Shaquille Johnson has spent three years waiting his turn.

Now the senior tight end is finally getting his chance to step into the spotlight this season for Western Kentucky.

Johnson is at the top of the depth chart at tight end, a position where the Hilltoppers lost literally all of their production from 2015.

George Fant, Tim Gorski, Tyler Higbee and Devin Scott all caught at least one pass last season playing tight end at WKU. Now they’ve all graduated and none of the players fighting for playing time at the position have ever caught a pass in a game for the Tops.

Johnson leads that group, which also includes graduate senior Stevie Donatell, redshirt senior Desmond Maxwell, redshirt junior Deon Yelder and freshman Kyle Fourtenbary.

“I’m always excited to go out and play the game that I love,” Johnson told the Daily News on Wednesday at WKU’s annual Media Day. “I mean, it’s a dream come true to finally be getting my chance. I’m ready to go make things happen.”

Johnson’s stood out in other capacities during his career with the Hilltoppers. He’s appeared in all but one game in his first three seasons at WKU as part of special teams units.

The 6-foot-4, 235-pound Johnson recorded 14 tackles last season, including 11 on kickoff coverage.

“I’ve always been willing to help the team any way I can to win,” Johnson said. “I don’t mind being the role player on the team.”

Johnson’s new tight ends coach is Tony Levine, who also serves as coach Jeff Brohm’s special teams coordinator. Levine said it was when he was watching film of last year’s special teams units that he saw the Lake City, Fla., native’s potential.

“There was No. 18 sprinting down the field on kickoffs,” Levine said Friday, “getting in space, making people miss and making tackles and showing his speed, his athleticism and his toughness.”

Johnson’s high impact on special teams allowed him to contribute throughout his career when he wasn’t getting on the field often on offense or defense.

Johnson worked as a backup wide receiver as a freshman before flipping between tight end and linebacker during Brohm’s first year as WKU’s coach in 2014.

Johnson finally settled in at tight end last season, but was playing in a log-jammed position group.

The starter Higbee went on to be picked by the Los Angeles Rams in the fourth round of the 2016 NFL Draft. Gorski was a reliable complement to Higbee, while Scott and Fant also saw time on the field.

Much of Johnson’s job last year was soaking up knowledge from veterans like Gorski and Higbee so he’d be ready when he got his chance, he said.

“I learned a lot from those guys,” Johnson said. “Those guys really helped me out a lot, just being around them. …

“If you were confused on it they were right there behind you telling you, ‘Do this, run this, make this move here.’ They were always involved, so they helped a lot in my learning process.”

Johnson finally got to be a primary tight end target during spring practice, and impressed coaches enough over that period that he was listed as the Toppers’ No. 1 tight end heading into fall camp.

“I think he had an excellent spring and I think he’s picked up this fall so far where he left off last spring,” Levine said. “He worked extremely hard this summer and being in this offense for such a long time, he does have experience in this offense. …

“His knowledge is extremely good at this point and I’m excited to see him progress over the next couple of weeks.”

If Johnson indeed earns the starting tight end job at WKU, he’ll have a strong legacy to uphold.

Tight end has been a premier position in the program since completing the leap from the FCS level to FBS in 2009.

Jack Doyle was WKU’s primary tight end from 2009-12. He’s now entering his fourth NFL season with the Indianapolis Colts.

Mitchell Henry took over that role from Doyle and started in 2014 and ’15. He’s now the NFL with the Green Bay Packers.

Then the most recent tight end standout for WKU was Higbee who, like Johnson, began his Topper career as wide receiver. He’s now prepping for his rookie season with the Rams.

“It’s really an honor to know that the coaching staff thinks that highly of the position and then to be in that position is a great honor in itself,” Johnson said.

Redshirt junior quarterback Mike White spent the offseason trying to build rapport with his pass-catchers as he tries to win the starting QB job.

White said he likes the athleticism of Johnson, who was also a basketball and track standout at Columbia High School in his native Florida.

“I think he can go on the line and block and then he can go create mismatches in the pass game,” White said Wednesday. “He’s a big, athletic guy and when it comes to one-on-one, I like his odds every time. We’re huge proponents of tight ends in this offense and he’s going to have a good year.”

Brohm said Saturday after WKU’s fourth practice of fall camp that he wants to see better execution out of his offense. He named tight ends as an area where the Hilltoppers need to get better.

But Brohm said Johnson is still No. 1 on the depth chart and that he likes what he has in the senior.

“Has he played a whole lot of tight end for us in real games?” Brohm said. “No, but he’s done very well on special teams and now it’s his time to shine.”

– Follow Daily News sports reporter Brad Stephens on Twitter @BradBGDN or visit bgdailynews.com.