Connor Brown, a 6-foot-1, 190-pound Class of 2025 wide receiver of North Augusta High School, runs disciplined routes, has sticky hands, makes the big catches and demonstrates great body control. He has a knack for high pointing the ball in traffic and can make all the circuit-worthy catches. Brown, who plays big league 4A ball, is steadily gaining interest from colleges as a student-athlete with bona-fide playmaking potential.
But Brown still needs to improve his speed.
“My focus this offseason is improving my speed. I know I'm not the fastest but I make up for it in my technique and shiftiness. My goal is to get my time from the 4.7, 4.8 range down to 4.6." he said. With 38 receptions and 4 touchdowns this season, he averaged over 12 yards a catch (476 total yards) under the Friday Night Lights.
Palmetto Preps identified Brown as not only a standout player in the state. The hardworking, dedicated student-athlete discussed life on and off the field, along with colleges he's been hearing from, a list which includes Clemson, in an exclusive interview with recruiting editor Lee Wardlaw.
Here is the rest of our conversation with him:
CLEMSON
While it may not be on scholarship, Connor often speaks of his dream school, Clemson, an instate powerhouse program that has accomplished several feats under head coach Dabo Swinney in 16 seasons at the helm in the Upstate, such as 12 consecutive seasons with 10 or more wins.
For Connor, the topic of the Tigers is a passionate one. The Upstate school is the alma mater of Connor's father, mother, aunt, uncle and his oldest sister.
Brown wears jersey No. 13 in honor of his favorite Tiger, Hunter Renfrow. From bench to limelight, the star performer who made the big catch to defeat Nick Saban and his Alabama dynasty in the 2017 national championship from Deshaun Watson as time expired and now stars with the Las Vegas Raiders is the blueprint the young athlete seeks to follow as he chases his own dreams on the gridiron.
Brown believes Swinney is the kind of coach that is willing to take that kind of chance on players such as himself. And in terms of developing players on the field, the real-life results already speak for themselves.
Connor isn't the only party interested, as Clemson has shown the instate WR a little bit of love of their own.
It was the program's all-time leading rusher (7,588 yards) and running backs coach, C.J. Spiller that came to North Augusta on Jan. 24 to pay Brown a visit. The pair met for about 20 minutes to discuss Clemson and life. "I had a great conversation with (Spiller). We got to talk about a lot of things," he said.
Among the favorite things that Spiller brought up to Brown was the accountability groups in the Clemson program. "If one person messes up, the whole group pays for it. Everyone runs," Brown said.
The Yellow Jackets' star receiver returned to Palmetto Preps a great impression of Spiller, the Tigers' running back legend who worked his way all the way up from unpaid coaching assistant in 2020 to his current position in 2021, a role which he will enter for his fourth season this fall. "He's a great guy, really easy to talk to. I loved our conversation. I look forward to continue building that relationship with him," he said.
A camp visit to Clemson is also among a loaded slate for Connor's 7-on-7 tour this summer, a schedule which you can find out more about below.
THE DAILY GRIND OF CONNOR BROWN
Whether or not that opportunity comes from the Tigers, Brown continues to grind. Harder than ever before.
"We have weightlifting every day. Our head coach, Richard Bush, is pushing us in every area. We're getting a lot bigger, a lot stronger, every week," he said.
This summer's 7-on-7 and camp schedule for the Yellow Jackets' star is slam-packed, loaded on both ends. In the current world of college football recruiting, that's just the way it is. "I'm pretty packed out with 7-on-7's, and I'm headed back to a lot of camps this summer," he said.
Samford, Wofford, MTSU, UNC-Charlotte, Furman, and of course, the Tigers, are some of the many schools currently slated for Brown's camp tour. "I'm really trying to get exposed to more colleges this summer. We've got a lot planned for this summer as a team, too. We have a new region and there's going to be some big games," he said.
FINISHING STRONG UNDER THE FRIDAY NIGHT LIGHTS
If Connor wants to reach his lofty goals, first, he will have to overcome some of his high school hurdles.
Brown will have no other option than to take it to the next level with the Yellow Jackets in 2024, finishing strong at North Augusta both on and off the field. “I want to be a leader for our team. I want to make big plays and help my team out in any way possible. I’d love nothing more than to win a state title for North Augusta before my high school career is over,” he said.
The pass-catcher believes he and his Yellow Jackets' brothers have what it takes to reach the promised land. Brown's quarterback, Corey Tillman, was recently offered a scholarship from UNC-Charlotte and Georgia Southern. His teammates have drawn strong interest from several college programs, too.
The Yellow Jackets will join a realigned region which will include the likes of Aiken, Airport, Brookland-Cayce, Gilbert, Gray Collegiate Academy, Midland Valley and South Aiken. North Augusta will also see Thomson (GA), Lexington and Strom Thurmond in non-region play. It’s never an easy road for the Yellow Jackets – the tough schedule has always been a rite of passage at North Augusta.
Anything is possible for a program that finished 7-4 and advanced to the first round of the playoffs in 2023 against a murder's row schedule that included Midland Valley, Dutch Fork, and other challengers, but much will be needed to prove.
A FAMILY AFFAIR
If Connor goes on to reach his dreams of playing Division 1 ball, he will join his brother, Colson Brown, a gunslinger that plays for Georgia Tech. While Colson redshirted in 2023, he will be back to give it another shot in 2024. “(Colson) jammed my fingers throwing me the ball more than I can remember when we played together. I mean, he can flat out zip it," he said.
OTHER COLLEGE INTERESTS
Connor hasn't heard yet from Georgia Tech, but he has received offers from Limestone College and UNC-Charlotte (PWO). Biff Poggi, a former Michigan Wolverines staffer who is beginning to make a name for himself as the 49ers' third head coach in program history, is off to a great start in Charlotte, and Brown is interested in become part of what he is building in the Queen City:
CHARLOTTE
Playing for the 49ers, who recently moved up to the American Athletic Conference during the latest seismic shift in another round of conference realignment, is an idea that intrigues Brown greatly. "It's a nice place, and (UNC-C) is in a great area. I've been looking into their academics. I have a 4.35 GPA and am eyeing graduating this coming December," he said.
"I'm trying to focus on universities that offer a program in the business or building areas. UNC-C has a great construction program and it's just 'great people' up there. The atmosphere was really great during my gameday visit last fall," Brown said.
Brown was on hand for a gameday visit last fall to see what the 49ers have to offer first-hand. "Going to a game and seeing that atmosphere and everything was just great," he said. An assistant coach came into the room when he was visiting Charlotte and had some interesting things to say about the plans for the Niners' stadium. "He said that (UNC-C) is doubling the stadium capacity, that they are building more facilities, and that they are actually going to have a really good team coming up in this fall. Those things have definitely spiked my interest with everything they have going on over there," he said.
LIFE AFTER FOOTBALL
Other schools like Samford, Wofford, MTSU and Clemson also carry the academic programs would propel Brown’s future off the field as well: business, real estate or building science.
ANALYSIS
No doubt teams and coaches are looking for the playmakers in the 2025 class. Height, speed, stars – they certainly play a key part in how coaches evaluate their recruits and prospects. But it can’t be overlooked that there’s some players – some dudes – that just have the ‘it’ factor – game on the line, gotta-make-plays kind of dude. That’s Connor Brown. The kid loves the pressure, loves the game.
And somewhere, a smart coach could find out that they stole themselves a real playmaking diamond in the rough- if they are willing to take that chance.
Brown said that his best playmaking ability is going up to make the catch (and most of the time, coming down with it) at all costs. "Most of the balls that were thrown to me in 2023 were contested. I made some tough catches. I was really able to go up and get the ball, and just bring it down, somehow. I tell Tillman 'I'm going to go up and get it, somehow," he said.
The High School Blitz Junior Showcase Bowl selection lists Football IQ as another strong quality that he possesses. "One thing I love about this game is that there is always a way to just outsmart the person across from me. I read the coverage and the defensive back. That's one thing I use to my advantage that a lot of people don't always see. I love to use (my Football IQ) on the field," he said.
EXTRA NOTES
BROWN ON DABO SWINNEY'S WILLINGNESS TO TAKE CHANCES ON UNDERDOG PLAYERS LIKE HUNTER RENFROW, PLAYERS FROM THE PALMETTO STATE: "I appreciate that, because not many coaches are willing to take that kind of chance on some guys. Renfrow was a walk-on, and he ended up winning a national championship over at Clemson. I love watching him play. That's why I wear the No. 13. (Renfrow) is an example of what Dabo did, taking that chance. Hunter worked his butt off, finally got that chance, and thrived."
