Barion Brown on Paul Hornung Award Watch List

Paul Hornung is a Kentucky legend. The award that bares his name has been won be a Kentucky Wildcat before. Can Barion Brown repeat history?

The former Top 100 recruit from Nashville is one of 53 players to appear on the preseason watch list for the Paul Hornung Award. The Louisville Sports Commission gives the annual award to the most versatile athlete in college football.

For those who grew up in the city of Louisville, Paul Hornung was a folk hero. “The Golden Boy” from Flaget did everything but cook dinner for his team, eventually earning a place in history as the only Heisman Trophy winner from a team with a losing record. Most folks will say Bear Bryant left Kentucky because Hornung picked Notre Dame over the Wildcats. Following his collegiate career, he was a running back and kicker for the Green Bay Packers, winning a Super Bowl and four NFL Championships. I digress.

The Paul Hornung Award was built for Lynn Bowden, the wide receiver and return man that saved Kentucky’s 2019 season by switching positions to quarterback and running over every opponent in his path. In eight games as the Wildcat QB he rushed for 1,468 yards, the second-most productive rushing season in UK football history. The Cats were 6-2 with Bowden as the starting quarterback.

Barion Brown does not need to become Kentucky’s Paul Bunyan to bring home the hardware. He showed plenty of gumption as a true freshman.

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Barion Brown Set a High Bar as a Freshman

Expectations were high for Barion Brown. He immediately delivered. In his first game as a Kentucky Wildcat, the explosive wide receiver lined up to return the second half kickoff from Miami (Oh.).

“As soon as it hit my hands, it was cookies. I knew it was a touchdown,” Brown recently said.

The 100-yard kickoff return touchdown was the first by a Wildcat since 2009.

Barion Brown concluded his freshman campaign with two new UK freshman records by catching 50 passes for 628 yards. His teammate, Dane Key, set the freshman record for receiving touchdowns (6), but Brown still found the end zone four other times. He also almost had two more house calls in the return game at Ole Miss, but came up just short.

In addition to the impressive returns in Oxford, he caught two passes for 81 yards, including a 51-yard run after the catch that put UK within scoring range. He could not will the team to a win, but he tried to mount a comeback effort against Georgia, tallying 145 yards and a touchdown on 10 receptions. His other sensational showing came against Northern Illinois, racking up 104 receiving yards and a pair of scores.

Barion Brown broke through as a freshman. We’ll see if he can follow it up with an outstanding sophomore season this fall at Kroger Field.

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