Safety DJ Brown the latest Notre Dame senior to announce return for fifth year
DJ Brown’s season began with a missed tackle and a benching the next week. It ended with him as Notre Dame’s co-leader in interceptions.
In other words, a season initially headed down a path to a possible grad transfer U-turned into one that made a fifth year desirable for both sides. Brown made the latter outcome official Friday night. The senior safety is returning for a graduate season, he announced. He made 42 tackles (1.0 for loss) and snatched three interceptions, which tied Kyle Hamilton for the most among Notre Dame players in 2021. He played 432 snaps across 12 games and made one start.
Before a bumpy outing in the Fiesta Bowl, there were few better examples of in-season growth among Notre Dame defensive players this year than Brown. He missed an open-field tackle on an 89-yard touchdown run in the opener at Florida State, which contributed to a benching and zero snaps the following week against Toledo.
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Brown rebounded, though, with a strong week of practice and a game-clinching interception Sept. 18 against Purdue. His regained his role as the No. 3 safety behind Hamilton and Houston Griffith by, quite literally, tackling his weakness.
“I’ve learned a lot of tackling is confidence,” Brown said. “I feel like I’m big enough, at 200 pounds. It wasn’t a strength issue, but a confidence issue. I feel like I’ve gotten over that.”
When Hamilton went down with a knee injury Oct. 23, Notre Dame pushed him further into action. Brown stepped into Hamilton’s spot that game against USC and started the following week against North Carolina. His fourth-quarter interception against the Tar Heels set up a field goal that gave Notre Dame a two-touchdown lead.
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Brown ceded starting duties to sophomore Ramon Henderson for the last four games, but still averaged 40 snaps per outing. Per Pro Football Focus, he missed just one tackle from Week 2 until the Fiesta Bowl. The final game was pothole, though. He missed four tackles as part of a rough tackling day for the Irish defense in a 37-35 loss to Oklahoma State.
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With Brown’s announcement, Notre Dame will have all four members of its post-Hamilton safety rotation back. Griffith said Monday he will return for a fifth year. Henderson and sophomore Xavier Watts entered the mix in November following position switches. Notre Dame is hoping to add Northwestern transfer and 2020 All-American Brandon Joseph to the mix as well.
Unlike Griffith, Brown had eligibility for 2022 prior to last year’s COVID-19 waiver because he redshirted as a freshman. He did not see meaningful action until 2020, when he made eight tackles in 243 snaps.
Brown was a three-star recruit in Notre Dame’s 2018 class from Washington (D.C.) St. John’s College High School. He is a native of Annapolis, Md.
