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Chase Brown

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Chase Brown
refer to caption
Brown at the 2023 Senior Bowl
No. 30 – Cincinnati Bengals
Position:Running back
Return specialist
Personal information
Born: (2000-03-21) March 21, 2000 (age 24)
London, Ontario, Canada
Height:5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)
Weight:211 lb (96 kg)
Career information
High school: South Collegiate (London, Ontario, Canada)
Saint Stephen's (Bradenton, Florida)
College:
NFL draft:2023 / round: 5 / pick: 163
CFL draft:2023 / round: 7 / pick: 59
Career history
Roster status:Active
Career highlights and awards
Career NFL statistics as of Week 6, 2024
Rushing yards:462
Rushing average:4.9
Rushing touchdowns:3
Receptions:26
Receiving yards:206
Receiving touchdowns:2
Return yards:230
Stats at Pro Football Reference

Chase Brown (born March 21, 2000) is a Canadian professional football running back and return specialist for the Cincinnati Bengals of the National Football League (NFL). He played one season at Western Michigan before transferring to Illinois in 2019. In his final season in 2022, he rushed for 1,643 yards and 10 TDs that culminated with him winning the Jon Cornish Trophy. He was selected by the Bengals in the 5th round of the 2023 NFL draft.

Early life

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Brown was born in 2000 and raised in London, Ontario, Canada. Brown originally attended the London South Collegiate Institute with his identical twin Sydney Brown, where they both played until they relocated from Canada to Florida as juniors in high school and attended Saint Stephen's Episcopal School in Bradenton, Florida.[1][2] He set the school's career rushing record, but received a modest three-star rating by 247Sports.[2]

College career

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Western Michigan

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In October 2017, Brown verbally committed to play college football at Western Michigan University.[3] As a freshman, he played for the 2018 Western Michigan Broncos football team and rushed for 352 yards on 71 carries for an average of five yards per carry. He also returned 12 kickoffs for 227 yards.[2] In early 2019, Western Michigan's two freshmen stars, Brown and freshman receiver Jayden Reed, entered the NCAA transfer portal.[4]

Illinois

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Brown transferred to Illinois in 2019, joining his identical twin, Sydney, a defensive back for the Illini.[5] Sydney noted: "This is what we dreamt about as kids. Having him come here has been like having a piece of home here in Illinois"[6]

Brown's application for immediate eligibility was initially denied, but granted on appeal in mid-October 2019.[5] After appearing in four games during the 2019 season, he redshirted and retained the year of eligibility.[6] He tallied 18 rushing yards on three carries during the 2019 season.[2]

During the COVID shutdown, Brown and brother Sydney returned to Canada and stayed with their grandmother, converting the garage into a gym.[7] Brown returned to Illinois in the fall and appeared in all eight games for the Illini. On November 14, 2020, he had his first 100-yard game against Rutgers, totaling 134 rushing yards.[8] One week later, he rushed for 115 yards and two touchdowns against Nebraska.[9] For the season, he totaled 540 rushing yards on 104 carries (5.2 yards per carry).[10] At the end of the season, he was selected in fan voting as the Fans Choice Canadian NCAA Player of the Year.[2]

Brown with Illinois in 2022

With eligibility not impacted by the 2020 season, Brown remained classified as a sophomore in 2021.[2] On October 2, 2021, he rushed for a career-high 257 yards against Charlotte – the fourth-highest single-game rushing total in Illinois history.[11] Three weeks later, he rushed for 229 yards in the Illini's NCAA-record nine-overtime victory over No. 7 Penn State.[12] His 223 yards was the most ever tallied by an opposing player at Penn State's Beaver Stadium.[2] For the full 2021 season, Brown rushed for 1,005 yards on 170 carries, and his average of 100.5 rushing yards per game ranked second in the Big Ten Conference.[2] Brown was twice named Big Ten Offensive Player of the Week in 2021 and received third-team honors on the 2021 All-Big Ten Conference football team.[2][13]

In the 2022 season opener against Wyoming, Brown rushed for 151 yards and three touchdowns on 19 carries.[14] He was named Big Ten Offensive Player of the Week after the first week.[15] Against Indiana on September 2, he rushed for 199 yards and was selected as the first winner of the Doak Walker National Running Back of the Week award.[16] He then rushed for in excess of 100 yards in each of the next five games: 146 yards against Virginia on September 10;[17] 108 yards against Chattanooga on September 22;[18] 129 yards against Wisconsin on October 1;[19] 146 yards against Iowa on October 8;[20] and 180 yards against Minnesota on October 15.[21] His yardage against Minnesota pushed him over the 1,000-yard mark, making him the first player to reach the mark in 2022 and the third Illinois player to rush for over 1,000 yards in consecutive years.[22] Brown finished second nationally with 1,643 rushing yards.[23][24] He was later awarded the 2022 Jon Cornish Trophy as the top Canadian player in NCAA football.[25]

Statistics

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Season Games Rushing Receiving
Att Yards Avg TD Rec Yards Avg TD
Western Michigan Broncos
2018 13 71 352 5.0 0 10 75 7.5 0
Illinois Fighting Illini
2019 4 3 18 6.0 0 0 0 0.0 0
2020 8 104 540 5.2 3 7 64 9.1 0
2021 10 170 1,005 5.9 5 14 142 10.1 0
2022 12 328 1,643 5.0 10 27 240 8.9 3
Career 47 676 3,558 5.3 18 58 521 9.0 3

Professional career

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Pre-draft measurables
Height Weight Arm length Hand span 40-yard dash 10-yard split 20-yard split Vertical jump Broad jump Bench press
5 ft 9+1⁄2 in
(1.77 m) 		209 lb
(95 kg) 		31 in
(0.79 m) 		10 in
(0.25 m)		 4.43 s 1.53 s 2.57 s 40.0 in
(1.02 m)		 10 ft 7 in
(3.23 m)		 25 reps
All values from the NFL Combine[26][27]

Brown was ranked the #2 Canadian prospect ahead of the 2023 CFL Draft, where he was drafted in the 7th round (59th overall) by the Montreal Alouettes.[28]

Brown was selected by the Cincinnati Bengals in the fifth round, 163rd overall pick, of the 2023 NFL draft.[29] He was placed on injured reserve on October 28, 2023, with a hamstring injury, and reactivated on November 25.[30] In Week 14 against the Indianapolis Colts, Brown scored his first NFL touchdown on a 54-yard pass from Jake Browning; he finished the day with 105 total yards on three catches and eight carries.[31]

Brown began the 2024 season as the second running back on the depth chart behind Zack Moss, as well as the team's starting kickoff returner.[32] In Week 4 against the Carolina Panthers, Brown had a breakout game, rushing for 80 yards and two touchdowns. He had his first career start against the New York Giants in Week 6, in which he fumbled in the final two minutes of the game, though a failed recovery by Jason Pinnock led to the ball being pushed out of bounds. He finished the game with 10 carries for 53 yards, and scored the game winning touchdown.[33]

NFL career statistics

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Legend
Bold Career high
Year Team Games Rushing Receiving Kick returns Fumbles
GP GS Att Yds Avg Lng TD Rec Yds Avg Lng TD Ret Yds Avg Lng TD Fum Lost
2023 CIN 12 0 44 179 4.1 31 0 14 156 11.1 54 1 2 44 22.0 27 0 0 0
2024 CIN 9 3 105 479 4.6 30 4 21 98 4.7 13 2 7 186 26.6 29 0 1 0
Career 18 0 95 462 4.8 31 3 26 206 7.7 54 2 9 230 25.6 29 0 1 0

Personal life

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Brown is the identical twin brother of Philadelphia Eagles safety Sydney Brown. The two were teammates at Illinois.[34]

References

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  1. ^ "Twin London, Ont. brothers picked during NFL Draft". London. April 29, 2023. Retrieved September 24, 2024.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i "Chase Brown". University of Illinois. Retrieved September 16, 2022.
  3. ^ Jason Dill (October 31, 2017). "Saint Stephen's RB Chase Brown commits to Western Michigan". The Bradenton Herald. p. B2 – via Newspapers.com.
  4. ^ Nick Buckley (May 16, 2019). "Freshman All-American seeks transfer: Broncos' star WR Reed RB Brown enter portal". Battle Creek Enquirer. p. B1 – via Newspapers.com.
  5. ^ a b "Chase Brown get waiver for immediate eligibility". Herald and Review. October 14, 2019. p. B1 – via Newspapers.com.
  6. ^ a b "Twins Chase and Sydney Brown living their football dream at Illinois". Belleville News-Democrat. Associated Press. November 27, 2020. pp. B1, B3 – via Newspapers.com.
  7. ^ Joey Wagner (September 25, 2020). "Brown has plenty to prove: Transfer ready to show backs aren't a weak spot". The Pantagraph. p. B4 – via Newspapers.com.
  8. ^ "McCourt to the rescue". The Pantagraph. November 15, 2020. pp. B1, B2 – via Newspapers.com.
  9. ^ "Illinois in control". The Pantagraph. November 22, 2020. pp. B1, B2 – via Newspapers.com.
  10. ^ "Chase Brown College Stats, School, Draft, Gamelog, Splits". College Football at Sports-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved July 21, 2024.
  11. ^ "Brown's gallops: Second-half TD runs cap 257-yard day for Illini back". Journal Gazette. Mattoon, Illinois. October 3, 2021. p. A7 – via Newspapers.com.
  12. ^ Travis Johnson (October 24, 2021). "Illini win in 9 OTs". Journal Gazette. p. A7 – via Newspapers.com.
  13. ^ "Big Ten Unveils Football All-Conference Teams for Defense, Special Teams and Select Individual Honors" (PDF). Big Ten Conference. November 30, 2021. Archived from the original (PDF) on November 30, 2021. Retrieved November 30, 2021.
  14. ^ "Canadian RB Brown has stellar opening to Illinois' 2022 NCAA opener". TSN.ca. The Canadian Press. August 28, 2022.
  15. ^ "Chase Brown Named Big Ten Offensive Player off the Week". University of Illinois. August 29, 2022.
  16. ^ "Chase Brown named National Running Back of the Week". WCIA.com. September 7, 2022.
  17. ^ Gavin Good (September 10, 2002). "Illinois defense locks down Virginia for 24-3 victory". AP News.
  18. ^ Gavin Good (September 22, 2022). "Chase Brown and Illinois rout Chattanooga 31-0 to improve to 3-1 — the Illini's best start since 2015". Chicago Tribune. Associated Press.
  19. ^ Steve Megargee (October 1, 2022). "Illinois pounds Wisconsin 34-10 in Bret Bielema's return to Camp Randall — the Illini's 1st win in Madison since 2002". Chicago Tribune. Associated Press.
  20. ^ "Iowa football vs Illinois". The Daily Iowan. October 9, 2022.
  21. ^ "Chase Brown fuels Illinois past Minnesota for fifth consecutive victory". Chicago Sun-Times. October 15, 2022.
  22. ^ Eric Olson (October 23, 2022). "Word is out about Brown, Illinois wants volume turned up". AP News.
  23. ^ "College Football Player Rushing Stats 2022". ESPN.com. Retrieved November 28, 2022.
  24. ^ "Chase Brown". ESPN.com. Retrieved October 16, 2022.
  25. ^ TSN ca Staff (December 14, 2022). "Brown wins Cornish Trophy as NCAA Football's top Canadian". TSN. Retrieved December 16, 2022.
  26. ^ "Chase Brown Draft and Combine Prospect Profile". NFL.com. Retrieved April 26, 2023.
  27. ^ "2023 NFL Draft Scout Chase Brown College Football Profile". DraftScout.com. Retrieved April 26, 2023.
  28. ^ "Matthew Bergeron takes Top Spot in Spring Scouting Bureau Rankings". Canadian Football League. April 21, 2023.
  29. ^ "Bengals Select Illinois Running Back Chase Brown In Fifth Round". Bengals.com. April 29, 2023.
  30. ^ "Bengals Roster Move: Chase Brown Placed On Reserve/Injured". Bengals.com. October 28, 2023.
  31. ^ Williams, Charean (December 10, 2023). "Chase Brown has catch-and-run, 54-yard TD for 7-0 Bengals lead". NBC Sports. Retrieved July 21, 2024.
  32. ^ Garrison, Drew (September 3, 2024). "Bengals release Week 1 depth chart". Cincy Jungle. Retrieved September 27, 2024.
  33. ^ Keel, Fletcher (October 14, 2024). 'I'm just motivated': Chase Brown joins WLWT after Sunday night win over Giants. Retrieved October 19, 2024 – via www.wlwt.com.
  34. ^ Rittenberg, Adam (February 3, 2023). "'It's been a journey': The Brown twins' long road toward NFL dreams". ESPN.com. Retrieved March 5, 2023.
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