Jasper Johnson is the Latest Larger Than Life Figure in a Famous Kentucky Family

Some top-notch recruits shied away from the bright lights of Kentucky basketball. The pressure of playing under the microscope is too much for some shoulders to bear. If Jasper Johnson ultimately decides to play for his Old Kentucky Home, living up to the successes of his family predecessors is damn near impossible.

Long before the shooting guard was a five-star sensation, his father and uncle were high school football phenoms at Harrodsburg High School, coached by their father, Alvis Johnson. The family patriarch was an assistant athletics director at UK later in his career, but the KHSAA Hall of Famer was much more than that, described by Matt Jones today as “the original Vince Marrow.”

For those who did not live through it, it’s difficult to accurately describe what Derrick and Dennis Johnson meant to sports in the state of Kentucky. They were larger-than-life figures, dominating athletics at one of the smallest schools in the state before starring for the Wildcats.

The Improbable High School Career of Dennis Johnson

Dennis Johnson’s mythical rise began when he first played in a varsity football game in the second grade. His older brother was on the team too as a third grader. The Johnson brothers were eventually sidelined when the KHSAA passed a rule barring elementary school students from playing varsity sports.

Dennis returned to the high school gridiron in seventh grade. The following year he was a first-team All-State selection. By the time his illustrious high school career concluded, the 6-foot-7, 250-pounder was Sports Illustrated’s National High School Player of the Year (and those weren’t the only national awards he won). In 1997 he had 150 tackles, 37 TFLs, and 18 quarterback sacks. Oh, and he averaged just shy of 40 yards per punt. Harrodsburg never could win the big one, falling to Beechwood in consecutive Class A State Title games.

He was not just Mr. Football. Dennis Johnson won eight individual track and field state championships, four in the shot put, three in the discus, and one in the triple jump.

His high school basketball statistics were almost as absurd as his football numbers. Dennis Johnson tallied 2,306 points, 1,347 rebounds, 335 blocked shots, 315 assists, and 161 steals. Playing alongside his brother Derrick in 1996, in two Sweet 16 games Dennis combined for 32 points, 21 rebounds, and 7 blocked shots. He initially planned on playing football and basketball at Kentucky.

“The reason he selected Kentucky was because they told him he could play both sports,” Alvis Johnson told Mike Fields in a 2016 interview. “But after (Dennis’ freshman) football season, Hal (Mumme) told a different story. Tubby (Smith) was very disappointed they wouldn’t let him play basketball. He needed some bangers inside and he thought Dennis could be one of those guys.”

Even though he never suited up for Tubby Smith, Bill Keightley gave Dennis the No. 30 jersey and embroidered travel bag they had prepared for Dennis.

Record-Setting Kentucky Football Career

The Paul Bunyan of Kentucky High School Football had high expectations when he began playing in Lexington alongside his brother, who dabbled at both offensive and defensive tackle. He met them right away.

Hal Mumme was not known for his defenses. Dennis Johnson finally gave the Cats a difference-maker when they needed it most. He played in every game of his true freshman season and cracked into the starting lineup for the final six, earning Freshman All-American Honors as Tim Couch led the Cats to the Outback Bowl.

The following season Johnson blocked a field goal that swung the momentum in a win over No. 20 Arkansas. He blocked a kick in a one-point loss to No. 8 Mississippi State and had another in the Music City Bowl loss to Syracuse.

An injury in the season-opener derailed his 2000 campaign, setting up a record-setting final season in Lexington. Johnson set the single-season school record by tallying 12 sacks. He had 19 TFLs, second only to Art Still’s historic 1977 season. In only three seasons of action, Johnson had 19 sacks, the second-most in Kentucky football history.

Even though injuries got in the way and and a few others (Bud Dupree, Josh Allen) eventually surpassed him in the UK record book, Dennis Johnson was one of the most decorated defensive players to ever suit up for the University of Kentucky.

Let this Serve as a Reminder

Big Blue Nation has been swept up in the recruitment of the five-star guard who grew up right down the road from Rupp Arena and is being recruited by a former National Champion who is in his first year at the helm of the program. All of the stars have aligned to make this one of the craziest recruitments in recent memory.

The fervor is just a slightly different variation of what happened across the Commonwealth when the Cats courted his father. The Johnson family left an indelible impact on athletics in the state of Kentucky, with Dennis leading the charge as an athlete unlike any other we’ve seen.