When a major program loses a key recruit, Rivals.com takes a look at how big of a blow it is to the respective school, analyzing it from a local and national level. To quantify the “sting” of each decommitment, we assign a score from one to 10, with one being no big deal and 10 being a catastrophic hit.
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THE STORYLINE
Anthony Brown committed to Minnesota in early September. It was a major recruiting victory for coach PJ Fleck and his staff, not a complete surprise since his brother plays for the Gophers, but still a big win. Brown is a four-star receiver from Ohio and many other teams had been recruiting him.
But in recent days the Springfield, Ohio, standout backed off his pledge. Again, not a total stunner since Brown has seen his recruitment ramp up even more and he’s been taking visits to some of the powerhouse programs in the conference.
Ranked as the fifth-best prospect and the top skill player in the state of Ohio, Brown is now taking a fresh approach to his recruitment and while that’s bad news for Minnesota, it gives other Big Ten programs and top teams around the country an opportunity to see what else is out there.
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LOCAL REACTION
Brown backing off his pledge didn’t come as a big surprise as he’s taken recent trips to Ohio State, Penn State and Michigan. However, his decommitment does hurt Minnesota due to his position and ranking and the fact that his brother, Michael Brown-Stephens, is a current wide receiver on the Gophers’ roster. - Sean Williams, TheGopherReport.com
Sting factor: 8
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NATIONAL REACTION
Whether it was a big surprise or not, losing Brown is definitely a big hit to this Minnesota recruiting class. The Golden Gophers averaged just 162 passing yards and had 12 passing touchdowns this past season and while I know Minnesota is going to focus on running the ball, playmakers in the slot are still needed.
Brown could have provided a big weapon in that way and now it looks unlikely to happen. With a big family connection to the program, this one hurts especially because there are a lot of other Big Ten teams involved. - Adam Gorney, National Recruiting Director
Sting factor: 7
