Mr. Consistent: Roughrider Jovon Johnson a leader on and off the field

Jovon Johnson is a leader on the football field and a father figure off of it.

The Saskatchewan Roughriders defensive back goes by the name "Mr_Consistent_2" on Twitter and he's been exactly that for the Riders this season.

• LISTEN: Roughriders defensive back Jovon Johnson opens up to the Morning Edition

Johnson has brought stability to defence amidst dozens of injuries among teammates, starting all 16 games up to this point. It shouldn't be a surprise considering Johnson has only missed four games in the past 10 years. One of those missed games was when his brother was killed.

Johnson has also lived up to his Twitter nickname off the field for people who need support.

For a closer look, Johnson talked to CBC News's Peter Mills about how he's giving back to his hometown, being released by Montreal days before the season started, and why he's so passionate about fundraising to support people with Lyme disease.

This interview has been edited and condensed.

Tell me about your life growing up in Erie, Pa.

I grew up in a five-bedroom house with about eight kids, four adults. We had to make it work some way, some how.

My mom worked two jobs so she was barely ever home.

At about eight or nine years old, I had to grow up extremely early. I started cooking, cleaning, doing the chores around the house, making sure that all the kids came home and got their homework done.

So I grew up fast with difficult circumstances. I had to put away all my years of being a kid for the greater good of our household.

You were just tweeting about that the other day. What was the neighbourhood like?

Drug dealers everywhere; a lot of crime, shooting; people getting killed every other day; a lot of gangs — you name it, it was going on.

It was rough, but I tried to keep myself away from that, even though at times I fell victim and fell into the trap of doing those things.

But I quickly realized that that wasn't for me. Only a few things come from that and that's either you go to jail or you die. And I always wanted to be successful.

What did sports do for you in that regard?

Sports essentially took me out of the hood. It took me out of difficult circumstances, gave me an outlet, put me in a position to be able to impact others.

A lot of kids from my neighbourhood when I go back home, they look up to me. I do a lot of workout sessions for them. I get groups of 20, 30 kids and I give them free workout sessions just to give them a distraction from the things that's going on, whether it be their parents doing drugs or their parents may be drug dealers.

Whatever the case may be I know circumstances are difficult for them so I give them a way to release some tension and be able to confide in me because I know what they're going through.

Are you talking about the Jovon Johnson Skills Academy?

Yeah ... I started as a way for me to be in the lives of kids that don't have father figures. I reach out to a lot of kids. I check their grades. I give them a way out. I give them something to look forward to.

They call me up to this day and check in with me. I ask how they're doing and what they're up to and stuff like that ... And a lot of them get a kick out of the fact that a professional football player is checking up on them and making sure that they're doing things the right way.

Why is that so important for you?

It's so important for me because as a kid, when you always get the material things, it's a way for people to distract you from actually giving you love. I wasn't given the love that I felt like I deserved. My father wasn't there.

I realized at a young age that the only way for me to make it out of the difficult circumstances was either through sports or education. I was a very good student, but I made some bad decisions. Being a very intelligent student helped carry me through those difficult circumstances. I could have easily fell victim and I could have easily just stopped going to school.

I was the second person in my family to actually graduate high school and the only one person in my whole entire family to ever graduate college.

Did you ever think at that time you would eventually be playing professional sports?

It was a dream. Did I think that it would ever come true? Probably not. I set the goal to try and accomplish it, but at that time as a kid I didn't think that it would actually come true.

But I just always outworked everybody. I was always probably the smallest kid on the team, but I worked the hardest and that's what carried me through.

You told the Montreal Gazette that on day 1 of the season you expected to be on the Montreal Alouettes. What was that like for you when they released you?

Man, it was kind of difficult for me just because of all the things that I was told. I was told that I would be there, that they re-signed me for a reason. ... I think there was some tension between the GM (Kavis Reed) and the defensive co-ordinator (Noel Thorpe): the GM wanted me there, the defensive co-ordinator didn't. 

They let me walk and I'm happy to be where I am now because look at what's going on over there.

How did it feel coming full circle in your CFL career? (Johnson played for the Riders in 2007.)

I never thought that I would ever be back in Saskatchewan … but considering that 10 years later I'm back in Saskatchewan, I mean, it's the perfect story. I won the Grey Cup with Saskatchewan in 2007 and then this year was the reunion for that Grey Cup team. So why not go out in 2017 and win another one?

What did you think about seeing all the retired guys on the field and you're still playing?

A lot of them they look at me and they're like, 'Man, you've been around for a long time.'

Why are you so passionate about fundraising for people with Lyme disease? Who is the person that inspired you?

Her name is Veronick Ayling. She is from Ottawa, when I was in Ottawa (with the Redblacks). She was in the Canadian Armed Forces and during one of their missions where they train and stuff, she got bit by a tick and her heart started to fail.

For about two years, she got misdiagnosed. She couldn't really get up and move around and her organs were failing. She was still fighting and trying to make it. She started to get treatment for Lyme and got denied her pension from the Armed Forces so she had to open a cupcake shop (which burned down in May 2017).

That story, to me, is just the testament of how people overcome adversity and deal with so much and you would never even know it.

Rapid-fire questions

Johnson also answered some light-hearted questions, like selling his futons to CFL fans, buying Swedish fish, and why he once sported some Batman underwear in public. 

The Roughriders (9-7) take on the Montreal Alouettes (3-13) at Mosaic Stadium on Oct. 27. Kickoff is at 7:30 p.m. CST.