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MSU's Joshua Langford saw potential early in childhood friend Kerryon Johnson

Football fans in Michigan are getting a taste of the capabilities Detroit Lions rookie running back Kerryon Johnson, who is coming off a 158-yard rushing game against Miami and has topped 100 yards twice in his six games a pro.

But one Michigan resident first learned of Johnson's abilities more than a decade ago, not on a football field but on the youth basketball courts of Huntsville, Alabama.

"On the basketball court he was really strong, really quick, really athletic," Michigan State junior shooting guard Joshua Langford said of Johnson recently. "He could get high and elevate, get and-ones, and he could pass the ball, too.