Marlon Brown Joins Georgia Bulldogs

Just a minute ago, I was writing about the pain of the University of Georgia losing one of its star football players, Knowshon Moreno, who decided to forego two years of eligibility to enter this year's NFL draft. But, as it does perennially for top football schools, signing day has brought new hope.

Yesterday, the Bulldogs inked Marlon Brown, a top-ranked wide receiver from Harding Academy in Memphis, TN. Immediately, Georgia fans have begun to salivate at the savory prospect of pairing him with their breakout freshman of this past season, A.J. Green.

One of the greatest things about this (future) duo is that they play the position excellently, but in totally different ways. A.J. is big—6'4", 200 lbs—but Marlon is bigger at 6'5", 205. It may not seem like a huge difference, but, whereas Green plays like your typical wiry wideout, Marlon uses his size to great advantage.

The comparisons between this former Tennessee Mr. Football and Alabama's Julio Jones abound, and they aren't too far from the truth. Both could be listed at a generic "player" position, as they are truly two athletic marvels to behold, and both have had their passion or competitiveness questioned, yet prevailed.

But perhaps an even more appropriate parallel is between Brown and Arizona Cardinals receiver Larry Fitzgerald.  No, it's not just because I'm still swooning with the rest of nation over Fitzgerald's Super Bowl performance. It's because both guys are best where it really counts: the hands.

Both Marlon, a Parade Magazine All-American, and Larry have the ability to go up for a ball that they have no business catching and still somehow come down with it. Toss into this equation that both have outstanding vertical leaps (Brown was a standout in basketball in high school as well as football) and wingspans, and you have a lot of catches that might have seemed impossible that are now highly probable.

Some detractors have mentioned Brown's merely so-so breakaway, open-field speed as a drawback to his game. While this is widely accepted, it certainly won't prevent him from being a tremendous redzone target. This fits particularly well with the current makeup of the Georgia team, anyway: Green does have that sheer velocity, but for quite some time the team has lacked a bigger, more physical, over-the-top threat (read: no consistent tight ends).

There's been some speculation of Georgia's coaching staff using Marlon, who racked up 1,785 total yards as a senior, at several positions besides receiver; tight end, defensive back, and even linebacker have come up as options.  This is all well and good as long as he doesn't get relegated to return specialist. He must be allowed to shine.

The rest of Georgia's class is strong. QB Aaron Murray has the highest aggregate ranking among the signees, and OT Austin Long is a for-sure starter from game one.  But Marlon Brown will add a new wrinkle to the Bulldogs' already scary offense, perhaps making them downright unstoppable.