Brown Named Shaun Alexander Freshman Player of the Week

The Maxwell Football Club announced today that Clemson linebacker Sammy Brown has been named as the Shaun Alexander Freshman Player of the Week for his performance in Clemson’s 24-14 win at Virginia Tech on Saturday. Brown was credited by gameday stat crews with a team-high eight tackles including 2.5 tackles for loss and a sack, and he now leads all freshman nationally with 9.0 tackles for loss this season.

More information from the Maxwell Football Club is included below.

Each week during the 2024 season the Maxwell Football Club will recognize an outstanding performance by a college freshman with the Shaun Alexander Freshman Player of the Week award. The Shaun Alexander Player of the Week will be recognized for overall performance on offense, defense or special teams and players selected do not have to be represented on the Shaun Alexander Award Hot 37 preseason watch list.

The Shaun Alexander Freshman Player of the Week – Sammy Brown – Clemson – Linebacker

Clemson freshman LB Sammy Brown has been named the Shaun Alexander Player of the Week following a standout performance in his first career start. Brown led Clemson’s defense with eight tackles, 2.5 tackles for loss, and a sack, helping the Tigers hold Virginia Tech to a season-low 40 rushing yards and only 1.90 yards per carry. With his tackles for loss, Brown pushed his season total to nine, one shy of joining Clemson true freshmen with 10 or more tackles for loss in a season. He also recorded his fourth sack, tying him for the fourth-most by a Clemson true freshman in program history. Clemson limited Virginia Tech to a 14.2 percent third-down conversion rate, the lowest Clemson has allowed this season, highlighting Brown’s impact on the field.

The Maxwell Football Club and the Shaun Alexander Award have once again partnered with Pro Football Focus (PFF) and Phil Steele Publications as selection committee partners. PFF provides detailed metrics and performance-based assessments to selection committee staff, with several senior PFF analysts are members of our selection committee. Phil Steele’s College Football Preview is generally recognized as the most complete preseason magazine.

Questions concerning the 2024 Shaun Alexander Award Player of the Week can be directed to MFC Executive Director Mark Wolpert mwolpert@maxwellfootballclub.org or MFC Vice President of College Awards Rich Cirminiello rcirminiello@maxwellfootballclub.org.

ABOUT THE MAXWELL FOOTBALL CLUB – The Maxwell Football Club was founded in 1935 and is the oldest football organization of its kind in America. The Club recognizes excellence in performance at the high school, collegiate and professional levels of the game. The Maxwell Club is also deeply involved and fully vested in the community through programs to promote academic excellence, community volunteerism, and leadership.

ABOUT THE SHAUN ALEXANDER FRESHMAN OF THE YEAR AWARD – The Shaun Alexander Freshman Player of the Year Award is an honor given each year to the most outstanding freshman player in college football. Named after Shaun Alexander a former standout at the University of Alabama and 2005 NFL MVP with the Seattle Seahawks, this award recognizes the exceptional performance and impact made by these players on their respective teams throughout the season. The Alexander Award is all about championing future legends and evaluates players based on Talent, Character, Ambassador and Legend.

Past winners include; Trevor Lawrence (Clemson) – 2018, Kenneth Gainwell (Memphis)-2019 and Will Anderson Jr. (Alabama) – 2020, Brock Bowers (Georgia) – 2021, Drake Maye (North Carolina) 2022 and Caleb Downs (Alabama) 2023.