‘They’re here for me?’ Panthers’ Derrick Brown surprises NC high school player with award
Monroe High football player Jordan Young recently found out he had been invited to Nike’s “The Next Ones” football camp for some of the nation’s best players.
The camp will be held during Super Bowl week next month in Las Vegas, and all 31 NFL teams will be represented by a high school star in their region along with one international player. Along with competing in a skills challenge, the players will get to go to the big game.
So when Young was asked to come to Bank of America Stadium on Friday afternoon, he thought it was just to, in his words, “get my plaque and take some pictures.”
But waiting on him as he walked into a lobby underneath the stadium was Panthers Pro Bowl lineman Derrick Brown.
Young admitted he had to try to hide his emotions as he walked in and Brown gave him a big hug.
“I was shocked,” said Young, 17. “I was trying to play it cool. There were a lot of emotions going through my head. I’m thinking, ‘That’s really Derrick Brown, the first-round pick. I used to watch him in college.”
The surprises didn’t end there.
Brown escorted Young back to the Panthers’ locker room, but stopped just before the pair walked in.
“He was showing me around,” Young said. “He was saying, ‘This is where the team meeting rooms are,’ and right when we get to the door, he stopped and said, ‘This is all for you, bro.”
Waiting in the locker room were Panthers staff, who waved team-colored pom-poms and gave Young a big and loud ovation. Young walked in and the team had set up the locker next to Brown’s with a Panthers jersey inside with Young’s No. 24 and last name printed on the back.
Also inside was a large display from Nike that included a framed black jersey. Above the locker was Young’s name placard, set up just as an NFL player’s would be.
“When I walked in the locker room and saw everybody, I was like, ‘They’re here for me, too?’” Young said. “i was just very shocked. I didn’t know anything about any of this. It’s just, what can I say? It’s just amazing.”
Amazing athlete
Young, who is 6 feet tall and weighs 185 pounds, is a junior at Monroe High. 247 Sports ranks him as a four-star recruit nationally and the No. 2 prospect in the state in the class of 2025 behind Providence Day offensive lineman David Sanders.
247 Sports ranks Young No. 29 among all recruits nationally and No. 3 among all safeties in his class.
Last season, Young caught 34 passes for 812 yards and eight touchdowns on offense at wide receiver. On defense, teams didn’t throw his way much, so he ended up with one interception. But he had 66 tackles, including 49 solo tackles, scored five defensive touchdowns and forced four fumbles.
He has more than 30 Division I college offers but said his finalists, for now, are Alabama, Clemson, Florida State, LSU, Miami, North Carolina, Notre Dame, Penn State, South Carolina, Southern California, Tennessee and Texas.
Young said he’ll narrow that list after visiting some schools and attending practices and that he hopes to commit before the season starts in August. He also plans to sign with a college in December and graduate early.
In a near 40-year career, Monroe High’s Johnny Sowell has coached several NFL players, including Jamison Crowder (Bills), Richard Huntley (Steelers), Terry Witherspoon (Cowboys), Dion Byrum (Panthers) and Issac Blakeney (Steelers, 49ers, Commanders).
He thinks Young — who regularly talks with Crowder for advice — has a chance to go where those players have been.
“He’s a great, great person,” Sowell said of Young. “The community adores him. I mean, he’s humble, and with all this that’s going on, he’s still the same person. He’s one of the best I’ve coached, and I’ve coached some good ones. He’s definitely in the top three.”
Another plane flight
Young said he’s a little nervous about going to Vegas next month. He’s only flown once: going to Houston in fourth grade for a youth basketball tournament.
But he said being invited to an event like this means that all of his hard work didn’t go unnoticed.
“I’m blessed to just be having this opportunity,” he said. “I was blessed to be able to have these talents and making my parents proud, my family proud, putting my school on the map and trying to the best person every day.”
Young was clearly overwhelmed by it all — being in the locker room, hanging with Brown and being interviewed by multiple Charlotte media outlets all at once.
He said this experience is something he’ll never forget, but said it won’t change him.
“This boost me a little,” he said, “but the motivation has always been there. I’ve always had big goals, even if I didn’t have the accolades. I always tried to stay hungry and overachieve in everything I do.”
PHOTOS: Panthers’ Derrick Brown and Monroe High’s Jordan Young
