Miami Squares Off Against Kansas State and Former Hurricane Arthur Brown

Miami Hurricanes running back Mike James (5) is tackled by Kansas State Wildcats linebacker Arthur Brown (4) during the first half at Sun Life Stadium. (Steve Mitchell-US PRESSWIRE)

As Hurricanes fans, we have heard all we can stand about the 2008 recruiting class: ranked in the top 5 nationally, lots of Miami Northwestern players, Nevin Shapiro scandal, underachievers, blah blah blah. Well, this week the Hurricanes will be reunited with one of the only players from that class that is still playing FBS college football, Arthur Brown.

If you’re a die hard fan you might remember the name, as Brown was considered the Canes best recruit from that class. In fact, at one point both Arthur, a linebacker, and his brother Bryce, a running back, were committed to The U, and both were top 10 recruits in the nation. Bryce chose to play for Tennessee, but Arthur stayed committed to Miami and was supposed to be the backbone of the new Hurricanes defense.

[Related: Hurricane’s Duke Johnson it Out]

But for two years, Arthur Brown performed poorly to say the least. Reports from Coral Gables claim anything from simply failing to grasp the defense to a complete lack of commitment. In the two years since Randy Shannon left Miami, it has become clear that he did not possess the ability to groom top talent. This explains some of Brown’s struggles as a Hurricane, but obviously other players excelled despite the lack of quality guidance under the former regime. Nonetheless, Brown was a bust for the Hurricanes and he knew it.

In February of 2010 Brown decided to leave Miami and enroll at Kansas State, joining his brother who had already transferred from Tennessee. After sitting out for the 2010 season, Brown found immediate success and quickly became the best defensive player on a very good unit for Bill Snyder and KSU. Brown recorded 101 tackles for the Wildcats in 2011 and has been put on all the major lists for defensive players in 2012. His transformation is puzzling to say the least, but it does reaffirm what most of us know by now; Randy Shannon and his staff were great recruiters and terrible teachers.

As far as Brown’s involvement with the the NCAA investigation of Miami, many think that Brown and former Hurricane QB Robert Marve were partially responsible for validating Nevin Shapiro’s allegations of NCAA violations. They are thought to have taken deals from the NCAA in exchange for information on the UM program. Deals that allowed them to continue their college careers while former teammates faced public scrutiny and suspensions. This can’t sit well with Brown’s former Canes teammates, and while there are very few current Hurricanes who played with him, you can bet Brown’s name is not a welcome one in the locker room.

Eye of the Storm >>  Miami Hurricanes Cold Hard Truth: What Defense?

What do you think Gamedayrs?