A heartfelt homecoming

  • John Sleeper / Herald Writer
  • Thursday, November 1, 2001 9:00pm
  • Sports

By John Sleeper

Herald Writer

SEATTLE – The first thing Teyo Johnson wants you to know is that he didn’t come to the decision to leave Mariner High School for San Diego easily.

Johnson is vague about the reasons that he and teammate Amon Gordon decided to leave Mariner for Mira Mesa High School in San Diego. But he says he holds no ill feelings for anyone in the Everett/Mukilteo area. It was a move, he said, he had to make.

“It was a very difficult decision,” said Johnson, now a two-sport athlete at Stanford University. “Everett was my home. That was where I spent most of my life. It was difficult leaving the team and friends. I still consider Everett my home.”

The second thing is that it was the right decision. Yes, he and Gordon were major components in Mariner’s success in football and basketball, but the decision to leave was one they believed and still believe was one they had to make.

“We were having difficulty at the school as far as playing sports and other things having to do with my family,” Johnson said. “My dad’s business moved to San Diego and my mom was going to go there and stay and get it off the ground. I elected to go with her. It turned out to be the best decision I’ve ever made.”

Saturday will mark Johnson’s return to the Seattle area as a member of a Cardinal team striving to beat Washington and to break out of a five-team logjam for first place in the Pacific-10 Conference. His 6-foot-7, 245-pound presence is being felt even now, as a redshirt freshman. Johnson has 15 receptions for 225 yards and four touchdowns, including a spectacular, leaping, one-handed TD grab against UCLA in Stanford’s 38-31 victory.

Gordon will be here as well, likely seeing action as a reserve linebacker and on special teams.

Johnson did come to Seattle last year as a reserve with the basketball team, but this time around is different.

“It’s an added perk to go home and play in front of your family and friends back at your home state,” Johnson said. “When I went there for basketball, I was just going out there and being a freshman. Now, I’m going out there to seriously contribute and make plays and be an impact. I think there’s more pressure going back there now.”

Chances are, he’ll make that impact Saturday. At 6-7, Johnson is a mismatch for anyone unfortunate enough to cover him.

“I’m not sure we have anyone we can match up with him,” Washington coach Rick Neuheisel said.

Johnson sounds like a man fully satisfied with his life as a football and basketball player at one of the most demanding academic institutions in the world. His options remain open in many areas, in football and basketball, as well as within football, in which he still pines to play quarterback.

Johnson came to Stanford with the idea of someday playing that position. After having played quarterback, wide receiver and defensive end at Mira Mesa, he dreamed of joining the great tradition of Stanford signal-callers (the Plunketts, the Elways, the Brodies, etc.).

“It’s really confusing at this point,” he said. “I really have mixed emotions. I’m having a lot of fun at receiver. But my heart’s still at quarterback. I think I can still contribute to the team at that position. There’s no answer right now as to whether I want to go back or not. But it’s really up to what Coach (Tyrone) Willingham needs me to do.”

Willingham isn’t saying yet. Stanford annually gets the pick of great high school quarterbacks. While Johnson’s size and athleticism would make him a unique presence, perhaps he could make a bigger impact elsewhere.

“Teyo definitely has the skills to play the quarterback position,” Stanford offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach Bill Diedrick said. “But he’s a young quarterback still learning the offense. He’s a very gifted athlete. As coaches, we’ve talked about finding a place for Teyo to play. Right now, he’ll play as a wide receiver, but still continue to work at quarterback.”

He’ll also continue to work at basketball. A forward on the Cardinal team, Johnson averaged 4.1 points and 2.2 rebounds a game for the Pac-10 champions last year and figures to compete for a starting spot this season.

Will he eventually have to make a choice between the two?

“It’s really a season-to-season thing,” he said. “I think maybe I’m going to have to sit down in the future and make that decision with the coaches. But right now, I’m having a blast playing both. I really don’t see myself singling out either one.”

All this, while trying to stay academically afloat at Stanford.

“It’s very difficult,” Johnson said. “You have to make a lot of social sacrifices you don’t want to make. You think it’s going to be a lot of fun and a lot of partying or whatever. But you really have to sacrifice and stay good at two sports.”

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