Player Profile: Kevin Brown

Kevin Brown, or "the Bear" as he has been nicknamed, is the big man in the middle of the Bruins defensive line. The talented and athletic tackle had a relatively quiet season in 2006, but expect him to explode back into the spotlight this season.

Kevin has a strong motor and peruses the run game relentlessly. He had 24 tackles last year, including 6 tackles for loss and 1 sack. Brown had a good spring practice and it looks like he is finally getting over the ankle injury that side lined him two season ago. Expect his numbers to go way up in 2007 as offenses are forced to double-team Bruce Davis.

Brown finished his high school career at Long Beach Poly before coming to Westwood. He was a standout player on both sides of the ball and he was named to pretty much every single local, district, and state all-everything teams. He was given 4-stars by both Scout and Rivals and considered one of the top lineman in the country.

Kevin bumped around between offensive and defense in his first season as a Bruin. He saw action on both sides of the ball, including a few starts as guard at the end of the season. Originally recruited for defense, he was switched to the offense because of a lack of depth after some injuries depleted the line.

His sophomore year, Kevin switched back to the D-line and he has been there ever since. He started a few times but his real break-out performance came during the SC game at the Rose Bowl. He recorded two sacks and was in Matt Leinart's face for the better part of the game. Big things were expected from him after that game and there was a lot of buzz around the big man going into his Junior year.

In 2005, The Bear was injured at the end of the fall camp. It was a devastating loss to a unit that would see most of its starters on the sidelines by the end of the season. Brown sprained his left ankle and it required surgery that kept him off the field for the entire season. That injury seemed to slow him down a bit in 2006 and staying healthy will be one of his primary goals this year.

It is always crucial to have a solid defensive line and big bodies in the middle can make all the difference. Brown is tipping the scales at close to 300 lbs and along with Brigham Harwell, he should be a monstrous force in the middle of the Bruin front seven. I am excited to see what Brown can do for us this season, and I'm sure opposing quarterbacks will be seeing #75 up close and personal all year long.

(photo credit: national champs)