Video of Morrisville State football player hurdling another to score touchdown goes viral

Lemar Johnson has taken his share of hits on the football field, but this week they were the kind that spirited kudos and glory, not discomfort or pain.



A video of the Morrisville State College Mustang quarterback hurdling a Kean University defender to score an acrobatic touchdown has gone from the Morrisville State football field to computer monitors and technological devices all over the globe.



The viral video has had hits in such places as the Sports Illustrated web page, Top Ten Plays, YNN's Top 10 Tuesday, WKTV (Utica), and ESPN, D3football.com, Yahoo! Sports, and has received more than 440,000 hits on YouTube where it began after it was posted by a football coaching staff member and promoted by the college's director of sports information through social networking.



Johnson's athletic touchdown during Saturday's game between Morrisville State and Kean University has already earned a nickname: “The Morrisville Hurdle.” During the play, Johnson literally hurdled a defender before running into the end zone and scoring a touchdown.



Down 24-23 in the fourth quarter and facing a fourth-and-4 on Kean's 22-yard line, Johnson dropped back in the pocket eyeing an opening in the right flat and found a hole behind the center and right side of the offensive line. With nothing but a safety between him and the end zone at the 5-yard line, the 6-foot-1, 195-pound quarterback hurdled the defender and scored a touchdown.



The Mustangs converted the ensuing two-point conversion and eventually won 37-31. Johnson finished the afternoon going 26-of-38 passing for 302 yards and a pair of scoring strikes to go along with a team high 129 rushing yards. The victory also improved Morrisville to a program-best 5-1 record and 3-0 stanza within conference play.



That game also earned Johnson New Jersey Athletic Conference (NJAC) Offensive Player of the Week, a spot on the D3football.com Team of the Week and USA College Football Honorable Mention Team of the Week honors.



The senior is the reigning NJAC Offensive Player of the Year, and to date has posted several pre-season and in-season acknowledgements, including USA Football Division III and BSN Preseason All-American honors, NJAC Offensive Player of the Week accolades, and Corvias ECAC Southeast Player of the Week awards.



Johnson is currently ranked ninth overall in all of Division III in passing touchdowns (17) and is 23rd in passing yards (1,489). He ranks second in points responsible for (150), and is 25th overall in rushing with 598 yards.



He holds an eighth overall ranking nationally in total offense to date on the season, averaging 347.8 yards per game for the Mustangs, who rank 18th overall in all of Division III in total offense with a 504.5 yard per game average.



Johnson is a graduate of Ossining High and is a senior majoring in criminal justice. He is the son of Esther Barrett of Ossining.



Morrisville State College is a Division III school located within an hour of Syracuse, NY.