Navy lands 2013 DL

To say the least, junior athlete Alex Brown of Lexington (S.C.) White Knoll left impressed after last weekend's unofficial visit to Navy.

"It was amazing," Brown said. "The atmosphere was just perfect. When I went in the lockerroom, it was different. I've visited a couple of colleges, but this one felt different. The unity and the brotherhood of the guys was exactly what I was looking for in a college football team. I'm tired of all the individuals and all-about-me players."

Wednesday night, Navy offered Brown.

A day later, the 6-feet-3, 232-pounder committed to the Midshipmen.

"I called and talked to Coach [Dale] Pehrson, the defensive line coach," Brown said. "[Defensive coordinator Buddy] Green also was on the phone. They were happy for me to step aboard. They're recruiting me to play defensive line and some fullback and H-back stuff."

Why commit so early?

"I've visited multiple schools," Brown said. "I don't know how to explain it. As soon as I stepped on campus I could just tell right then it's where I wanted to be. I got home and I prayed about it. I feel I was led by God. I'm going to be a washed-up athlete someday but I'm always going to have that piece of paper from the Naval Academy. There's so much honor that goes into that. I'll be set for life with this degree."

Brown, who has a 4.2 GPA, also has received interest from Duke and North Carolina, he said. A two-year starter, he plans to attend the upcoming Army-Navy game.

Keith Niebuhr can be reached at kneebs01@aol.com. You can follow him on Twitter @KeithRIVALS.