Sean Brown is Looking To Establish His Own Legacy Moving from Safety to Linebacker

The news might have broke this week that Sean Brown had switched from Safety to Linebacker, but the move wasn’t a shock to Brown.

“Coach Gibby (Gibson) was kind of trolling me during the season last year, saying he was moving me to Linebacker, so I kind of knew it was coming once the season was over,” said Brown. “I talked to Coach Doeren and Coach Gibby, and they felt like it was the best decision for me. Talking with my family, they thought it was the best decision for me too.”

Watching Brown play last year, it isn’t hard to see what Coach Gibson saw. Brown was possibly the hardest hitting player on the Wolfpack defense, lived at the line of scrimmage, and his physique was developing more towards the body of a Linebacker.

Brown said that he has put 10 more pounds of muscle onto that already impressive physique, but he’s done more than hit the weight room this offseason to get ready for the move to Linebacker.

“This offseason, I was getting with Caden (Fordham) and (Devon) Betty doing some Linebacker drills. Also, I went back and watched Payton’s (Wilson) film, to see what he did good. I hit him up, and we talked about the keys to being good at Linebacker. Getting with him and watching film is going to help me excel at playing that position. Payton told me that at the WILL position, you have to be quick on your feet. You’ve got to make decisions right then and there. You can’t really hesitate, and whatever you do, do it full speed.”

Brown is following a similar path to another Wolfpack Linebacker from a few years back by the name of Germaine Pratt. Pratt played Safety and Wide Receiver in high school, and was a Safety at NC State his first two seasons in Raleigh, and ultimately switched to Linebacker during his 3rd season, which was a redshirt season due to injury. The move was successful, to say the least, with Pratt going on to earn 1st Team All-ACC honors in 2018, and went on to be drafted in the 3rd round by the Cincinnati Bengals, where he has served as a starter the past 5 seasons.

While Brown knows of the comparisons, he’s not looking to be the next Germaine Pratt.

“I just want to be Sean Brown. I want to be my own guy and build my own legacy.”