Texas Football: 3 players who must help replace S Caden Sterns

3) Texas football DB’s who can replace Sterns

Since the Longhorns are getting pretty thin at the safety positions of late, it is of the utmost importance that senior safety Chris Brown remains as a rock in this secondary from here on out. This 5-foot-11 and 190 pound former blue chip recruit is having a solid season with the Longhorns so far.

As the Texas defense improved as a whole as the season moved along under first-year defensive coordinator/safeties coach Chris Ash, Brown improved his own play and overall production. He’s played solid in all eight games for the Longhorns so far this season.

In total, he’s registered 34 combined tackles (30 solo and four assisted), two tackles for loss, one interception, a whopping six pass breakups, one forced fumble, and one fumble recovery. The production of Brown in general is trending in the right direction in the last couple of games too.

He has no missed tackles in the last two games, allowed less than 55 percent of passes going his way in coverage to be completed, and doesn’t have a single penalty called against him this season. There’s a lot of positives in Brown’s game right now, hence why Ash should continue to put more trust in him to lead this secondary with Sterns opting out.

Brown is one of the most experienced defensive backs left on the Longhorns roster. He’s the sole senior starter in the secondary, and losing Sterns makes his leadership much more crucial.