North County Times: Marshawn Rooting For Old Teammate

Toreros quarterback turning heads

By: TOM SHANAHAN - For The North County Times

SAN DIEGO ---- Most West Coast football fans know Marshawn Lynch is a candidate for the Heisman Trophy, college football's most prestigious award. But this week the Cal All-American running back's mind has been on the Walter Payton Award, Division I-AA's Heisman equivalent. Lynch is ineligible for the lower-division award, of course, but he has learned University of San Diego quarterback Josh Johnson, his high school teammate at Oakland Tech, was added to the Payton watch list. In fact, given a choice, Lynch would prefer Johnson earn the Payton than him the Heisman.

That's how much he thinks of his friend since kindergarten, a talent that was overlooked in the recruiting game by Division I-A schools. Johnson was a 5-foot-11, 145-pound high school senior who has since grown into a 6-3, 195-pound college junior and NFL prospect. "If Josh can win that award, I'll take it and run with it," Lynch said. "He's my boy, my cousin ---- he's family to me. He might be surprising people, but not me. Growing up as kids, we called him, 'The head coach.' He was always the one who took charge. He made everything right."

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