Oct. 18, 2007

By Mandrallius Robinson, The Greenville News

Mike Brown peeled himself off the field and trotted gingerly back to the sideline.

Returning a kickoff in the fourth quarter on Saturday, the redshirt freshman running back had just been nailed to the turf by The Citadel's Trevar Broughton after a 17-yard gain.

Brown paced anxiously on the sideline shaken, not because of the hit but because he missed an opportunity to make a big play.

"It's 11 players on each side. For one guy to bring me down means I was the only one who didn't make a play," Brown said. "I knew if I got another chance, that I would give my all."

With 3:49 remaining in regulation, Brown fielded another kickoff. Starting at the 24-yard line, he blew by Broughton and the Bulldogs' coverage team, sprinting down the left sideline for a 76-yard touchdown.

Brown finished with 129 yards on three kickoff returns, although Furman lost 54-51 in overtime.

The response earned Brown Southern Conference Freshman of the Week honors, although he would say it was all in a play's work.

"It lets you know that all the work you did in the offseason is being recognized by people outside the team," Brown said. "But it's just extra stuff. It's nothing real important, because I'm just trying to help the team win. It's something that your parents like to see.

"You want to smile at it, but then you look at the overall picture. You lost. You don't want to smile at a loss, because you know you could've done more to pull out a victory, especially in a game like that, where one play can make the difference."

Just as Brown picked himself off the field, so must Furman respond after falling to 2-4. The Paladins (0-2 in the SoCon) travel Saturday to Chattanooga.

"We really can't get down on ourselves," Brown said, "because we know if we do, we won't play as well as we're capable of playing. If that's the case, it's just going to get more ugly.

"In our conference, if you don't come out and play hard, you are liable to get whipped up and down the field."