Recruiting watch: TSN's 100 prime prospects

Sporting News, The, Jan 26, 1998

Like Huggy Bear, Fargas is far-out

Justin Farga's moves are unmistakably cool, the way he shifts his hips, glides left or right and scoots upfield. They are the kind of moves every running back craves, the kind of moves that have drawn the attention of the nation's recruiters. What would you expect from the son of Antonio Fargas, who personified 1970s funk and style in his role as Huggy Bear on the television drama Starsky and Hutch?

Huggy Bear was a cool, streetwise cat who provided newsy tips to Starsky and Hutch. Antonio hasn't had to meet any recruiters in smoky bars to espouse his son's football skills. Every college knows the way to Notre Dame High in Sherman Oaks, where Justin Fargas set season marks with 313 carries for 35 touchdowns and 2,818 yards rushing. His career totals of 668 carries for 6,352 yards and 77 TDs also are school standards. Those numbers are even more impressive when you consider Fargas didn't start playing football until ninth grade, when he moved to the Los Angeles area from Rhode Island to be with Antonio after his parents split up. Justin maintains a close relationship with his mother.

"I've always taught Justin to be sure about himself and to have an ego," Antonio says. "But it's also necessary to have humility. Those are the key traits to the great people I have met."

Recruiters nationwide are cooing over Fargas' combination of size (6-1, 185), speed (4.4), balance and vision. The fact he also is a standout student has made him even more desirable. Fargas' package of skills are amplified by his tremendous desire and intensity. So before every recruiter started giving his pitch, Fargas got a jump on the process by taking unofficial trips to several schools; he has made official visits to Michigan and UCLA, which may be the favorite with Skip Hicks' eligibility having expired.

Johnson's talent is unimaginable

Imagine a 6-7, 255-pounder who is a tremendous triple jumper and a state champ in the shot put and discus. Imagine that this 6-7, 255-pounder is strong and fast (a legit 4.7 clocking in the 40-yard dash). Imagine that this 6-7, 255-pounder is a good enough basketball player to make the all-state tournament team in hoops-mad Kentucky. Now imagine this 6-7, 255-pounder flying off the corner to put pressure on a hapless opposing quarterback.

That's what college coaches across the country are imagining as they recruit Dennis Johnson from Harrodsburg, Ky. (population: about 3,400), the nation's top defensive recruit.

Johnson--who played tackle in high school but will play end in college--may take his talents to the Kentucky campus in Lexington, which is about 30 miles northeast of Harrodsburg. The Wildcats are the front-runners for Johnson's services, with Miami, Florida, Notre Dame and Colorado also in the picture. Johnson expects to announce his college choice February 4, which is the start of the signing period.

Johnson's career numbers are something out of electric football--531 total tackles, 76 sacks, 144 tackles for loss, five interceptions, 42 forced fumbles, 25 recovered fumbles and 19 blocked kicks. This season, Johnson (who also played offensive tackle) had 19 sacks, 34 tackles for losses, 101 total tackles and 11 forced fumbles.

Johnson played for his father, Alvis, at Harrodsburg High (enrollment of about 300), which is in the smallest of Kentucky's four high school classes. The elder Johnson enjoyed coaching his son: "You always enjoy coaching the great ones. They make you a lot better coach."

What's next season going to be like without his son? "Scary."