Malcolm Brown: What Impact Will the Super Freshman RB Have for Texas in 2011?

Rivals had him as the top running back in the country. Scout had him at No.2 behind Isaiah Crowell, who signed with Georgia. But wherever you or anyone else have him ranked, Malcolm Brown is good. Real good.

Personally he was tops on my board in 2011 and comes into college football this fall as one of the top freshmen I'm giddy to see.

Mack Brown usually wraps up his recruiting for the current year by the summer, as Texas gets a bulk of their commitments in the spring. Yet it was Malcolm Brown who was one of the final pieces of the 2011 Longhorn class, but Mack Brown was glad to wait for Malcolm to settle on toting the rock in Austin.

Texas went 5-7 last season, which is an  aberration when you look at what the Longhorns have done not just during Brown's tenure as head coach, but in their overall history. Mack Brown decided to make some staff changes, including on the offensive side of the ball.

Enter Boise State offensive chief Bryan Harsin and a promoted Major Applewhite as the two lead men to re-energize the Longhorn offense. Harsin is known to run a multiple formation based offense that capitalizes on match ups advantages and keeps the defense on its toes, forcing them t adjust down to down.

Currently the two main running back for Texas are Cody Johnson, who bested nearly 600 yards on the ground last year, and Fozzy Whitaker, who is the quicker and faster of the two incumbents.

Johnson is a 5'11", 250 pound power back and finished the season notching a couple 100-yard games. But Brown is expected come in and compete or time immediately in summer workouts.

At 6'0", 220 pounds, Brown has 4.5 speed and is a bully with he ball. He possess solid to great speed and has home run ability. He's been compared to former UT greats Ricky Williams and Cedric Benson.

His best quality is his run strength. Brown can break tackles, take hits and stay on his feet, showing a great ability to finish with a pop on defenders. He pushes piles and never lets a single defender rake him down.

He can jump run defenders in alleys and shows a good burst to and through holes. Brown also has very good wiggle for a bigger back and can run by a defense on he edges.

Watching Brown on film, the only knock I have on him is his ability to factor as a receiver out of the backfield. He has every down back size, strength, speed, skills and athletic ability but for him to be able to stay on the field on third downs, Brown must improve his receiving ability.

Texas will be looking to bounce back form an off season in 2011, and Mack Brown has told those around the program his batteries haven't felt this charged up since he took over for John Mackovic in 1998.

Mack Brown has enlisted Harsin and Applewhite to re-tool the Longhorn offensive attack and improve QB Garrett Gilbert's performance. What better way to do that then to go to a dominant ground game that sees to big, power backs in Johnson and Brow along with the quickster Whittaker?

Brown is too good to redshirt as a true freshman if healthy and running back is the most easiest position to impact as a young player, college or NFL. I expect Brown to get plenty of carries as a true freshman, and he is my preseason Big 12 Offensive Freshman of the Year selection.

Malcolm Brown will have a big impact on the 2011 Texas Longhorns season.