Wednesday, July 28, 2010

Trouble from the Start

Arthur Brown (above) was supposed to be the next great linebacker at Miami, and his brother, Bryce was supposed to be the next great running back at Tennessee, but the brothers have proven that neither will happen.

Arthur Brown came to Miami in 2008 as the type of player that would help rebuild the program, but that did not happen. After struggling as a freshman, Brown moved from his normal weak side linebacker position to the inside and flourished. But that did not make Arthur happy as he returned home to Kansas transferring to Kansas State.

Bryce (right) was supposed to join Jamal Lewis and all of the great Tennessee running backs, but that did not happen as Bryce proved to have issues from the start. On February 22, 2008, Brown chose to follow his brother and orally committed to the University of Miami.However, Brown did not sign a letter of intent on National Signing Day 2009, but instead planned to announce his decision on March 16, naming five other "finalists" despite his oral commitment to Miami: LSU, Tennessee, Oregon, USC, and Kansas State, according to wikipedia

At the time ESPN.com′s Tom Luginbill said “If I was Randy Shannon and the Miami staff, I would tell the kid and Brian Butler to go jump in a lake. I got to imagine that deep down, Miami's coaches have to be thinking, ‘This is getting ridiculous,’” according to wikipedia. Prior to his announcement, Brown paid official visits to Oregon and Clemson, and finally took an impromptu visit to Tennessee on March 13Citing an anonymous source, the Associated Press reported the University of Miami would not reissue a national letter of intent to Brown to replace the one that expired Wednesday, February 18. Brown's advisor Brian Butler told AP he was unaware those scholarship offers have an expiration date, but reiterated that Brown would not sign until March 16.According to Palm Beach Post′s Jorge Milian UM coach Shannon called Brown on Tuesday, February 17, and allegedly told him the University of Miami was no longer interested in his services. However, Brown later told Wichita Eagle that Shannon still wanted him to be a Hurricane. Due to NCAA rules, Shannon was not allowed to comment. On March 16, 2009, Brown announced at a press conference at the Kansas Sports Hall of Fame in Wichita, Kansas, that he will attend the University of Tennessee, according to wikipedia.

After leaving Miami in the dark, Bryce has done the same thing to his current school. Bryce texted new Tennessee head coach Derek Dooley to let him know that they was not returning to for this season. Ok if you want to leave, its fine, just meet with the coach like a man and then tell him, but Bryce decided to skip a scheduled meeting and just send a text, which is totally bush league. Its a good bet that Brown will now be joining his brother at Kansas State.

Sure both of these kids have a ton of talent, but sometimes someone has to put their foot down and just say it. This is out of control.