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Notre Dame Football Recruiting

Coach: Brown High-End Character, High-End Talent

November 30, 2017
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Donald Cox has no doubt DJ Brown‍ is going to be successful as a college cornerback, but football is only a part of the 2018 Washington, D.C. cornerback, according to the St. John’s College High School defensive backs coach.

“DJ is probably one of the most outstanding young men I’ve ever coached,” said Cox. “I love him as a player, I love him more in my heart. He’s like a son to me.

“I’ve been blessed to coach this young man for two years. I was fortunate to meet his father before his dad passed away last year at Thanksgiving. His mom is a beautiful person. They have raised an outstanding young man to be a role model off the field and to be a ridiculously outstanding player on the field.”

Cox called Brown “very mature” and noted his standout leadership qualities.

“He’s a very well-spoken young man,” he said. “He’s intelligent. His grade-point average is close to a 4.0. Off the field, if he sees something that’s not right, he’s going to be the first one to step up and say, ‘Hey, you shouldn’t be doing this.’ If we’re supposed to be at a certain place at a certain time, he’s going to be the first one to make sure he gets every player where they need to be. To me, that’s a great quality.

“When he looks at you, he’s going to look you in the face. He’s going to tell you, ‘Yes, sir.’ ‘No, sir.’ ‘Yes, maam.’ ‘No, maam.’ He’s always going to make sure he has a firm handshake. He is one of the very rare young men that I know who is not going to lie to you. His parents have raised him to be very truthful.”

Cox, who has coached countless standout defensive backs as a staple on the Under Armour Football circuit, has seen Brown grow as a player over the last two seasons.

“DJ has transformed into an outstanding shutdown corner,” said Cox.

Interestingly, Cox points to the 6-foot Brown’s time on the baseball diamond as a benefit.

“He has a baseball player’s mentality as a centerfielder,” the coach said. “He will go find the ball. He transitions out of his T-step as good as any player I’ve coached over the years. He tracks the ball extremely well because, once again, he has that baseball player’s mentality. When he sees the ball, he’s going to go get it.

“As a press corner, he uses that long frame of his to be physical when he needs to be, but he has great hips and speed that makes him a threat. With most big corners, it’s hard for them to move. It’s hard for them to get down to pad level to drop their hips. But DJ, once again being a baseball player, his hips are already fluid.”

Brown committed to Virginia back in the summer, but after helping lead his high school to a WCAC title this fall, more schools have taken notice.

“DJ didn’t allow any touchdowns to be caught on him this season,” his coach said. “He shut down one side of the field by himself.

“He is a kid who I know is going to be an outstanding defensive back in any conference. He’s a kid who I truly believe, if he stays on the path and keeps working hard, God is going to give him a chance to maybe have a career on Sundays.”

On Wednesday, Notre Dame extended a scholarship offer.

“Notre Dame has been talking to him for the last few weeks, especially going into our championship week,” Cox explained. “They kept in contact with him. Notre Dame is going to take its time. They watched him progress, they watched him progress.

“He’s still committed to Virginia for right now. He’s not going to decommit unless he decides it’s not the best place for him. He’s still very committed to Virginia. But it opens up to let a lot of people know he can play at this big level.”

Yesterday, Brown told Irish Sports Daily he’s leaning toward taking an official visit to South Bend next weekend.

“He’s definitely going to take a fair look at Notre Dame. Any kid would be crazy not to take a serious look at a fantastic institution like that.”

 
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