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Running back Raleek Brown transferred to the Arizona State football program from USC a year ago with some lofty goals. He wanted to rush for 1,000 yards and record 700 yards in receptions.
Ask him about his goal for the 2025 season, and he's got something different in mind.
"I want to make it through the whole season healthy," he said.
That was a problem last season, as the 5-foot-9, 185-pound dynamo was slowed by a hamstring injury that led to him taking a medical redshirt. The injury occurred on the second day of fall camp. Brown knew it was serious right away.
"It felt bad, so I knew it wasn't good," he said. "After practice I could barely walk. I knew it was bad, but I thought I'd be back eventually. It just kept lingering and other stuff kept happening."
The injury kept him out through the first two games of the season. He made his debut in the Sept. 12 game at Texas State, where he had two carries and one reception, but admits to only being "between 70 and 75% healthy".
He aggravated that hamstring and was out another two games before returning for the Oct. 5 home game against Kansas and managing 41 yards on seven carries in a 35-31 victory. Brown still wasn't right, so he was shut down for the rest of the season. He admits he wanted to play through the injury, but the coaching staff didn't see that as realistic.
"He couldn't go," running backs coach Shaun Aguano said. "So much of his game is his quickness and explosiveness. When you have a hamstring injury, those things aren't there. It was really too bad, but he was never healthy, and it wasn't going to do anyone any good for him to struggle through it."
Fortunately, the Sun Devils got a breakout season from Cam Skattebo with Kyson Brown proving a suitable complement and boasted a running game ranked 20th out of 133 FBS schools in rushing offense at 200 yards per game.
Brown may have had to take a back seat to Skattebo as far as the number of carries, but he regrets missing out on playing alongside such a player.
"I wish I had been able to play with Cam. It would have been nice," he said, after the Sun Devils wrapped up a recent spring practice. "Probably the best backfield in college football."
Brown, perhaps, taking a cue from Skattebo, worked on his body during the offseason. He focused on agility and stretching. He tried to eliminate fried foods from his diet.
Not only did Brown make minimal appearances in 2024, he also redshirted in 2023 at USC, which tried to convert him from running back to a slot receiver. So it's been two years since he has been able to play the way he wanted.
As a freshman at USC in 2022, Brown showed glimpses of what had him labeled a five-star high school prospect by one recruiting service and a four-star by the others. He played in all 14 games as a true freshman, rushing for 227 yards on 42 carries (5.4 avg) with three touchdowns and catching 16 passes for 175 yards and another three touchdowns. He also returned kicks with 517 yards on 24 returns.
After two years of limited action, Brown is excited to be back on the field and contributing.
"It feels good to be playing football again. It's been a long time," he said. "I hated having to just watch. I was itching to get in there."
At 5-foot-9 and 185 pounds, Brown is the smallest back on the ASU roster, but he's perhaps the most explosive and shiftiest. He finds himself part of a deep position group. Army transfer Kanye Udoh is likely to have a leading role, and Kyson Brown is back after showing some promise when he got the ball in relief of Skattebo. Then there is another player coming off nagging injuries in Alton McCaskill, not to mention Jason Brown, who didn't play as a true freshman because of the players ahead of him.
Another newcomer added to the mix is true freshman Demarius "Man Man" Robinson.
"It's going to be fun because we have a lot of weapons," Raleek Brown said. "They have to pick and choose."
Aguano agrees.
"It might be one of those years where there is more balance, not one guy getting the ball 30 times," he said. "Of course, if there is a hot hand, we're going to ride that, but it's a good problem to have. There are a lot of good players in that room, and we're confident in all of them."
This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Medical redshirt season slowed ASU's Raleek Brown, but didn't stop him
Continue reading...
Ask him about his goal for the 2025 season, and he's got something different in mind.
"I want to make it through the whole season healthy," he said.
That was a problem last season, as the 5-foot-9, 185-pound dynamo was slowed by a hamstring injury that led to him taking a medical redshirt. The injury occurred on the second day of fall camp. Brown knew it was serious right away.
"It felt bad, so I knew it wasn't good," he said. "After practice I could barely walk. I knew it was bad, but I thought I'd be back eventually. It just kept lingering and other stuff kept happening."
The injury kept him out through the first two games of the season. He made his debut in the Sept. 12 game at Texas State, where he had two carries and one reception, but admits to only being "between 70 and 75% healthy".
He aggravated that hamstring and was out another two games before returning for the Oct. 5 home game against Kansas and managing 41 yards on seven carries in a 35-31 victory. Brown still wasn't right, so he was shut down for the rest of the season. He admits he wanted to play through the injury, but the coaching staff didn't see that as realistic.
"He couldn't go," running backs coach Shaun Aguano said. "So much of his game is his quickness and explosiveness. When you have a hamstring injury, those things aren't there. It was really too bad, but he was never healthy, and it wasn't going to do anyone any good for him to struggle through it."
Fortunately, the Sun Devils got a breakout season from Cam Skattebo with Kyson Brown proving a suitable complement and boasted a running game ranked 20th out of 133 FBS schools in rushing offense at 200 yards per game.
Brown may have had to take a back seat to Skattebo as far as the number of carries, but he regrets missing out on playing alongside such a player.
"I wish I had been able to play with Cam. It would have been nice," he said, after the Sun Devils wrapped up a recent spring practice. "Probably the best backfield in college football."
Brown, perhaps, taking a cue from Skattebo, worked on his body during the offseason. He focused on agility and stretching. He tried to eliminate fried foods from his diet.
Not only did Brown make minimal appearances in 2024, he also redshirted in 2023 at USC, which tried to convert him from running back to a slot receiver. So it's been two years since he has been able to play the way he wanted.
As a freshman at USC in 2022, Brown showed glimpses of what had him labeled a five-star high school prospect by one recruiting service and a four-star by the others. He played in all 14 games as a true freshman, rushing for 227 yards on 42 carries (5.4 avg) with three touchdowns and catching 16 passes for 175 yards and another three touchdowns. He also returned kicks with 517 yards on 24 returns.
After two years of limited action, Brown is excited to be back on the field and contributing.
"It feels good to be playing football again. It's been a long time," he said. "I hated having to just watch. I was itching to get in there."
At 5-foot-9 and 185 pounds, Brown is the smallest back on the ASU roster, but he's perhaps the most explosive and shiftiest. He finds himself part of a deep position group. Army transfer Kanye Udoh is likely to have a leading role, and Kyson Brown is back after showing some promise when he got the ball in relief of Skattebo. Then there is another player coming off nagging injuries in Alton McCaskill, not to mention Jason Brown, who didn't play as a true freshman because of the players ahead of him.
Another newcomer added to the mix is true freshman Demarius "Man Man" Robinson.
"It's going to be fun because we have a lot of weapons," Raleek Brown said. "They have to pick and choose."
Aguano agrees.
"It might be one of those years where there is more balance, not one guy getting the ball 30 times," he said. "Of course, if there is a hot hand, we're going to ride that, but it's a good problem to have. There are a lot of good players in that room, and we're confident in all of them."
This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Medical redshirt season slowed ASU's Raleek Brown, but didn't stop him
Continue reading...
