When Leonice Brown accepted a scholarship to...
When Leonice Brown accepted a scholarship to Colorado State three years ago, he did so because of Coach Earle Bruce, who was fired at the end of last season.
Bruce wasn’t the only reason the former standout running back at San Fernando High chose Colorado State. The Rams ran a two-running-back offense--a system under which Brown had flourished in organized football since age 8.
But with the arrival of Sonny Lubick and his offensive coordinator, Dave Lay, Brown not only lost his coach, he lost his fullback position. Colorado State switched to a one-back set.
Brown rushed for more than 100 yards five times in 1992. But through two games this year, he has gained only 90 yards in 33 carries. He has one touchdown.
That is not what the 5-foot-11, 184-pound junior had planned this season. Reaching 1,500 yards and getting 10-15 touchdowns was.
“I think I can do it,” he said. “They want to run me 20 times a game this year. But the first game, they thought I was tippy-toeing through the holes. So they started running other guys.”
The coaches wanted Brown to explode through holes. They later realized there were no openings through which to burst.
“If the offense doesn’t start getting things going and getting off the ball, that would be the only thing stopping me,” Brown said.
If Brown is taking a step back--if his patience is being taxed after a 1992 season in which he gained 1,051 yards and averaged 6.7 yards per carry--he can handle it.
Brown is one of 11 children. One of his brothers is USC Heisman Trophy winner Charles White, who later led the NFL in rushing as a member of the Rams. Brown, 21, is also married. He and his wife, Pilar, are raising their 22-month-old son, Leonice Jr.
As an athlete, a student and a father, Brown knows about responsibility. He knows how to wait.
“Our offense is new and we’ll get it all together,” he said. “You have to get used to the scheme. I’ve been running out of the I-formation all my life, since the beginning of Pop Warner. It takes a while.”
Injuries have slowed him as well. Before Colorado State’s season-opening 23-9 loss to Oregon, Brown suffered a cut between two fingers while catching a punt in practice. He took eight stitches. In Saturday’s 8-5 victory over Air Force, he suffered a sprained ankle but stayed in the game and finished with 46 rushing yards.
Brown said Colorado State, which finished 5-7, 3-5 in the Western Athletic Conference in 1992, is still adjusting to the coaching change. Bruce was dismissed last year after players made claims of excessive abuse.
“It takes a team a while,” Brown said. “But we’re putting (the firing) behind us and we’re getting things together and trying to win a WAC title this year. Last year is gone. I think this team is probably the best we’ve had since I got here.”
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Kevin Ebinhoch (Village Christian), a 6-2, 225-pound senior outside linebacker at Azusa Pacific, was named to College & Pro Football News Weekly’s All-Scholar team. Ebinhoch made 73 tackles last season, second-highest on the team. He lost his starting position to freshman Eric Bey during summer drills. But in the Cougars’ opener against Cal Lutheran last Saturday, Bey was not credited with a tackle while Ebinhoch had eight.
Auburn didn’t need the foot of kicker Scott Etheridge (Hart) in Saturday’s 35-7 victory over Samford, but his three field goals proved the difference in the Tigers’ 16-12 season-opening victory over Mississippi. Etheridge struck from 27, 29 and 37 yards.
