PROVO -- After redshirting last season, working out every day with the scout team, sophomore running back Curtis Brown is expected to compete for the starting job at running back in 2004.
Brown recently sat down to answer a few questions about his personal life, his football career and other insights the avid BYU fan might want to know.
Q: When you're not concentrating on football or your studies, what do you like to do to relax? How do you spend your leisure time?
CB: "I love to relax in my enormous twin-size bed. In my leisure time, I like to hang out with my roommates and talk about how buff we are."
Q: How has attending BYU changed your life?
CB: "Attending BYU has brought me closer to God. BYU has made me a more mature and humble person."
Q: Has your experience at BYU been everything you planned?
CB: "It has been nothing I planned it would be. I expected to just go through, play football, and then leave. I never expected that I would become closer to God. I never expected that I would enjoy not partying, or that I would become Mormon."
Q: Tell us a little bit about your decision to join the Church?
CB: "My senior year in high school, my mom asked me if I wanted to get baptized in the Catholic Church. I told her no. I told her I wouldn't get baptized to a church that I couldn't commit myself to. When I got here, I felt the same way about this Church, but I was basing that decision on what he said and she said. After attending for about a month, I realized that this was something I needed to do."
Q: Today is March 31. Have you finished your home teaching?
CB: "Instead of home teaching, they have me doing firesides every other week so I can tell the incredible tale of how a lost young football player made the most important decision of his life."
Q: Changing gears, who's the funniest guy on the team?
CB:"There are two people that come to mind. The funniest guys would have to be Coach Lance Reynolds and Grandpa Fahu Tahi. They have both been at BYU for a looooooooooong time and have many experiences to tell."
Q: If a running back from one of the team's future opponents called you and asked which BYU defender he should avoid in a game, who would you tell him? Why?
CB: "I would say Coach Mendenhall. He is the scariest one of them all. You may not see him on the field, but his presence is there."
Q: What is it like to have Lance Reynolds, Sr. coaching the running backs?
CB: "The man has so much wisdom. He definitely knows his stuff. He is the kind of coach that you work hard for because you know he would do anything for you.
Q: What role do you expect to play in the offense this season?
CB: "I think I should be nominated for best supporting role. Actually, my goal is to be the sand in a bucket filled with rocks. I want to be the player that fills in wherever needed so that as an offensive group, we can not be penetrated."
Q: Players and coaches have talked a lot about your positive contribution last season as a member of the scout team. Describe your red-shirt experience.
CB: "It was definitely an eye opener. I gained a lot of respect for those guys on defense--coaching staff included. It was intense, but I worked hard and I know that whenever the defense got better, I got better.
Q: Has red-shirting made you a better player? Why or why not?
CB: Yes, it most definitely has. I learned the true definition of hard work, playing against those guys. I learned that true success doesn't come when everyone is watching, but when no one is watching. I watched a lot of guys on defense do the little things because they knew that the little things are just as important as anything else."
Q: Often, you can be seen riding around campus on a push scooter. Are there any plans to upgrade to something motorized?
CB: "I wouldn't trade my baby for the world. It's quick, easy, pollution free, and has a two year warranty. You can take it anywhere. It's like having a best friend; it supports me when I'm week, carries me to class, and never complains."
Q: Other than football, what is your favorite sport to play? Why?
CB: "I love all sports, especially the ones you rent and can play right in your own living room."
Q: What is your personal assessment of this year's team?
CB: "Isn't it obvious? We are going to ball this year. We have no excuses not to be good and even if we did, we wouldn't use them. We expect to dominate this year!"
Q: Besides a hamstring injury, how has spring ball gone for you?
CB: "It has gone really well. I've had a chance to get back in the swing of things. I'm excited. Besides working out three times a day now to get healed, instead of going to regular practice, I would have to say it is fun."
Q: When thinking about the upcoming season, what gets you most excited?
CB: "Knowing that we play the top-ranked team for our season opener, and that I get to wear LUKE STALEY'S jersey. Luke is a stud and everyone loves his calves but me, I would rather have everyone love my smile and cute face."
Q: How do you personally prepare for a game?
CB: "I work hard during the week so that the game feels like practice."
Q: "Do you have any superstitions? Is there something you always do before a game, or a piece of equipment you always wear, etc.?
CB: I don't' really have any superstitions, but I do have to wear gloves with thumb braces that are covered in grey tape. I also have to look super buff. Looks are everything in this business. Got to look good to feel good to play good."