COLLEGEVILLE, Minn. – By their own admission, neither Trey Feeney nor Corey Bohmert is particularly outgoing.

They aren't the players you'll typically see shouting at the top of their lungs in pregame warmups or being wildly demonstrative in postgame interviews.

But the impact the senior pair continues to make on the Johnnie offense speaks loudly enough on its own.

"We both tend to keep to ourselves a little bit," said Bohmert, a dynamic 5-foot-10, 185-pound running back who leads SJU in rushing through the season's first five games and is also among his team's leaders in receptions.

"But we get things done. In that sense, we're kind of quiet leaders, I guess. Trey's not the most vocal guy, but he sets an example for everyone by how hard he works. And he's really good at taking command of the huddle. Not by yelling at people, but by talking to them face-to-face and letting them know what they're supposed to be doing on a given play."

"We're both probably more introverted by nature, but Corey's done a great job of realizing when the team does need a little bit of juice and stepping up to provide that energy," said the 6-foot-3, 205-pound Feeney, who took over as the Johnnies' starting quarterback after transferring from FCS North Dakota prior to last season, and this fall ranks in the top 10 nationally at the NCAA Division III level when it comes to passing yardage and the top five in touchdown passes.

"That's an area where I could grow a little too. But I try to lead by example and Corey is awesome with that as well. Personally, I think that's the most important kind of leadership. Because if you're not acting the way you want others to act, no one is going to pay attention to you anyway."

Feeney and Bohmert complement each other extremely well as was demonstrated in SJU's huge 42-16 win over Bethel on Oct. 3 at Clemens Stadium.

Bohmert piled up 111 yards of total offense – 54 rushing and 57 receiving, most of the latter total coming on a series of short shovel passes from Feeney, who finished the afternoon 38 of 43 passing for 355 yards and six touchdowns.

"Having a guy as versatile and athletic as Corey to lean on is awesome," Feeney said. "It opens up so many options and I think (the Bethel game) was a testament to that. When you have a guy that can run the ball effectively, defenses have to honor it. It helps the play-action game and it helps with pass protection because the safeties and linebackers have to come up. Whereas if they're keeping the run bottled up with their front four defensive linemen, those other guys can blitz or drop back into coverage.

"Then with those shovel passes, it adds a little different twist. Technically, those stats go into the books as passing yards. But we're actually running run schemes out of that. The offensive linemen are all run blocking. So it shows the defense another look they have to prepare for."

That kind of defensive recognition comes naturally to Feeney, whose grandfather Bob Feeney won a pair of state titles during his iconic 36-year prep coaching career in North Dakota.

His father Kevin is the longtime head coach at Moorhead High School, whose team finished as Class 6A (Minnesota's largest class) state runner-up a year ago. Before that, he was a four-year starting quarterback at North Dakota State who still ranks among the Bison's all-time leaders in both passing yardage and touchdown passes.

Trey grew up around football at his father's practices and as a ballboy at NDSU games, while his younger brother Jett – a senior standout quarterback at Moorhead – has already committed to the University of Minnesota.

"It just seems like that whole family has the quarterback gift," Bohmert said with a smile. "It's like they were blessed by the quarterback gods or something."

Bohmert's own father Tony passed away at only age 52 after a battle with leukemia and lymphoma in October 2017, when Corey had just started seventh grade. 

But the lessons his father passed along have also played a huge role in the success he's gone on to achieve.

"He was a big basketball guy and he loved playing PIG," recalled Bohmert earlier this season.

"Those competitive juices were already flowing. He'd whoop me and it inspired me to get better. I'd be out there shooting hoops for hours."

SJU head coach Gary Fasching said Bohmert and Feeney's backgrounds both show in the high level of football aptitude each brings to the Johnnies' offensive huddle.

"Obviously, it all starts with Trey," Fasching said. "He's the triggerman. I don't care what level of football you're playing at, if you don't have a great quarterback, you're probably not going to be a very good team. His preparation each week is off the charts. He's up in our offices all the time meeting with (offensive coordinator) Kole (Heckendorf) and (quarterbacks coach) Josh (Bungum) and helping put together the game plan. We've had a lot of great quarterbacks here over the years. But his play puts him right in the conversation with those other guys.   

"Before every season, I make a list of our top guys – whether they're on offense, defense or special teams," he continued. "And both Trey and Corey were two of the names right at the top. We knew coming into this season they'd both have to be successful if we wanted to be really good. Coming into the Bethel game, our goal was to get the ball in Corey's hands 25 times and he finished with 23. That's exactly what we need. He's the kind of guy who's always a threat to break a play. If he gets some daylight, he's gone. That's just the kind of talent he is."

Both Feeney and Bohmert come from successful high school programs – Feeney with his father's teams in Moorhead and Bomert at perennial Class 5A state power Mahtomedi, where he was a state all-star.

Each said that background helped prepare them for the expectations at a tradition-rich program like SJU.

"When you come from a successful situation, the standard gets set high," Feeney said. "So when you get to a place like this, it's not a bunch of foreign stuff you haven't heard. You know what's expected of you – being early to meetings, taking notes, being intentional with relationships.

"It's those small things you pick up on that make teams great."

The Johnnies have indeed been great this season, and both Feeney and Bohmert want to make sure that continues down the stretch.

"As seniors, this is our last shot to really do some big things," Bohmert said. "So no one is going to take their foot off the gas. We're going to keep focused on playing our best game week-in and week-out the rest of the way."