WATCH: Kentucky freshman Barion Brown returns kickoff 100-yards for touchdown
Kentucky freshman Barion Brown had an electrifying kick return at the beginning of the second half against the Miami Redhawks on Saturday night. The Wildcats had been struggling to put points on the board for much of the first half and were only leading 13-10, but Brown broke things open when he returned a kickoff 100-yards for a touchdown at the beginning of the third quarter.
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As spectacular as the kickoff return was, it almost didn’t count. If you watch the return closely, Brown drops the football just as he crossed the goal line. The officials ended up reviewing it and determined that he crossed the goal line before dropping the football, and the play counted.
The touchdown return put the Wildcats up 20-10 early in the third quarter. The kick return was the first kickoff returned for touchdown for Kentucky since Derrick Locke did it against Louisville on Sept. 19, 2009.
The Wildcats then forced a Miami (OH) turnover shortly after the kick return and scored another touchdown, putting them up 27-13 with 13:57 remaining in the third quarter. Brown’s kick return helped to completely change the momentum of the game and inject a ton of juice and energy into the home crowd in Lexington.
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Kentucky ended up pulling away in the second half for the 37-13 win, but it wasn’t without some nervous moments for the Wildcats in the first half. Miami’s defensive line and front seven gave Kentucky numerous problems throughout much of the first half.
Coming out of high school, Brown was one of the highest rated prospects in America, earning a four-star rating, according to the On3 Consensus Rankings for the 2022 cycle. He was also ranked as the No. 14 wide receiver in the country. A dynamic track athlete, Brown ran a 10.49-second 100-meter dash time in the spring of 2021 for Pearl-Cohn High School (Nashville, Tennessee). That time is the third-fastest TSSAA time at the state meet since 1985.
He played several positions at Pearl-Cohn on the gridiron: quarterback, running back, receiver, defensive back, and kick returner during his senior season.