Virginia backfield gets boost from portal in former 4-star Miami RB Brown

By Jerry Ratcliffe

With a lack of game experience at running back, Virginia got some good news from the transfer portal on Wednesday when former Miami running back Cody Brown announced he had committed to the Cavaliers.

Brown (6-foot, 225 pounds) is a former 4-star running back from Atlanta’s Parkview High School, which has a rich tradition for producing standout rushers. He entered the transfer portal on April 15.

An original commitment to Tennessee, Brown backed out after the Vols fired coach Jermy Pruitt in January of 2021 and signed with Miami, choosing the Hurricanes over Auburn, Florida and Florida State.

In high school, he was a member of the Atlanta Journal Constitution’s Super 11 in 2020 after rushing for more than 1,000 yards for three consecutive seasons and scoring more than 60 touchdowns. Rivals ranked him the No. 11 running back prospect in the nation, with ESPN ranking him No. 12 in the recruiting Class of 2021.

This is what former Miami coach Manny Diaz told the Miami Herald about Brown before his freshman season in ‘21:

“Cody is a tough runner, great size … He can run through tackles and then have the ability if you watch film, has the ability to run through tackles and go all the way. We felt with Robert Burns leaving the program we were short maybe at running back.”

Brown, one of several backs on Miami’s roster last season, played sparingly as a freshman, making brief appearances against North Carolina, NC State, Pitt, Georgia Tech, Duke and Central Connecticut, which was his best game with 77 yards rushing and two touchdowns.  For the season, he had 34 rushing attempts for 139 yards and three TDs.

At Parkview, Brown excelled as a downhill runner and had already developed Power 5-caliber muscle mass heading into his senior season. He also developed a good stiff arm and good vision, rushing for more than 1,500 yards in each of his sophomore, junior and senior seasons.

In the spring game, two backs were given most of the work, Mike Hollins (junior) and Amaad Foston (sophomore). Ronnie Walker Jr. suffered a significant leg injury in spring drills and his status for August training camp is not known at this time.