The season is over, and it’s time to profile the remainder of the 2012 Michigan lacrosse recruiting class. I’ll cover the final three guys in alphabetical order, starting with Severn (Md.) LSM Chase Brown. On to the profilin’:
He's the player getting tackled. This is the only picture I could find. via The Gazette.
Relevant Articles
Information is light on the ground for this kid: There is nothing about him on Inside Lacrosse (at least from a recruiting perspective), and not a word on ESPNHS. Fortunately for you, dear reader, I can work the Google:
Brown was a big part of a strong Severn defense. That was the Admirals’ calling card this year.
The Admirals’ defense — Blake Wood, Chase Brown, Devlin Nelligan, Bobby DeStefano, Chris Kienhe and Manis — limited the Saints to just four fourth-quarter shots.
Bizarrely, early season articles describe the defense as being very strong, then Inside Lacrosse called it a “work of progress.” He was a team captain this season, and a full-field threat who notches assists from time-to-time. You can see his full-season (offensive) stats courtesy of the Washington Post. I make no promises as to how comprehensive they are. Another recent game report, and Brown’s defense played a role in Severn upsetting Boys’ Latin.
His club team is the Anne Arundel All-Stars.
Yay he’s an honor roll student. He’s also a football player, and although he’s listed as a returning running back, his highlights (the final four minutes of the video below) are exclusively at wideout.
Based on my own inexpert review of his highlight film, a few things jump out: Unlike, say, Brother Rice D commit Chris Walker, he’s not an elite takeaway defender. Sure, the film shows a number of strips, but a lot of those are from trail checks that won’t be available in college. What he does do is play great positional defense. I’m not sure if there’s a lacrosse version of the football phrase “he runs receivers’ routes for them” as it relates to cornerbacks, but Brown does just that. He keeps his feet moving quickly, and stays in front of dodgers.
The film doesn’t show a lot of excellent GB play – though it does show the desire which can be half the battle sometimes. He’s also a big, tough guy. Sometimes I question the listed sizes, but in the football portion of his highlight film, he’s the tallest guy on the field, and has a thick build for a wide receiver (not that the football competition in Annapolis provate schools is among the best, but still). He has good size, and college S&C can help turn him into an intimidator, especially with the attitude he displays.
Other Interest
Without a commitment post from any trusted sources, no word on any other interest.
Teammates of Note
The 2012 class at Severn is a pretty strong one: Brown is one of three recruits bound for a Division-1 college, joined by UMBC commit Mark Cohen and future Maryland Terrapin Nick Manis, both midfielders. Three more players are headed to D-3, including attack Kyle Moran and Brown’s fellow defensive players Blake Wood and Bobby DeStefano.
In the 2011 class, no players out of Severn went to Division-1 programs, but four players went on to Division-3. Longpole Conor Colgan and midfielder Nate Babcock headed to St Mary’s (Md.). Attackmen Pat Lamon and Sebastian Auth were freshmen at Drew this spring.
Going back to Brown’s freshman year (when he was likely a JV player), three offensive players and a goalie went D-1, and a faceoff specialist headed to a D-3 institution. In 2010, a defenseman and an attackman signed Division-1 letters of intent, while two offensive players and a D/LSM went D-3.
Video
Benjamin “Chase” Brown, Severn Lacrosse, Class of 12′ from Kevin Lynch on Vimeo.
The Upshot
In case you didn’t notice (the only excuse for which is that you weren’t paying attention), Michigan’s defense was not good this season. An upgrade in talent is necessary, and Brown is one of a few players in the class who can do just that.
He also has skills that are complementary to some of Michigan’s other defensive signees. As alluded to above, Chris Walker has great takeaway checks and an excellent stick for a close defenseman (albeit against weaker competition in Michigan than Brown faces in Maryland). Brown’s technical skill and quickness as positional defender work well with that.
The video doesn’t show a whole lot of Brown running the field, and what it does show seems to demonstrate more quickness than top-end speed. That would initially lead me to believe he’ll be a close defenseman rather than an LSM in college, but Michigan lists him as the latter, so what do I know.