LAKELAND | Call the 2014 season the D.J. Brown Redemption Tour.
The Lake Gibson senior linebacker feels he has a lot to make up for this season after being suspended for six games last year. He is forthright in saying he let his team down.
"We lost two games probably because of my absence," the 6-foot, 195-pound Brown said. "It hurt me to be on the sidelines and watching my team because we were beating Kathleen 21-7 in the third quarter when I got suspended, and we lost in five OT. I put that on me because I let my team down. So I know this year, I got a lot of vengeance against some teams that I didn't play against."
The highly recruited Brown was suspended because of a racial slur he uttered during the game.
"It's just those kids, the way they communicate with each other," DeMyer said. "It wasn't anything that was derogatory; it wasn't anything that was racial."
DeMyer said Brown is slowly learning his lesson, although he still hears that word when Brown gets around his friends.
"I just have to watch what I say because to our generation now, it's not a big old word," Brown said. "But it is a big old word. You can't use that word. I just have to watch what I say on the football field."
The Braves didn't lose an average player. They lost an impact player. Since his first game in the Kickoff Classic against Lakeland when he made the tackle on the game's first play, Smith has been an integral part of the Braves' defense.
He is a game-changer.
"When we lost D.J. last year, you could definitely tell he was absent on the field — just the whole demeanor of the team," Lake Gibson defensive coordinator Kyle Sasser said. "He brings a lot of intensity."
And that's something DeMyer loves about Brown.
"He's a competitor on the football field, that's the bottom line," DeMyer said. "He's going to compete. He's going to do what he has to do to win. He's a pretty good leader. He has good leadership qualities, and sometimes he goes overboard a little bit and you have to calm him down because he's such a competitor and he wants everyone around him to compete like he is. It takes a little bit to understand to how to be a leader."
Brown is being moved from inside linebacker to outside linebacker this season and is expected to have an even bigger impact.
"He's a linebacker you can put out on air and can be like a defensive back at the linebacker spot," DeMyer said.
He added that Brown will likely play strong safety in college.
Brown has received offers from Kentucky, Utah, Indiana and Ball State, and is also being recruited by Miami and Michigan State. He has yet to commit, although the lure of the SEC has him leaning toward Kentucky.
His goals extend beyond the football field. He wants to graduate with honors and is pushing to move his 2.8 GPA back up to 3.0.
On the field, of course, his goal is to make up for last season. And if there is anything that will keep his mouth closed on the field, it might be nothing more than remembering what football means to him.
"It's my favorite thing," he said. "If I didn't have football, I would have nothing. I want to take care of my family. I want to make sure my mom doesn't have to work, and my dad has always been my No. 1 supporter. Football is my way to get away from things."
The highly recruited Brown was suspended because of a racial slur he uttered during the game.
"It's just those kids, the way they communicate with each other," DeMyer said. "It wasn't anything that was derogatory; it wasn't anything that was racial."
DeMyer said Brown is slowly learning his lesson, although he still hears that word when Brown gets around his friends.
"I just have to watch what I say because to our generation now, it's not a big old word," Brown said. "But it is a big old word. You can't use that word. I just have to watch what I say on the football field."
The Braves didn't lose an average player. They lost an impact player. Since his first game in the Kickoff Classic against Lakeland when he made the tackle on the game's first play, Smith has been an integral part of the Braves' defense.
He is a game-changer.
"When we lost D.J. last year, you could definitely tell he was absent on the field — just the whole demeanor of the team," Lake Gibson defensive coordinator Kyle Sasser said. "He brings a lot of intensity."
And that's something DeMyer loves about Brown.
"He's a competitor on the football field, that's the bottom line," DeMyer said. "He's going to compete. He's going to do what he has to do to win. He's a pretty good leader. He has good leadership qualities, and sometimes he goes overboard a little bit and you have to calm him down because he's such a competitor and he wants everyone around him to compete like he is. It takes a little bit to understand to how to be a leader."
Brown is being moved from inside linebacker to outside linebacker this season and is expected to have an even bigger impact.
"He's a linebacker you can put out on air and can be like a defensive back at the linebacker spot," DeMyer said.
He added that Brown will likely play strong safety in college.
Brown has received offers from Kentucky, Utah, Indiana and Ball State, and is also being recruited by Miami and Michigan State. He has yet to commit, although the lure of the SEC has him leaning toward Kentucky.
His goals extend beyond the football field. He wants to graduate with honors and is pushing to move his 2.8 GPA back up to 3.0.
On the field, of course, his goal is to make up for last season. And if there is anything that will keep his mouth closed on the field, it might be nothing more than remembering what football means to him.
"It's my favorite thing," he said. "If I didn't have football, I would have nothing. I want to take care of my family. I want to make sure my mom doesn't have to work, and my dad has always been my No. 1 supporter. Football is my way to get away from things."
