Luke Brown out of North Hall made a kick to remember last week against Chestatee. With just a few seconds on the clock and North Hall down 21-20, the senior was put into the pressure cooker with the entire gaming hanging in the balance. A missed field goal and North Hall starts the first half of the season with a losing record, but Brown came up in the biggest way possible knocking home a 43-yard field goal as time expired.
Brown earned the #1 play in the state of Georgia for Week 5, and a big shout out to the North Hall community that poured in over 1200 votes in just 24 hours. The 6’2″ kicker has been consistent throughout his high school career with a career 70% field goal percentage, and this season he has knocked home 4/5 attempts.
Brown’s accuracy has never been in question, and he has three years of varsity experience to prove it. The 2022 kicker does feel like his power, specifically on kickoffs has improved.
“The place I’ve most improved is kickoffs. At the end of my sophomore year, I broke my leg in 2 places and my ankle, which was a major setback. It took me over a year to get back where I was and this season I’ve been improving more than ever. Kickoffs were the hardest thing to get back into because of how hard it is on my ankle. After lots of hard work, I’ve hit over 50% touchbacks so far this season and I aim to keep it like that,” Brown said.
The improved strength has helped the accurate kicker extend his range on his field goal attempts a good bit too.
“My field goal accuracy has also improved with 4 out of 5 field goals outside of 42 yards, as well as my season record of 50 yards. My mentality on kicking on the next level has changed this season. I wasn’t sure at first, but I have made the decision to pursue a college kicking career,” he said.
Brown has obviously endured a setback that would discourage a lot of young athletes, especially one so critical for a kicker, but the 2022 specialist is proving to be one of the more consistent kickers from range in the class of 2022. That 50-yarder from earlier this season cleared the uprights with plenty of room to spare, and Brown always kicks the football with excellent height. At 6’2″ and 190 lbs., he has a great frame for a collegiate kicker and a lot of upside to continue to improve his strength. Given a few years in a college weight and Brown could really end up being a steal for a program.
On the recruiting front, there is not much to say with Brown. He has not received much interest from schools at the moment. He does plan to visit UGA for both athletic and academic reasons here shortly.
Speaking of the in-state school, Georgia has always been a dream destination for Brown, and a recent kicker’s success has been a huge source of encouragement.
“I would say my biggest influence is Rodrigo Blankenship. I met him when he was still at UGA at a kicking camp and he helped me out and gave me pointers. He takes his time while kicking and keeps everything perfectly consistent every rep. I respect how he walked on at Georgia and earned his spot. Kicking at UGA has always been my dream and I’ve been working non-stop to try and make it happen.”
Brown has three years of varsity experience under his belt, and with this being his final fall of playing high school football we asked what he liked the most about Friday nights here in Georgia.
“My favorite part of Friday nights is when I’ve taken my steps back from the tee and I just take a second to mentally prepare myself for the kick. With the crowd and the lights and the adrenaline – there’s no better feeling.”
Well, with last week’s clutch game-winning kick, Brown certainly seems to have an appetite for these adrenaline-pumping moments. Accuracy late in games is a skill set that every college program in the country is looking for, even more so than leg strength, at least in our opinion, and Brown has ice water in his veins. The 2022 student-athlete has a 4.35 GPA, and that should open up Brown to almost any school in the country academically speaking. He is definitely a 2022 kicker to watch closely for the remainder of the season, so be sure to follow @RecruitGeorgia on Twitter to see more highlights and news on the senior and many more athletes across the state of Georgia.
