Brown garners preseason recognition with All-America honor from Lindy's Sports
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - Carson-Newman sophomore linebacker and reigning SAC Defensive Freshman of the Year Mekhi Brown has been named a preseason second-team All-American by Lindy's Sports in its annual preseason college football magazine.
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - Carson-Newman sophomore linebacker and reigning SAC Defensive Freshman of the Year Mekhi Brown has been named a preseason second-team All-American by Lindy's Sports in its annual preseason college football magazine.
Brown is the first Eagle to receive recognition from the magazine since Rondrow Peebles prior to the start of the 2021 season. Peebles also earned the nod prior to 2019 while offensive lineman Phillip McDowell and safety Darius Williams represented the Eagles in the 2018 edition of the periodical. All three players portraits hang in Carson-Newman's All-American hallway in the MSAC, backing up their preseason prognostications with postseason laurels.
Brown was recognized as a member of the All-Mountain Division team at linebacker in addition to being named the SAC's Defensive Freshman of the Year. Brown turned in a stellar freshman campaign that saw him earn conference player of the week honors on two occasions.
He is the seventh Eagle to win the defensive honor and the 13th to be presented with either the defensive or offensive freshman of the year accolade.
Brown led Carson-Newman with 71 tackles. He also tallied 13 tackles for loss, 8.5 sacks, picked off two passes (one of which he returned for a score), recovered two fumbles and blocked a kick. He was the first freshman recognized with a weekly honor from the SAC in five years, while also becoming the first player in more than 15 years to go back-to-back as a player of the week for the league for C-N.
His first player of the week honor came following Carson-Newman's win at Newberry, its first at Setzler Field since 2010. He finished the day with four tackles, a tackle for loss, the pick six and a blocked field goal. Brown broke through the line to tip and reject a Bryce Early field goal with 1:52 left in the second quarter to keep the Eagles within a touchdown. His more pivotal play came in the third quarter. Brown leapt in front of a Brayden Phillips pass at the 13 yard-line.
He scrambled into the right side of the end zone with 9:50 to go in the third to bring the Eagles within a two-point conversion and spark what would go on to be a 28-point second half for C-N. He followed that up a week later against Tusculum. He accounted for a career-high nine tackles, to go along with a sack, a tackle for loss, a fumble recovery and an interception. In the last two weeks, he has forced three turnovers, blocked a field goal and registered 3.5 tackles for loss and two sacks.
Brown generated his first turnover against Tusculum on the Pioneers second possession. With TU at the C-N 22, Brown leapt in front of a Matthew Palazzo pass at the five and returned it out to the nine to thwart the Pioneers in C-N territory. With TU driving in C-N territory again, Brown pounced on a loose football in the end zone coughed up by Kemani Brown to keep TU scoreless.
Brown becomes the first C-N player to earn two defensive player of the week honors in the same season since Rondrow Peebles during his All-America campaign in 2019. Brown would turn in a trio of double-digit tackle performance, including a career-best 11 against Erskine (Oct. 14). He finished the year with a tackle for loss in the final seven games of the year. Included in that is a 4.0-tackle-for-loss, 3.0-sack game against Mars Hill (Oct. 21). Brown's 13 tackles for loss are tied for the 20th-most in a single season in school history, while his 8.5 sacks rank 13th.
