Bryan Brown is from Corinth, Miss. He knows the Ole Miss football program well.
Not only is he right up the road from Oxford in Corinth, Brown played defensive back for the Ole Miss Rebels from 2003-2006. An all-around athlete, he even played point guard for the Ole Miss men’s hoops team in 2002.
Brown has a unique perspective on how Ole Miss football has changed over the last 20-plus years as he now sits in his position of defensive coordinator for the Rebels.
“The first thing is it’s just a winning culture and winning mindset,” said Brown during his appearance before the media after the Rebels’ Friday spring practice. “It’s not the ‘We hope we can win.’ It’s the ‘We can win every single football game.’ That’s the mindset now than what it’s been in the years past.”
Ole Miss returns two legitimate Heisman Trophy candidates in quarterback Trinidad Chambliss and running back Kewan Lacy. And with brown at helm of a retooled defense. the Rebels are favorites to make their way back to another College Football Playoff.
“The program has done a heck of a job being able to (continue) to build the resources, whether financially or buildings. I think the mindset has changed and I think the people on the outside see that we have the winning culture from the inside, and they want to see what it’s about…fans and people who are not Ole Miss fans. They see that we have a winning culture,” related Brown.
“I think that’s one of the biggest things we can have. People seeing that I know I can win and people want to end up coming.”
Ole Miss defensive coordinator Bryan Brown
Brown is alluding to recruiting at Ole Miss where the Rebels have made it a tradition to finish with top classes from the high school ranks, and even more especially, the transfer portal.
“That’s why you’re seeing us get some of these top recruits,” said Brown. “Whether it’s high school…five-star guys, four-star guys…whether it’s some of the top portal guys…you definitely see it. They want to win…especially the guys in the portal…want to come win, and win now, because they don’t have much time left. Even some of the freshmen…They want start their college careers off on a winning note…It definitely has changed from a recruiting landscape, as well.”
Ole Miss, expected by many to be ranked inside the preseason top 10 in the major national preseason polls, opens its season on Sun., Sept. 6, versus the Louisville Cardinals at Nissan Stadium n Nashville, Tenn. Kickoff time has been set from 6:30 p.m. CT.