Matt Campbell’s secret weapon at Iowa State is…a 300-pound quarterback?
By John Buhler
Matt Campbell has a 300-pound quarterback coming to Iowa State football.
Iowa State football is about to unleash his secret weapon against Big 12 defenses and Matt Campbell loves it!
Yes, the Iowa State Cyclones are one of the more interesting teams in the Big 12 this season. Since Campbell came over from the Toledo Rockets in 2016, Iowa State has a winning record and has gone .500 in conference play. Keep in mind this is a program that should be bottom-two in the conference, along with the flightless Kansas Jayhawks. Campbell has turned some heads in Ames.
While the Cyclones don’t have the prestige of the Oklahoma Sooners, the Oklahoma State Cowboys or the Texas Longhorns in the Big 12, they’ll challenge those three teams for a spot in the conference title bout in 2020. Campbell’s Cyclones have beaten the Cowboys, Longhorns and Sooners at least once in the last three years. Plus, he’s got a secret weapon coming in 2021.
Yes, the former defensive lineman and offensive line coach has himself a 300-pound quarterback committed to play for his team in 2021. While Howard Brown will play defensive tackle for Campbell, he’s excited about the possibility about lining up under center and burrowing through another man’s soul in a much-anticipated Tractor Trailer Package. This will be life-changing stuff.
Good luck tackling a 300-pound quarterback running downhill at Iowa State.
Brown is a 6-foot-2, 288-pound defensive tackle prospect from Kansas City, Missouri. The Lincoln College Prep standout is a three-star recruit in the eyes of the 247Sports Composite. He is the No. 13 player from Missouri, the No. 49 defensive tackle and the No. 850 overall player in his class.
Though Iowa State, Kansas and the Iowa Hawkeyes were the only Power 5 school to offer him, Brown is excited about getting to Ames to play for Campbell, committing on Apr. 9.
“Don’t worry. Just give me the ball,” said Brown to his Lincoln Prep coach William Lowe after throwing a pick-six. “Don’t let me throw a pick-six,” Brown told 247Sports. “All hell breaks loose after that.” He hasn’t even played his senior season at Lincoln Prep and Brown is already a living legend among us. Here’s to him dominating on both sides of the ball in the Big 12 for Iowa State.
“I want to prove that I’m not just a big quarterback who can’t move or throw,” Brown said. “I can do it all. You don’t see many D-linemen playing quarterback.” No, this does not appear to be a gimmick, as Lowe says he can really play the position for him. If Brown becomes the Cyclones version of former Kentucky quarterback Jared Lorenzen, college football and America wins.
Can you even imagine some poor 225-pound linebacker for Texas Tech or K-State having to bring down Brown on an option run? The only things we can compare this to is Emmitt Smith running behind Larry Allen on the Dallas Cowboys or the late Gene Upshaw pulling and serving as the lead blocker for the Silver and Black. Brown will be the new Mayor of Ames when all is said and done.
Though he may play defensive tackle, Brown will definitely get a few looks at quarterback, too.
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