WATCH: Troy Brown is looking to Chance Campbell as he prepares for his Ole Miss impact
Troy Brown is not Chance Campbell.
But, if nothing else, he’s trying to emulate many of the same traits that made Campbell such an impactful one-year transfer for the Ole Miss defense.
Brown, like Campbell before him, has opted to spend his final college season with the Rebels, who were 10-3 last season and reached the Sugar Bowl for the 10th time in school history. Campbell could have returned for another go, but after posting an absurd 109 total tackles and 12.5 tackles for loss, he entered the NFL Draft.
He was selected by the Tennessee Titans in the sixth round.
Campbell came to Ole Miss from Maryland, while Brown was signed out of Central Michigan. Brown was a three-time All-MAC selection, and he totaled 203 tackles, 29 tackles for loss, 17 passes defended, 5.5 sacks, five interceptions, three forced fumbles and two fumble recoveries.
He had 66 total tackles and had seven tackles for loss last season. Brown added six passes defended and one interception.
“Watched a lot of film on Chance,” Brown said earlier this week. “When I came here, a lot of guys talked heavy (about him). Very proud of his character and the way he practiced, so I just try to bring some of those characteristics to have everybody buy into me just like I’m buying into them so they can have trust in me like they had in him.
“Trying to do some of the same things.”
Ole Miss held its second full-team, game-like scrimmage of fall camp practices on Saturday.
The Rebels have completed four full weeks, and they’re now just two weeks away from opening against Troy September 3. Brown is penciled in as a first-teamer at one of the team’s two open linebacker spots.
Brown has had to adjust, though. Ole Miss employs a base 3-2-5 defense.
“It was pretty hard for me at first,” he said. Brown is running ahead of veteran Ashanti Cistrunk. “There’s three down linemen instead of four, so it was something I had to work on as far as getting my hands on and off blockers instead of just being a gap scheme.
“I play man sometimes, and I have to win my one-on-ones. That’s a lot of skill work that I’ve been working on.”
Hear more from Ole Miss linebacker Troy Brown below, in a video provided by Ole Miss Sports Production.
