BOONE, N.C. — App State Football alums
Victor Johnson and
Jordan Fehr will be on the field together again Saturday, except on different teams, when they participate in the NFLPA Collegiate Bowl.
Played at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, Calif., the all-star game for NFL Draft prospects will air at 7 p.m. ET on NFL Network.
Fehr will wear No. 59 as a linebacker for an American team coached by Hue Jackson, and Johnson will wear No. 75 as an offensive tackle for a National team coached by Marvin Lewis. The two Mountaineers have visited this week with NFL safety and fellow App State alum Doug Middleton, who played in the NFLPA Collegiate Bowl four years ago.
In Johnson's five seasons at App State, the Mountaineers went 54-12 to post the nation's fifth-best record during that time. They went 5-0 in bowl games, and Johnson started at left tackle on all four of App State's Sun Belt title teams from 2016-19.
In each of his four seasons as a starter, the Mountaineers ranked in the top 25 nationally in both rushing yards per game and fewest sacks allowed, as they were No. 16 at 231.4 rushing yards and No. 17 with just 18 sacks allowed during a 13-1 season that left them with a No. 18 ranking in the final Amway Coaches Poll for 2019.
A two-year team captain and three-time first-team All-Sun Belt selection, Johnson excelled as a veteran leader of an offensive line that was recognized as a top 15 unit nationally by the Joe Moore Award in 2018 and 2019.
Fehr won a Sun Belt title and bowl game in each of his four seasons with the Mountaineers, as he was a starting linebacker for the 11-2 team in 2018 and the 13-1 team in 2019. He recorded 195 of his 211 career tackles in his final two years, highlighted by a senior year in which he served as a team captain and had a team-high 109 tackles for a defense that ranked 21st nationally by allowing just 20.0 points per game.
Facing Power Five competition, Fehr recorded a career-high 16 tackles during the 34-31 win at North Carolina and had 12 more tackles (with one sack and two tackles for loss) in the win at South Carolina.
Fehr was named a Campbell Trophy semifinalist (recognizing the nation's top scholar-athlete) in 2019 with a 3.77 GPA, and elite-level athleticism led to him ranking No. 3 among FBS linebackers on The Athletic's annual "Freaks List" thanks to his ability to bench press 415 pounds, run a 4.45 40-yard dash and vertically jump 40.5 inches with a 230-pound frame.
Asked in an NFLPA Collegiate Bowl player spotlight to describe the type of player NFL scouts will see when they watch him, Fehr said, "I am a tough, sideline-to-sideline linebacker that has a high football IQ. My goal is to do everything I can to help my team get a win. I always strive to be near the ball, hustling until the play is made. I am a quarterback of the defense, making the call and ensuring everyone has it, making checks and that all 11 players are on the same page."
