse anabolic: Cousins Johnson, Rawlins enjoyed a feast of college recruiters

By Jeff Oliver

Published: Friday, August 31, 2012, 12:01?a.m.
Updated 13 hours ago

Over the course of the early committing period for high school football players, Belle Vernon Area?s Dorian Johnson and Monessen Chavas Rawlins received a combined 55 offers from Division I schools.

No other area players in the last two decades had been in such demand on the national level and received the number of offers that Johnson, a 6-6, 290-pound tackle, and Rawlins, a 6-3, 188-pound quarterback, were inundated with.

And what adds to the intrigue of the recruiting of the two is that they are cousins.

Both committed early to avoid the distraction of the college wooing during their senior seasons. Rawlins said ?yes? to West Virginia University while Johnson committed to Penn State.

However, in light of NCAA sanctions against Penn State over the Jerry Sandusky incidents, Johnson has since de-committed and said his top three choices are Pitt, Ohio State and Virginia Tech.

He does not plan to make an announcement any time soon as he said he wants to concentrate on the upcoming season with the Leps.

The duo feasted on opposing players and enjoyed a cornucopia of colleges and universities seeking their services.

Now they both hope to enjoy a championship banquet their senior seasons.

Family ties

When Johnson and Rawlins are asked about their family relationship, they both laugh and say they are ?distant cousins? and claim that while families are what got them together in the first place, they just had a natural friendship that has blossomed over the years.

?We got to know each other when he lived next to my family in Monessen when we were little kids,? said Rawlins. ?He moved away at an early age, but we always stayed friends.?

?We hung out as little kids,? Johnson said. ?And even though we go to different schools, we always stayed in touch. Obviously, once we got in high school and started playing football, we talked a lot more often.?

?The way we talk, it?s almost like he?s my brother, not my cousin,? Rawlins said. ?We share a lot, especially during the recruiting process.?

Although Johnson and Rawlins admitted that their immediate families don?t gather for family functions, they both take pride in the fact that they are related.

?I think it?s pretty cool that two cousins have managed to do what we were able to do to get so many schools to want us,? Johnson said.

?My mother always told me our family was special,? said Rawlins. ?I just think the fact that Dorian and I have gotten to this point proves she was right. Plus, when you add the fact that Pitt has already offered my (younger) brother, Justice, a scholarship, well, it shows you just how special our family really is. I think we?re all proud of that.?
Johnson, who said his mother and grandmother are two of the people who most influenced his development as a person and athlete, said his family gets together at his grandmother?s every Sunday for dinner.

Both he and Rawlins smiled when asked what family get-togethers might be like five or six years from now if both make it to the NFL.

?We might have to all get together if that happens,? Johnson said with a grin.

?That would be something,? said Rawlins. ?I think we both have the ability to get there one day. If we do, then those get togethers would be something.?

And the food would taste pretty good, too.

Football roots

Johnson started playing football when he was five years old in the Belle Vernon Midget Football League for the Washington Township Redskins.

He actually recalls starting his career as a linebacker before moving to the line.

?I was a lot bigger than most of the kids in midget league, so I everntually moved to the line,? he said.

Rawlins started playing football eight years ago for Monessen?s flag football team in the Mon Valley Midget Football League.

?That?s a long time ago,? he said, rolling his eyes.

While Johnson said he found out he was ?pretty good? at football when he reached middle school, Rawlins said it was a little later for him.

?My junior year is when I realized I was going to take my football career further,? Rawlins said. ?I always thought I was a basketball player until the way my junior season played out. I had a breakout year and the first scholarship offer came and they kept coming. I was like, ?wow.??

?When I was in seventh grade and I started playing with kids my own size and I still was pushing them around, I figured I could play,? Johnson said. ?Before that, I was way bigger and I just thought it was my size.?

Coachspeak

BVA coach Aaron Krepps and Monessen mentor Andy Pacak know the talents of Johnson and Rawlins, respectively, better than anyone else. And they aren?t shy about singing their stars? praises.

?I haven?t seen another lineman like Dorian at this stage of his career,? Krepps said. ?I don?t have a ton of years under my belt, but I do know I?ve never had a lineman of his caliber.

?He is very worthy of all the scholarship offers he received.?

Pacak, who has been at Monessen 30 years as a player, assistant coach and now head coach, said that Rawlins has attracted more attention than any Greyhound he was ever around.

?The old-timers here say you have to go all the way back to the 1960s and early 70s to when there were that many big-time colleges coming to Monessen,? Pacak said. ?And even then, they weren?t all coming for one player.?

Krepps said that Johnson has the energy to be successful, along with the talent. He added that the facts that he is so coachable and is a hard worker make him even more of a pleasure to coach.

?He?s a great kid,? Krepps said. ?He listens and he works to get better. He doesn?t have a superstar attitude.?

Pacak claims that not only does Rawlins have the talent to play at the next level, he has the leadership charisma as well.

?Colleges saw his highlight tape and couldn?t wait to talk to him,? Pacak said. ?But once they sat down with him, when they were done all of them told me, ?I gotta have this kid.?

?Some of them wanted him as a quarterback and others as a defensive back, but they all said the same thing. They said by the time he is a junior, he will be a captain on their team because of his leadership qualities,? Pacak said. ?He?s that special of a kid.?

Krepps said he feels for Johnson about the Penn State situation, saying his star lineman did everything the right way to make an early decision and things outside of his control changed that.

?He (decided early) for a reason and now he has to go through that process again,? Krepps said. ?But I admire the way he is handling it. He has put the colleges on hold because he wants to concentrate on being a leader for this team and having a successful senior year. Recruiting is on the backburner now for him. Not many kids would make that decision.?

2012 expectations

Neither Johnson nor Rawlins are looking past their senior seasons. Both said they have waited a long time to be seniors and they not only want to enjoy their last year of high school football, but want to make the most of it.

?The first goal for us is to win the conference and then win the WPIAL,? said Johnson. ?Those are our goals. I just want to have a great senior season. That?s all I?m concentrating on.?

?This team is more determined than any other team I ever played with,? said Rawlins. ?We know our conference is stronger and we have worked hard all off-season and during camp to be ready.

?I know where I?m going to college,? he added. ?But there are places I want to take this team first.?

Let the feast begin.

Jeff Oliver is a sports editor for Trib Total Media. He can be reached at 724-684-2666 or joliver@tribweb.com.

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