KANSAS CITY — Illinois All-American running back Chase Brown was selected by the Cincinnati Bengals in the fifth round (No. 163 overall) of the 2023 NFL Draft. Brown was the fourth Illini selected through the first five rounds of the draft, joining No. 5 overall pick Devon Witherspoon (Seattle), second-rounder Jartavius Martin (Washington), and his twin brother and third-round pick Sydney Brown (Philadelphia). 

Brown's illustrious Illini career featured a breakout 2022 season in which he became the first Doak Walker Award finalist in program history, a Maxwell Award semifinalist as one of the top 20 offensive players in college football, and a consensus All-America second-team selection. He totaled 1,643 rushing yards in 2022, good for fourth in the nation, and ran the ball 328 times, the second-most in the nation and a new program record. 

The durable Brown rushed for 100+ yards in a program-record 10 of Illinois' 12 regular season games last year, including becoming the first Illini in history to rush for 100+ yards in the season's first nine games. Brown's consistency put him at the top of the Big Ten Conference in rushing yards during conference games (1,238) and helped the Illini have one of their best seasons in decades with eight wins and a trip to a January bowl game.

Brown finished his career with 3,206 rushing yards to become the second Illini in history to eclipse the 3,000-yard mark. His career featured 16 100-yard games, tying the Illinois record of 16 set by Robert Holcombe from 1994-97, who holds Illinois' all-time rushing mark with 4,105 yards. Brown rushed for 1,000 yards in two seasons for Illinois, joining an elite group that includes only Illini legends Jim Grabowski and Holcombe. 

Chase and Sydney became the ninth twins to be selected in the same NFL Draft and only the third set to be picked within the first five rounds. The Browns joined Ronde and Tiki Barber (1997) and Mike and Mark Bell (1979) as the only twins to be selected within the first five rounds of the same NFL Draft. 

Brown was the fifth Fighting Illini drafted by the Bengals and the first since 2016, when Clayton Fejedelem was picked by Cincinnati in the seventh round. Brown will join fellow former Fighting Illini Ted Karras, the Bengals' starting center, and Owen Carney Jr. in Cincinnati.

Brown was the first Illinois running back drafted since 2011, when Mikel Leshoure went in the second round to Detroit.

Twins Picked in the Same NFL Draft

Illini in the 2023 NFL Draft