The biggest question mark coming into the 2023 season for Maryland’s defense is who is going to rush the quarterback? Specifically, who is coming off the edge? Last year, veteran Durell Nchami had all the hype to be the Terps’ primary edge rusher, but didn’t consistently live up to the billing with only three sacks. Instead, it was standout freshman Jaishawn Barham and senior Greg Rose who led the team on the pass rush front. Rose has moved on while Barham is back and poised for another big year. Most of Barham’s work will be done from the linebacker position, especially with the loss of Vandarius Cowan. Florida State transfer Quashon Fuller is in line for a bigger role heading into his second season with the program. The question heading into the offseason, though, was who was coach Locksley going to snag from the transfer portal to round out the room? Enter Donnell Brown, reigning NEC defensive player of the year. Brown, a Gwynn Park (MD) product, played for FCS school St. Francis and posted very impressive stats. In three seasons at St. Francis, Brown posted 99 tackles, 23.5 tackles for loss, 10.5 sacks, three fumble recoveries and two forced fumbles. Last season alone, Brown totaled 14.5 tackles for loss and 5.5 sacks. If Brown’s dominance at St. Francis translates to how he can impact the Terps’ defense, he adds a layer to Brian Williams’ defense that was lacking last season. We dive into the portal addition and how he can make an impact. Brown is on the smaller end of typical edge rusher builds. Standing at 6-foot-3, 240 pounds, Brown uses his speed to beat offensive tackles to get to the quarterback. In this first clip, Brown is lined up on the left edge in a stand-up position. He gets vertical quick and beats his opponent with pure speed rather than a power move or technical pass rush move. His pure speed is evident on tape as he able to coral the quarterback for a sack with ease. The offensive tackle had good form and technique here, but Brown had minimal issue blowing by him with speed. From the prior clip, you notice Brown’s small stature. He is going to try to use his pure athleticism to pressure the quarterback. He is clearly faster than everyone on the field and this part can translate, however, he’ll lean on that speed against some of the best offensive tackles in the country who also boast athleticism with their bigger frames than Brown faced last season. This next clip is quite impressive and really showcases Brown’s acceleration on the snap. Brown’s jump and explosiveness on the snap is amazing and it allows him to get leverage over the left tackle. This clip also shows that he has some strength to offer in his pass-rush technique. His reaction off the snap alone allows him to bulldoze the tackle and his momentum carries him through the blocking running back. Getting through two blocks in that short time is impressive. One weakness in Brown's game is when he attempts to gain inside leverage on a lineman as he looks add an inside move to his repertoire. While Brown found success on the edge, he struggled several times trying to cut to the inside and meet a lineman that just overpowered him. He found much more success when he used his pure speed and athleticism to allude opponents. These next two clips display this. The first clip Brown is lined up at the left defensive edge position (#4). He tries to bullrush the interior offensive lineman and is met by a brick wall. In this play and others like, Brown does not flash the strength to rush the passer this way. These are FCS offensive linemen as well, where he'll have his work cut out for him against what the Big Ten has to offer. In the second clip Brown is unusually lined up as an interior down lineman. It is almost a 3 technique. For reference, a 3 technique is a defensive lineman is lined up on the offensive guard’s outside shoulder. Brown and his fellow defensive end perform a “stunt” which is a flip of twist of the two pass rushers to try and confuse the offensive lineman. This would be smart to use on a quick edge rusher like Brown. However, the offensive tackle plays it perfectly and does not allow Brown the outside leverage. Again, this is a situation where Brown struggles. Brown relies on using his speed to get to the outside and when that is cut off, he is in trouble. Brown is still an athletic edge rusher that has fantastic get-off and speed that kills. This last clip shows his burst as he flies off the edge to get to the quarterback in seconds (despite the offense scoring on this play). Overall, there are concerns that his size will not translate to the Big Ten. Brown will be going up against NFL-caliber offensive tackles such as Olu Fashanu at Penn State as well as Donovan Jackson and Matthew Jones at Ohio State. These behemoths will certainly overwhelm him in size and strength, but it remains to be seen if Brown’s speed and athleticism is enough to beat them. I am cautiously optimistic as Brown has the athleticism to compete on the big stage but does he have the size? The impact addition will have a chance to prove that as he’s part of the solution off the edge heading into the season. Related Links Four-star athlete set to visit Maryland at the end of the month (+)
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