2018 SMDR Male Athlete of the Year: Keenen Brown

Have you ever tried to stop a bus in motion?

You basically have two options. You can either jump in front of it, hoping the driver slows down just enough so that you don’t die when the bus runs you over. Or you can simply wave as it rolls past you.

Defenders basically had the same two options when trying to stop Texas State tight end Keenen Brown. The graduate senior stands at six feet, three inches tall and weighs in at an eighth of a ton; a cinder block with legs.

Brown, originally a 6-foot-2, 205-pound, four-star receiver out of Houston Alief Taylor, spent his first four years of college at Oklahoma State, but only played his junior and senior year after redshirting in 2014 and dealing with injury in 2015. He was primarily used as the “Cowboy back” in head coach Mike Gundy’s system, relegated to blocking and rarely heading downfield for a pass.

The tight end transferred to Texas State in 2018 and impacted the team almost immediately. In his second game as a Bobcat, Brown reeled in seven passes for 108 yards and a touchdown in a 36-20 home win over Texas Southern on Sept. 8. He topped his performance two weeks later in a 25-21 road loss to UTSA, posting a career-high nine receptions and 124 yards to go along with another touchdown.

Brown finished the year with 51 catches for 577 yards (No. 10 among NCAA FBS tight ends) and five touchdowns, but his influence didn’t always show up in the box score. Of his 51 receptions, 27 of them resulted in a first down or touchdown. He wasn’t always the fastest player on the field, but he didn’t need to be. 

His ability to change directions, or whip the bus around, resulted in 24 missed tackles, tops among tight ends per Pro Football Focus. PFF rated Brown as the top player at his position with a grade of 86.6 and named him to its 2018 All-American team.

Brown declared for the NFL Draft earlier this month. He doesn’t always see himself as a star — he said in October he “didn’t know (he) was going to be a focal point.” But he’s more than proved himself to be one, making him the Daily Record’s male athlete of the year.

Honorable Mentions:

San Marcos Football’s Jamon Johnson and Therrance Soto

Johnson and Soto each had monstrous senior seasons in their own right, earning San Marcos’ Offensive and Defensive Most Valuable Player awards, respectively.

Johnson ran for 1,041 yards and 10 touchdowns on 164 carries, his third consecutive year surpassing the millennial mark. The running back also caught 22 passes for 304 yards and three scores and was named to 26-6A’s All-District first team.

Soto was all over the field, leading the Rattlers with 112 total tackles, two forced fumbles and two fumble recoveries. In addition to earning Defensive MVP, the safety received the team’s Bruce Bush Character award as well as All-District second team and Academic All-State nominee honors.

Texas State Track & Field’s T’Mond Johnson

The junior thrower put on a show in the indoor and outdoor season. The Killen native broke the indoor and outdoor school records in the shot put at 19.05 and 19.75 meters, respectively.

His shot put performances earned him gold medals at both Sun Belt Championship meets. Johnson placed 12th at the NCAA Outdoor West Preliminaries and went on to place 18th at the NCAA Outdoor Championships, earning All-American Honorable Mention laurels.

Texas State Men’s Basketball's Nijal Pearson

The Daily Record’s 2017 Newcomer of the Year hasn’t cooled down since his hot start to last season. The junior guard finished the 2017-18 season averaging 15.2 points and was named to the All-Sun Belt Conference Third Team.

The Beaumont native has taken his game to another level this season, averaging 19.6 points per game, earning Sun Belt Player of the Week twice and picking up the Lou Henson National Player of the Week award on Dec. 3.

Texas State Football’s Bryan London II

London’s been a stalwart for the Bobcats the past three seasons. After redshirting in 2015, the linebacker has started in all but one game for Texas State -- he was suspended during the first half of the Appalachian State game on Nov. 10. But even then, he shined, racking up seven tackles in the second half, the second-most on the team.

London led the Sun Belt in both solo and total tackles, racking up 53 and 109, respectively. It’s the second time in three seasons the Converse native led the league in tackles.