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Goal No. 4: IMPROVE. Every day... as a player, person and student.
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#4 Arthur Brown |
Position: Linebacker Previous College: University of Miami Projection: Starter Status: On Scholarship |
Arthur Brown Jr. (b. June 17, 1990) is the savior of the Kansas State defense. Well, not exactly, but some of the hype flying around at this time last summer certainly could have led a disinterested observer to that conclusion.
If anything, he lived up to the hype and more by leading the team with 101 tackles (57 solo, 44 assisted), 9.5 tackles for loss, two sacks, one crucial interception of a Heisman-winning quarterback and two pass breakups.
A preseason candidate for five awards (Bednarik, Butkus, Lombardi, Nagurski and Walter Camp), Brown has set a new K-State record for those honors, surpassing Chris Canty's four in 1996.
His other honors include a 2011 honorable mention All-American mention by Sports Illustrated, Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year and All-Big 12 first-team honors, and being named to the 2012 preseason All-Big 12 team.
Looking back, it's tough to remember a time when there was uncertainty about whether the Arthur Brown experiment would work out for us. But that was the case exactly one year ago.
After all, he had a thoroughly unimpressive stint with the Hurricanes, collecting just 17 tackles, 0.5 tackle for loss and one fumble recovery in two years. And then he sat out of football for more than a year.
Yes, he was a phenomenon in high school, but was that a product of inferior competition (something he clearly didn't face in the ACC) or superior talent that, for whatever reason, simply didn't mesh with the Miami program?
Well, we know the answer now. And with his location in the middle of the 4-3, Arthur Brown will be asked in 2012 to make even more plays in the offensive and defensive backfields, and from sideline to sideline. Time for an encore.