New Notre Dame WR Coach Mike Brown Comes Highly Recommended

Smoke Pierre is quite familiar with Mike Brown.

“Good dude, man,” Pierre says of Notre Dame’s newest wide receivers coach.

Pierre, the head coach at New Jersey’s Irvington High School, has dealt with Brown in the recruiting process for years and has watched him closely from afar.

“His development, his detail of teaching,” Pierre says of what stands out most about Brown as a coach. “I had one of my coaches go out there and shadow him for a week. He's just so detailed in what he does. 

“I think that's what makes him a young up-and-comer. Some guys have him on the radar as a future OC soon.”

Pierre has watched Brown form genuine relationships with coaches and players.

“I think he takes time with kids, he builds relationships,” says Pierre. “He's always done a good job and the guys who he's recruited always spoke highly of him as far as doing a great job.”

Pierre also thinks the fact that Brown spent time in the NFL as a receiver himself gives him some added credibility.

“That's vital in the process,” says Brown. “Most kids nowadays want to be coached by someone who has done it before. Mike is somebody who has the personality that is easygoing and he's attractive. If I'm a kid, 'Well, you played wideout with the Jacksonville Jaguars at the NFL level.' It attracts. 

“It makes the process so much easier as far as being able to have a kid gravitate to you and to the offense. I think that plays a key point and that helps him in recruiting.”

He also has a track record of what he’s done as a coach at Cincinnati and Wisconsin. Most importantly to Pierre is Brown’s history working with Notre Dame quarterbacks coach Gino Guidugli.

“I think it's a good hire because he works well with Gino as well,” Pierre says. “When they had (Desmond) Ritter and those wideouts, those guys were able to mesh together, that's how you were able to see Cincinnati making the Playoffs.

“A Group of Five school making the Playoffs is unheard of, but I think it's because of the time that those guys put in as far as game-planning and teaching and just loving up their guys…I know a lot of people are talking about Freeman and Freeman and Mike. But I think the biggest piece is Gino and Mike, to be honest.”

Pierre believes that cooperation can be overlooked at times.

“You need to mesh,” he continues. “If you don't mesh, then you won't be able to sustain anything, you won't be able to get anything going. I think that's vital. I think those guys need to sit and be able to talk about timing, sit and talk about route concepts.

“If this drag needs to be at 7 versus 15, I think that's important to know because of the speed of the wideout and the receiver coach knowing that and knowing the type of arm that the quarterback has. It just all meshes together. It has to work hand in hand and I think it's going to be a good fit for what we know what they have going on at Notre Dame. It's going to help them recruiting-wise and I think going to help them as far as scheme and game plan-wise. 

“It's a win, man. It's a win.”

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