Living Out His Dream – Mississippi State

STARKVILLE – It was the wee hours of last Sunday morning when Jett Johnson chatted with reporters following Mississippi State’s lightning-delayed win over Memphis. If there was any fatigue in him, the Bulldog linebacker didn’t show it.

Only minutes after the contest wrapped up that’d seen Johnson shine with a team-high 13 tackles, he attacked each question with the same attention he’d give an opposing running back trying to evade his grasp.

Why wouldn’t he? Johnson has longed for this. He’s wanted all this for years. He embraces every single bit of being a Mississippi State Bulldog.

“Like I always say, I’m living the dream,” Johnson said. “So that motivation and that fire is always there.”

Indeed, with every stop during games – and even with every postgame question answered after them – Johnson is making a fantasy, reality.

GROWING UP IN MAROON AND WHITE

All Johnson has ever really known is being a Bulldog. He comes by it honest.

Johnson’s father, Greg, is a huge Mississippi State fan. Greg spent part of his youth only about 30 miles from Starkville as he lived for a time in Weir, Mississippi, with his aunt and uncle – Joy and Don Chandler – who were and still are big State supporters.

The Johnsons’ Weir ties are actually what eventually led to Jett adopting his No. 44 jersey. It was the same uniform number worn by Weir native, Mississippi State baseball signee and former Houston Astros pitcher Roy Oswalt, who a young Jett admired.

But long before Jett was wearing his own No. 44 on Saturdays at Davis Wade Stadium, Greg was establishing his Bulldog roots. Working at the local grocery store in a place where everybody essentially knows everybody, Greg and family were often given tickets to Mississippi State sporting events.

Greg’s love for the Bulldogs grew. By the time he was an adult with two kids of his own – Jett and Jett’s older brother, Tate – one of the family’s most treasured spots was the MSU campus.

They’d take it all in, too. There are too many memories for the Johnsons to count.

There were unforgettable times tailgating.

“I remember once, Jett was given some Mississippi State ice cream and they gave him the little wooden spoon,” Greg recalls, laughing. “Jett didn’t have a clue what to do with that wooden spoon. It was the first time he’d ever seen one.”

There were big wins.

“My…