Dre Kirkpatrick, the nation's No. 1 cornerback prospect, came down with nothing but air. Corey Brown had the ball and six points.
Kirkpatrick is headed to Alabama, Brown to Ohio State and, in all likelihood, Kirkpatrick's side of the ball.
Indefinable by ESPN's standards, Brown is labeled an "athlete."
Splitting time between wide receiver and cornerback for Gateway High School in Monroeville, Pa., Brown caught 15 touchdowns with two interceptions in 2008.
His postseason tour further muddled the situation.
A three-interception performance at the Hawaii Prep Football Classic was backed by the elastic-arms effort over Kirkpatrick on offense at the U.S. Army All-American Bowl.
"At the Army All-American Bowl he was one of the best receivers on the East squad, showing the ability to go up in the air, get the football in traffic, run good routes, show good speed and with good hands," said Mike Farrell, recruiting analyst for rivals.com, in a video on the Web site. "He's going to be an impact guy no matter what position he plays at the next level."
At 6 feet, 1 inch, Brown has the requisite size for both positions. His future will be largely determined by how Ohio State's coaches can get him on the field, said Kevin Noon, managing editor of ohiostate.rivals.com.
Positions have been little more than labels with a poor adhesive for past recruiting classes.
Ted Ginn Jr. entered as the nation's No. 1-ranked cornerback in 2004, according to scout.com. Anthony Gonzalez was ranked eighth in 2003's class. Both left in 2007 as first-round wide receivers.
With the cornerback cupboard left relatively bare after the departures of starters Malcolm Jenkins and Donald Washington, Brown's immediate opportunity might come opposite Chimdi Chekwa in the Buckeyes' secondary.
Potential position confusion lurking, former and future teammate Dorian Bell isn't concerned.
"He's very coachable," Bell said at Brown's announcement in June. "He listens to everything you say."
Coachable and confident.
"They're about to do something big up there," Brown said at the announcement.
Used to success, Brown and Bell, two of four team captains, lost only the WPIAL AAAA championship game in 2008.
"Corey put it on the board," said Bell, regarding Brown's OSU championship guarantee in their high school coach's office. "I have a good feeling about this team. We're going to be like a big family. That's what it's gonna really have to take to win the championship."
James Pallitto can be reached at pallitto.1@osu.edu.
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