Sailors’ ex-tailback is back

Dartangan Johnson wants to teach football. He also plans to continue his career on the field.

Johnson has returned to Newport Harbor High to coach and play. The same place where he developed into an all-league player is where Johnson strives to turn pro.

Newport Harbor is allowing him to pursue his dreams. In return, as an assistant he’s planning to help teenagers reach theirs.

At 23, Johnson is the ideal player’s coach. He’s still in the game. Currently, he’s a running back for a semipro team from Long Beach.

The league Johnson plays in isn’t as famous as the singer it’s named after, Patti LaBelle. Players at Newport Harbor might not even know who LaBelle is.

But they don’t have to turn back the clock too far to notice the kind of impact Johnson achieved with the Sailors during his varsity career.

The school’s all-time leading rusher with 3,397 yards is working out with them. Johnson graduated in 2003, but he’s not done with football.

Coach Jeff Brinkley is glad his former star is back.

“He can give the kids a lot of tips in terms of what he went through and the amount of work that goes into becoming a varsity player,” said Brinkley, who has Johnson slated to primarily work with the running backs and linebackers on the junior varsity level and assist varsity on game day.

“He’s a really good role model and it’s always great to have former players return.”

Seeing players come back to the program has benefitted Brinkley. As he enters his 24th year at Newport Harbor, Brinkley is four wins shy of 200.

Half of Brinkley’s eight assistants on varsity played for him. On the lower levels, he guided five who are now coaches.

Unlike many of those coaches, the 6-foot, 225-pound Johnson can keep up with the youngsters on the field and in the weight room.

These two are vital parts of the job to Johnson and his future. He has to stay in shape for the semipro league and when the time comes to work out for an NFL team.

In the first game of the season with the Long Beach Lions, Johnson said he carried the ball 19 times for 108 yards. Not bad for someone who last played competitively in 2007 in the German Football League.

Sorting through Johnson’s stats overseas is as difficult as reading German.

Understanding Johnson won’t be as trying for the Sailors. He’s closer to their age than the other coaches, helping with the generational gap.

“I can relate to a lot of the kids because I went through the system,” said Johnson, who rushed for 1,392 yards and 19 touchdowns as a senior at Newport Harbor before going to Santa Ana College, where he became the No. 1 junior college running back recruit in 2005 after recording 2,040 yards and 17 touchdowns in two years.

“Coach Brinkley and the other coaches give you a shot if you’re hungry,” Johnson said. “You never know when you’ll get your shot, but you have to make the most of it when it comes.”

Johnson hopes the return to his alma mater launches his career, too.