The 2016 ODU Football season is over, but ODUSports.com will continue to deliver information on the Monarchs, whether it be photo galleries, highlight videos, or in today's case, a Q&A. Today's Q&A is with sophomore to be punt returner, Darrell Brown.
Q: What is your major?
DB: Human resources
Q: You joined the team in 2015 on the first day of classes. What was that like?
DB: I joined the team on the first day of school, so my first day of practice and first day of practice were all on the same day. It was a lot different than I expected. I was expecting it to be a little more lenient, since I was a walk-on. But with all Zach, Jonathan and Travis (all the veteran wide receivers) that really helped me learn faster.
Q: You were thrust into everything in the fall, how did last spring go for you?
DB: The spring went a lot better. I was starting to get reps but I learned to take mental reps, I watched film a lot and when I was at practice I paid attention to the little details.
Q: The spring was when you burst on the radar for your punt return skills?
DB: It’s funny because I was standing out of bounds and one of the punters kicked a ball out of bounds and I caught, and Coach Buggs came up to me and asked me if I wanted to catch punts.
Q: Did you return punts in high school?
DB: Yes. It was a lot easier in high school because the kickers weren’t as developed.
Q: Take us through returning a punt?
DB: It’s harder than what it looks like. The Hampton game I wasn’t really nervous, I thought I would be nervous but when I went out there I guess from doing it in practice and all my teammates rallying behind me, I wasn’t. The kick wasn’t too bad. It was a line drive and when I caught it I saw a big hole and I took off running. That boosted my spirits and everything.
Q: What was the Bahamas like?
DB: That was actually my second time going, I went with my family when I was 12. It’s a whole different perspective when you go for a bowl game. When we went for the bowl it was all business before pleasure. We had practice in the morning, then a film session then we went to the beach and hung out with our teammates. It was definitely a blessing to be a part of.
Q: What kind of things are you taking into the 2017 season?
DB: The main thing is to bring value to the team. Even though I didn’t play a lot at receiver I brought value at punt returner. I want to bring more value this year being able to play on more special teams.
Q: What is something people don’t know about you?
DB: I was riding dirt bike before I started playing football. I started riding when I was five and I got my first motorcycle when I was 14.