Clark: Jermaine Johnson's lone year with FSU Football was one for the ages

There is no way Mike Norvell knew exactly what he was getting when Jermaine Johnson decided to transfer to Florida State.

The Seminoles' head coach was certainly excited when Johnson, a former Georgia Bulldog, decided to finish his career in Tallahassee.

But who could have expected this?

Johnson was a contributor for the Bulldogs during his two years in Athens, but he wasn't exactly a star. Turns out he just needed to be somewhere where he could truly shine, and Tallahassee certainly proved to be that for Johnson in 2021.

The Minnesota native put together one of the all-time best seasons in FSU history en route to being named the 2021 ACC Defensive Player of the Year. The honor was announced Wednesday morning by the conference.

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Johnson finished with 70 tackles, 17.5 tackles for loss, 12 sacks, two forced fumbles and one memorable touchdown in his lone season in garnet and gold.

They don't give an award for the country's top transfer -- it would be cool if they did, though; they could call it the How-You-Like-Me-Nowsman -- but there's absolutely no doubt he was one of the very best in the United States.

Maybe the best, in fact.

Not only did he put up huge numbers. Not only did he help FSU's defense improve immensely. But he so bought in to what Norvell is trying to do here, what he's trying to build, that Johnson's impact should be felt for years to come.

I think that's why he was such a fan favorite.

He was a one-year rental. He had no ties to Florida State. And yet he played every game, every snap, like Florida State football was the most important thing in the world to him.

And as he said after Saturday's loss to Florida, he's going to be a Seminole for the rest of his life now.

And guess what? His 2021 season will live on for a long, long time.

But where does it rank among the all-time greatest seasons by an FSU defensive lineman?

Well, it's certainly up there that's for sure. Not the top one -- it's going to take a lot to knock Peter Boulware from that perch -- but certainly in the conversation for one of the best of the last three decades.

For starters, Johnson became the eighth Seminole, and seventh FSU defensive lineman, to be named the ACC Defensive Player of the Year. He joins a pretty solid fraternity I'd say -- Derrick Brooks, Derrick Alexander, Peter Boulware, Andre Wadsworth, Darnell Dockett, Bjoern Werner and DeMarcus Walker were the others.

And when you go down the history of all the great FSU defensive linemen that have played at FSU, you could make an argument that only a handful -- Boulware, Reinard Wilson, Wadsworth and Walker -- had better single seasons than the one Johnson put together in 2021.

Boulware had 19 sacks in 1996. Wilson had 105 tackles and 13.5 sacks that same year. As a defensive end! Good grief.

Together, those two combined for 173 tackles, 42 tackles for loss and 32.5 sacks. In one season.

Man. I just kinda got lost for a second thinking about those two dudes as bookends on the same defensive line. Unbelievable. Those were the days, huh? My goodness.

Anyway, yeah, they both had better years than Johnson. No shame there.

Wadsworth, a former walk-on, recorded 16 sacks in 1997 and went on to be the No. 3 pick in the NFL Draft. No shame there either.

And finally, Walker was a monster in 2016, finishing with 68 tackles, 21.5 for loss and 16 sacks on that Orange Bowl-bound team. So yeah, pretty high bar to clear there, too.

Other than that, though, I'm not real sure any defensive end in the history of the school has had a better year than the one Jermaine Johnson enjoyed this season.

And unlike those aforementioned players, he wasn't on a winning team. He didn't get to play for championships or in New Year's Six bowls. He didn't get to bathe in the glory of a dynasty run. He also wasn't surrounded by other All-Americans.

It didn't matter. He played every Saturday like it was a Game of the Century, like a championship berth was on the line.

Jermaine Johnson said when he came to Florida State that he wanted to leave an imprint -- he wanted to make a mark and have a lasting impact on the program.

The Seminoles only got him for 12 games, but you'd better believe he did exactly that.

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