BILOXI, Miss. — George County running back Billey Joe Johnson Jr. had the potential to become one of the greatest running backs South Mississippi ever produced.

Johnson, who died Dec. 8, had offers to play college football after he graduated from high school in two years. He would have been one of the state's top recruits in the Class of 2010.

Six Division I schools had offered him scholarships: Mississippi, Mississippi State, Alabama, Auburn, Arkansas and Oregon. Other schools, including Southern Miss and LSU, also expected to get into the fray.

"He was very respectful and he took our time together seriously," said Steve Robertson, who covers Mississippi recruiting for Scout.com. "He loved playing football.

"I had him ranked as the State's No. 2 overall player for next year. He had a passion about him that was hard to describe. It's never easy to lose a young person, but I think about the special life he could have had, it magnifies the loss."

A George County deputy pulled Johnson over near Mississippi 26 for allegedly running a red light and stop sign the morning of Dec. 8. In the incident report the officer said he was at his patrol car checking Johnson's driver's license when he heard a gunshot and breaking glass and then saw Johnson dead outside his truck with a shotgun on top of him.

But Johnson's family and the NAACP are questioning whether Johnson died from a self-inflicted gunshot. A lawyer for the family has said Johnson's wounds did not appear to be consistent with a shotgun wound.

The case has attracted national media attention.

Willie Gaines, head of the George County chapter of the NAACP, said he, like many others in the community, believes Johnson had too much to live for to take his own life. The morning of his death he was scheduled to attend an awards banquet.

George County quarterback R.J. Spivery was the teammate closest to Johnson.

Spivery and Johnson were the only Gulf Coast backfield combination to each rush for 1,000 yards this season.

"I'm still shocked that he's gone," Spivery said. "We were talking that Saturday before he died. We were like brothers. We talked about next year being senior leaders on this team and going for a 6A state championship. He was fun to be around."

Former George County wide receiver Co-Eric Riley was considered one of Johnson's role models. Riley is three years older than Johnson and just finished playing at Mississippi State.

"Billey Joe had so much going for him," Riley said. "He was a great kid who never got into trouble and always asked me for advice."

George County coach Al Jones said he saw the "typical" Johnson during this past season. Johnson gained more than 4,000 yards in three years, earning All-South Mississippi honors.

"I didn't see any changes in Billey Joe," Jones said.

Lanny Mixon of BlueGoldNation.com, Southern Miss' recruiting Web site on Rivals.com, remembered Johnson for his politeness.

"I was only around Billey Joe a few times, but I thought he was a very nice young man," Mixon said. "He was always polite, well spoken and just seemed like a good kid."

Picayune assistant coach John Feaster recalled Johnson during a spring football jamboree on the Coast.

"Some of the other players got into a scuffle after one of the games, but Billey Joe stood there and handled himself," Feaster said.

Several Rebel teammates, though, said they noticed a different Johnson after a 55-24 loss to Meridian in Round 1 of the Class 5A state playoffs.

"Billey Joe could be a little immature and usually got on the offensive linemen when he didn't gain any yards," Jones said. "The players noticed he didn't get upset against Meridian after getting stopped."

At the Johnson home a makeshift memorial has been set up. It includes a bouquet of flowers and countless awards and mementos he had collected. Another collection of memorials has been placed near where he died in the parking lot of Benndale Carpet Store on Mississippi 26 in Lucedale. Among them are two footballs and a teddy bear wearing a George County High Rebels T-shirt.