South Georgia - In The Game High School Sports Magazine

Ahman Brown set the bar pretty high at an early age. He started playing basketball at five years old and football soon followed. Brown played at the Boys and Girls Club and quickly demonstrated that he was a special athlete. From the age of seven to 12, he didn’t lose a football game. Brown was a starting running back for a seven- and eight-year-old team when he was six. “Unless he was pulled out of a game early, he always had over 100 yards and scored two or three touchdowns a game. He was unstoppable,” says Edward Mitchell, a family friend and coach at Lowndes Middle School.

Brown’s football teams played in several Turkey Bowls in Tifton, where he was named offensive MVP twice. His Boys and Girls Club basketball teams won multiple championships and he enjoyed several undefeated seasons there. “His parents didn’t have enough room for all the trophies,” says Mitchell. “He won at least two trophies a year – one for the regular season and one for the championship – for five years.”

Success at nine or 10 years old doesn’t necessarily translate into success later as competition improves. Brown has made the transition to middle school athletics just fine. His peers might have narrowed the talent gap, but they haven’t caught him.

Brown comes from an athletic family. His father, Jarrid, played football and basketball at the old Waycross High School. A defensive lineman who played at around 280 pounds, Brown’s father was big, strong and aggressive. Brown inherited some of his father’s athleticism and his aggressive on-the-field persona, but he’s a totally different player. Brown is a running back and defensive back who stands about 5’10” and tips the scales at 150 pounds. “He’s just a great athlete. He has great instincts on both sides of the ball. You don’t have to teach him the game. He already knows it.  He could play any sport and be good,” says Mitchell.

Last year, Brown was a wingback and had a little trouble getting used to the more complicated offense. He had a good season but there was room for improvement. In the 2010 campaign, he made the move to fullback and had a much better year. Part of it was another year of maturity but it was also due to the fact that his skill set better matched the fullback position.

Coming into the season, Brown’s goal was to score 12 touchdowns. He narrowly missed the dozen mark, scoring 10 touchdowns in seven games. Lowndes Middle went undefeated in the regular season and faced Tift for the region championship. Tift won, 14-8, with Lowndes’ lone score coming on a pick six by Brown.  “The  receiver  ran  a  crossing  route  in  front  of  him. He

jumped up and caught the ball. When he came down, I knew he was going to score. He took off for the end zone and that was it,” recalls Mitchell.

Brown had another big game against Moultrie earlier in the season when he rushed for 172 yards on 15 carries. Brown finished the season with 82 rushes for 845 yards to go with his 10 touchdowns. His longest run from scrimmage was 92 yards. On defense, he had 32 tackles and one interception, the aforementioned pick six. Brown was also named MVP of the Mike Gammons Middle School All-Star Game, which pits the all stars from Lowndes County against the all stars from Tift County.  Lowndes won the game, 15-7.

“The thing I like about Ahman is you’re going to get the same thing every day. He works hard and makes everyone around him better. Because of his talent, he could slack off a little and still be good. But he doesn’t do that. At this stage, he’s on par with some of the best athletes that have come through the Lowndes program. He’s challenged himself at an early age like no other athlete I’ve ever seen,” says Lowndes Middle head football coach and athletic director Steve Holley.

There is much more to Brown than football. He’s equally at home on the hardwood, where his incredible jump shot is matched only by his suffocating defense. “I started playing basketball with my dad when I was six years old. I thought it would be fun to try it. I liked it,” says Brown. He brought his Boys and Girls Club success with him to Lowndes Middle. As with football, his teammates and opponents were bigger, faster and stronger than what he was used to in elementary school. And again, just as in football, the transition was almost seamless.

“It was different. I had to get used to having more plays. The game was harder and faster,” he says. Brown doesn’t believe he played very well as a sixth-grader. Last year, things were better but he still felt he could have performed better. He is expecting much greater things during basketball season this year. “I just want to improve this year. I played OK but I think I can do better,” he says.

Mitchell, the boys seventh-grade head coach, saw Brown mature as a basketball player last season. “He’s the total package. He can drive the basket, shoot a three and play good defense. He’s really strong defensively. I’d say defense is his strong point,” says Mitchell. Brown averaged about 17 points per game during the 2009-2010. “So yeah, he can score, too,” laughs Mitchell.

“When I get an open shot, Coach tells me to take it,” says Brown.

When Brown reached middle school, he decided to add a third sport to his resume – track and field. It was a natural progression. The same speed that makes him such a threat out of the backfield would make him one of the region’s fastest track athletes. Once he walked on to the track, he immediately fell in love with the sport. “Track is my favorite. I enjoy running and I love the one-on-one aspect of running track. I love to use my speed,” he says.

Brown competes in the 100 meters, 200 meters, 4x100 relay, 4x200 relay and the long jump. His biggest moment in track came last year. He says he had worked hard all season to get his 100-meters time below 12 seconds. Finally, toward the end of the year, he turned in an 11.97. He finished second that day to Bryce Hendley from Hahira. Brown’s goals for 2011: win half of his events and make the podium in all of his events at region. He will have a little time between basketball and track but he isn’t going to be sitting around resting while he waits on his third season to roll around. “During that time in between, I will run with a parachute or do spring workouts in my backyard,” he says.

That kind of work ethic has turned him into a tremendous three-sport athlete. It has also made him a superb student. Brown has always known that the pathway to athletic success was paved with solid academic performance. From the time he entered school, he has paid close attention to his grades and done very well in the classroom. Perfect attendance has also played a part in his school success. “Since he started school, he hasn’t missed a single day,” says Mitchell. “He doesn’t believe in missing a day of school.”

Balancing schoolwork and athletics isn’t a problem for Brown. He says football and track practices end fairly early, giving him enough time to get his work done before he goes to bed. During basketball season, he goes to study hall before practice and usually gets all of his homework done then. “It’s not that hard,” he says.

Brown has a strong support system looking out for his best interests. “His parents and his family have helped push him through. They want to see him succeed and he responds to well to that,” says Holley.

Brown is very soft spoken about his accomplishments. It’s hard to make him talk about what he’s done on and off the field. He just wants to go to school and play sports. He prefers to let his performances speak for him. Mitchell isn’t bashful when it comes to discussing Brown. “Pound for pound, he’s the best running back in Lowndes County. He has the speed, power, vision and burst. He can anticipate what he’s going to do long before he does it. He sees his second move before he makes his first,” says Mitchell. •

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