JMU WR Brown Worked To Garner Starting Spot, Embraces Spotlight

When Reggie Brown walks across the field at Bridgeforth Stadium, there’s a sense of confidence that’s oozing from his wide smile.
It’s there practically every time he steps on the field with James Madison.
And when it disappears, that usually means Brown’s helmet is strapped up and he’s ready to go up against anyone.
The senior wide receiver isn’t scared. He feels like he can beat anyone.
Brown grew up in Lakeland, Fla., and is just one of a handful of JMU players from the Sunshine State.
But each day at home as a young football player was full of lining up against the best in the area.
They might not be household names, but those 1-on-1s against his friends helped turn Brown into a competitive machine.
And that hasn’t dissipated since heading north to play in Harrisonburg.
“The people I grew up with had the same mindset as me, it’s a dog eat dog war,” Brown said. “I feel like my childhood friends, people that I grew up with, gave me confidence every day.”
In JMU’s first-ever FBS game, a 44-7 rout of Middle Tennessee last September, it was Brown who made his presence known against the higher-level cornerbacks.
The 6-foot-1, 195-pound wideout scored the Dukes’ first two touchdowns of the game, which almost matched his career total of three that he scored in the 2021 fall season.
But for Brown, the competitive fire instilled in him at a young age burned bright against the Blue Raiders.
He finished that day with five receptions for 78 yards and the two scores. The Dukes were rolling and Brown jump-started that train.
“I feel like I set the tone for the team,” Brown said. “I feel like I set the tone for the season. Like, you know we’re not here to play around, we’re here to make a statement. It was a great opportunity to make my mark and set the tone for the team. I knew after that, we started turning up.”
Brown logged a career-best 24 receptions for 401 yards and four touchdowns last fall as the Dukes’ No. 2 wide receiver.
Now, the receiving corps appears to be his to lead with a fresh batch of faces surrounding him at the position.
But before Brown rose to be one of JMU’s go-to receivers, he took a backseat to a veteran class of wideouts. Penn State transfer Brandon Polk and Riley Stapleton were in front of Brown in his redshirt freshman season, while Antwane Wells, Kris Thornton and Scott Bracey dominated the statistics during his redshirt sophomore year.
While he waited for an opportunity, Brown did what he knows best: train for his chance.
“It was tough because I wanted to be out there every day,” Brown said. “I usually don’t miss practices, so I’ve been working every day since I stepped on campus. I wanted to get more playing time early on in my career, but it was all about timing and opportunity to seize the moment.”
After he recorded two receptions for 12 yards through his first two seasons on the field, Brown’s opportunity came in the 2021 fall season. He played in all 14 games and logged 14 receptions for 219 yards and three touchdowns.
Then he built off of it a year ago with a career-best campaign.
But what led to the increased role? Trust.
Brown had quarterback Todd Centeio’s trust and he had the Dukes’ coaching staff’s trust, too. Those two things paired together led to a productive 2022.
“It was just all about the coaches giving me the opportunity to make plays, and trusting me to make the play when my name’s called,” Brown said. “I just feel like that’s really what it was all about. It wasn’t about moving up or the competition, it was about making plays when I knew the play was coming to me.”
This year, as the veteran of the wide receiver room, Brown has embraced a leadership role. There are four transfers pushing for playing time — Elijah Sarratt, Omarion Dollison, Phoenix Sproles and Taji Hudson — so he’s the go-to person with questions about the offense.
Brown has grown into the leadership role, which took time, but he knew it was what needed to be done with a new-look wide receiver room and a new starting quarterback under center this fall.
“For me, it’s just maturity,” Brown said. “I’ve got to be more of a leader. You just have to grow up a little more and take accountability for the whole [receiving] corps. If we’re doing bad, then most days it’s going to fall on you. The coaches are going to look at you to try to get the guys better and on task. It’s a step forward, but I just have to take it one day at a time.”
As he’s helped the other wide receivers in the room, Brown’s game has improved as well. He has flashed in fall camp, which head coach Curt Cignetti noted.
But as the leader of the group, it was anticipated that Brown would put together a solid fall camp.
“I think Reggie’s done a nice job [in fall camp,] but we expect him to,” Cignetti said. “He’s the veteran of that group and he’s done well.”
Brown’s improvement came with the same mindset that he had has a child in Florida, as well as the identical one he had when he was waiting for his shot at JMU.
Even though he’s projected to be the Dukes’ No. 1 wide receiver this fall, Brown’s competitive juices still flow. And if that’s the case, JMU is in for another productive season from the wideout in his final campaign as a Duke.
“You can never get enough work, you can never not get better,” Brown said. “Even this offseason, I tried to work the hardest I’ve ever worked in any offseason. I just focused on bettering my craft.”