CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — Illinois running back Chase Brown is one of five finalists for the Jon Cornish Trophy, awarded to the top NCAA football player from Canada. The award is in its fifth year and is presented by Football Canada.
Brown was an All-Big Ten third team running back in 2021 after leading Illinois with 1,005 rushing yards and five rushing touchdowns. He was third in the Big Ten in rushing yards per game, fifth in yards per carry, and won two Big Ten Player of the Week awards.
Brown ran for 223 yards on 33 carries and a touchdown at #7 Penn State to help Illinois win the longest game in college football history (20-18, 9 OT) and join Howard Griffith (1990) and Rashard Mendenhall (2007) as the only players in program history with multiple 200-yard rushing games in a single season. He also had 257 rushing yards on 26 attempts and two touchdowns against Charlotte, the fourth-most rushing yards in a single game in Illinois history.
The winner will be announced through Football Canada and the TSN Krown Gridiron Nation YouTube channel on April 19.
Jon Cornish Trophy Finalists
RB Chase Brown, Illinois
LB Jesse Luketa, Penn State
WR Nick Mardner, Hawaii
WR John Metchie III, Alabama
WR Jared Wayne, Pittsburgh
