Learn the Name Now

The 2009 Pennsylvania class may not be as stocked with high end talent as it was this past season, but there is still some depth. One player who won't garner a ton of early offers due to a lack of film is Dontae Brown.

Long time Penn Hills football coach Neil Gordon was released from his duties recently and it was bittersweet for most of his players. There were reports that a box was found in his office containing hundreds of letters for his athletes from colleges that those athletes never received. Despite being one of the states largest schools the Indians were often considered the biggest underachievers in the WPIAL. The team that always was stacked with talent, but always fell short come play off time. Another area where the Indians and Gordon often fell short was with recruiting.

Several college coaches have come forward and spoke about phone calls to the school that went unreturned as they tried to recruit Penn Hills players. One assistant coach was quoted in a Pittsburgh paper as saying it is not the coaches job to get a kid recruited it is up to him and his parents. It is obvious with logic like that it was time for a change.

In today's world of the internet and combines it is critical for prospects to get as much exposure anyway they can. It makes it tough on a player when your coach doesn't do much to help you. This years Penn Hills squad is loaded, but they still remain without a coach. Wide receiver Dontae Brown is one of the most physically gifted athletes in the state and he has no scholarship offers.

"I'm happy in a way, because we need help with this stuff and we weren't getting it," Brown said. "My athletic director tells me about these schools that are requesting film, but we have no coach. One of the coaches who works  the weight room said he'd help us, so hopefully in the next few weeks we will have it.

"It is a little stressful that no one is there," he continued. "Is the new coach going to be one of the current assistants that will keep the old system or will we have to learn a totally different one? We have a lot of talent coming back, now we just need a coach."

At 6-foot-5 and 195-pounds, running a (4.48) forty Brown will likely pick up more than his share of offers. At least once people outside of the WPIAL learn who he is. "I can't wait for the Scout.com/Under Armour combine and the passing camp in Akron to show what I can do. If I do well at those camps I can get my name out there."

Brown has heard the most from Pittsburgh, along with Northwestern, Cincinnati, Syracuse, Boston College, Indiana and Michigan State. Brown will attend a junior day at Pittsburgh this weekend.

"They've shown the most interest in me so far," Brown stated. "They came to the school right before Christmas break Dave (Wannstedt) and some of the other coaches. they were pretty cool guys. They want to see some film on me, but I get a ton of mail from them. I really like their basketball team, maybe Coach Dixon will let me play there."

Basketball? Yes, Brown is a gifted basketball player who is about to hit the AAU circuit.

"I'm going to play for the PA Pride team this year," Brown stated. "I play the two in hoops and at 6-5 I feel that I am pretty versatile. I thought about playing both sports, but I think I have more opportunity in football. I can do  a lot of different things. I think it's a lot easier to get a scholarship in football."

Brown, is an exceptional wide receiver, but he is also getting looks as a quarterback and defensive back as well. As a junior, he caught 35 passes for 450 yards and five touchdowns. He recorded 28 tackles and had a team high four interceptions. He also ran for a score and threw a touchdown pass.

Brown plans on taking his time on making a decision. "I'm going to take my time a little bit," Brown said. " Even if I get offers, I may just take it slow."

One thing is for certain, we don't think it's a matter of if he will get offers as much as it is when and who will offer.