Yahkee Johnson is 5-foot-7 and weighs 161 pounds — soaking wet, in a parka, with sand in his shoes.

Just kidding about that last part… I think.

Suffice to say, Johnson is not a big running back. But he plays big. Sure, the Hampton senior is a threat to bounce a run to the outside, as you’d expect. But he doesn’t handle his business like a traditional scat back.

Johnson takes goal-to-go carries when the box is its heaviest, and he won’t be afraid to stick a short yardage run inside when the Pirates take on a daunting SC State front seven on Saturday in Orangeburg, SC.

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Johnson ran for 4,510 yards and 66 touchdowns at L.C. Bird High School — and notched a school record 23 100-yard games. That’s bell-cow volume.

He earned All-American honors at Nassau Community College while piling up 1,910 rushing yards and 18 touchdowns during his two seasons on campus.

In Johnson’s first season at Hampton, the Richmond, VA, native handled double-digit carries eight times and eclipsed 100 total yards six times — including 168 yards on 19 touches at Delaware State.

This season, with Shai McKenzie serving as a more frequent complementary back, Johnson leads the Pirates in rushing yards (610), total yards (764), and rushing touchdowns (5). He rushed for 132 yards and three scores vs. Livingstone on Sept. 16 and rolled up 138 total yards at Savannah State on Oct. 7.

In short, the diminutive Johnson is the focal point of the Hampton offense — not just speed guy to be sprinkled in where convenient.

If SC State hopes to snap a three-game skid, the Bulldogs will need to bottle up Johnson. And that has proven to be a task that is much easier said than done.