Chad Johnson exits the Oregon State locker room and bounces over to me.

"Man, I love ESPN Magazine," he says, pumping my hand. "Love y'all."

A bit taken aback, I thank him -- as if the entire Mag were my doing -- and ask the Beavers' flashy wideout if he is a subscriber.

"Nah," he says casually.

So why all the love? "He wants the cover," a teammate whispers, overhearing our exchange.

Ah-ha. Well, as long as I'm accepting praise on The Mag's behalf, I have no problem with Johnson's thinking I have a hand in picking the next cover. In reality, he has as much say in the matter as I do.

Still, Johnson has been a walking PR campaign, basking in his two TDs and the Beavers' 41-9 rout of Notre Dame. "We sent a message today, baby!" CJ screams at a television camera in the final minutes, gold fronts glimmering in the Sun Devil Stadium lights. RB Ken Simonton wraps Johnson in a hug, calling the gravity-defying receiver his "Hanging Chad."

As long as the cameras are running, so is the quick-tongued kid from Miami. Johnson finds an assistant coach's dry-erase board and quickly scrawls a thank-you note to the Oregon State faithful. He parades the sidelines with it, only putting it down to orchestrate Dennis Erickson's Gatorade shower. Later, Johnson tosses newly-minted hats and shirts to his teammates, like Santa Claus with a much better time in the 40.

And now Johnson stands in front of me, making sure I understand just how good the Beavers are. Like many of his teammates, he threw on his unblemished game jersey after showering.

When Johnson is convinced that I've gotten the message, he's off. He's catching a flight home to Miami in a few hours to start prepping for the upcoming Senior Bowl. I ask the Beavers' ringleader how he can miss the victory party that he's helped start.

"Man, I've got people in Miami," Johnson laughs over his shoulder as he walks toward the bus. "The party starts when I get there."

Senior researcher Andy Latack wound up with -- okay, stole -- one of the Beavers' victory cigars. But he's not gonna smoke it. E-mail andrew.latack@espnmag.com.