Twins Matt and Zach Johnson are a hard-hitting package deal at Eastern Washington

FRISCO, Texas — A package deal? No way.

At least that's the stand Matt and Zach Johnson took during the early stages of the football recruiting process that played out during their senior year at Tumwater High School.

But then the identical twin brothers, both three-sport prep standouts, made a campus visit to Oregon State, where they met Beavers defensive back Bryan Payton, whose twin brother, Jeremy, was playing for Arizona State at the time.

"He saw we were twins," Zach Johnson recalled, "and he told us, straight up, not to even think about going to different colleges, just because of how bad he missed his twin brother."

So a package deal it was.

And when the Johnsons finally settled on a college, Eastern Washington ended up with a pair of remarkably gifted and dedicated players who have since developed into two of the best defenders in the country.

"What impresses me most about them on the field is their unique combination of size, speed, toughness and intelligence," Eastern coach Beau Baldwin said of the Johnson twins, who each became starters as redshirt freshmen and, as juniors, have played key roles in the success of the No. 1-ranked Eagles this fall. "I mean, it's hard to find players with all of those different aspects at any level, let alone this one."

Matt, a 6-foot-2, 220-pounder and the oldest of the twins by a minute, will start at safety for Eastern on Friday, when the fifth-seeded Eagles (12-2) take on third-seeded Delaware (12-2) in the NCAA Division I Championship game at Pizza Hut Park. Zach, a 6-1, 225-pounder, will start at weakside linebacker.

The twins rank 2-3 on the team in tackles. Zach has 119, second only to senior linebacker J.C. Sherritt. Matt, who leads the team with five interceptions, has had a hand in 96.

Sherritt, who shares an apartment with the Johnsons, knew the Eagles had a two-for-one steal the first day the twins arrived on campus.

"Just seeing them walk down the hallway, you could see they were physical specimens," he said. "Then we get on the basketball courts, and they can both dunk it from a standstill. And they were freaks in the weight room, too."

Of course, Sherritt added, there are some issues that arise when you live with them.

"They definitely have every twins' cliché you've ever heard of down — from finishing each other's sentences to repeating what each other says," Sherritt said. "It's kind of weird when you walk in the door and Matt will say something to you, and then when you walk into the next room, and Zach will say the exact same thing."

Matt was supportive of his younger twin last fall, when Zach missed the entire season because of blood clots that developed in his leg following offseason knee surgery. After learning that his brother was not going to be allowed to play for precautionary reasons, Matt discarded the No. 5 jersey he had been wearing and wore Zach's No. 10 the rest of the year.