Illinois Football: Chase Brown a top NFL Draft prospect at running back

Illinois football has a special talent on their hands, and it has been evident through the first four games this season.

The Illini have started the 2022 campaign 3-1 and that lone loss came on a game-winning drive by Indiana. We could easily be 4-0 right now. This solid start for the Orange and Blue has come on the shoulders of running back, Chase Brown.

I kind of smile when I type this, but Brown had his worst game of the season on Thursday night against Chattanooga. He finished with just 108 yards and one touchdown on the ground. The reason I am smiling is that is his worst game, and he still hit the 100-yard mark and put the ball in the end zone.

Brown now has 604 yards and three touchdowns on the season. That is an outstanding 151 yards per game. If you expand that number out to a 12-game season, then Brown is on pace to finish 2022 with 1,812 yards on the ground. This would break Mikel Leshoure’s single-season rushing record for the Illini, which currently stands at 1,697 yards.

This great performance by Brown, coupled with the fact Illinois is winning games, only bodes well for the future of the talented running back. That is right, we could end up seeing another Illinois ball carrier in the professional ranks.

Illinois football running back Chase Brown is on the radar of the NFL.

There used to be a solid history of Illinois running backs in the NFL. That trend quickly dried up over the past few years, though.

The last Illinois running back to see time in the NFL was Josh Ferguson. He spent three years trying to stick with an NFL franchise. Before that, it was Leshoure, who was drafted by the Detroit Lions but was out of the league after two seasons.

Reggie Corbin is currently carrying the Illinois running backs flag in the professional ranks. He was sensational for the Michigan Panthers of the USFL this past season. Corbin would rush for 519 yards, which was fourth in the league, but he only played in eight games compared to the three guys ahead of him who played in 10 games. Corbin also averaged 5.5 yards per carry, which was .6 yards higher than anyone else in the top five.

While Corbin will hopefully see an NFL field sometime in the near future, I am hoping we get to see Brown’s name called on draft night in 2023.

Mel Kiper of ESPN published his top 10 list at each position in the college game. The list of running backs included some great players. The No. 1 running back in college football, according to Kiper, is Bijan Robinson of Texas.

There are some other great names on the list, but down at No. 9 is a familiar face. That is where Kiper has Brown. He is not only a top 10 running back for the upcoming NFL Draft, but he is the top Big Ten ball carrier on Kiper’s list.

When Bret Bielema became the head coach of the Illini, I knew about his history with running backs and putting talent into the NFL. I think his coaching mentality is wearing off on Brown. His performance this season has been spectacular, and it wouldn’t shock me to see him move up on this list throughout the next eight games.

Illinois has a special talent at running back. Let’s enjoy what we are watching with Brown because we never know when it will come around again.