Upcoming Event: Football versus Illinois on September 6, 2025 at 12 p.m.
Football
vs Illinois
2012 Football Roster
Brown, Kelby
Jersey Number 59
Kelby Brown
- Position:
- Linebacker
- Height:
- 6-2
- Weight:
- 220
- Class:
- Junior
- Hometown:
- Matthews, N.C.
- High School:
- Charlotte Christian
Bio
2015: Charted as Duke’s starting Mike linebacker ... returning All-ACC linebacker ... returning team captain ... preseason second team All-America choice by Phil Steele’s College Football Preview ... preseason All-ACC selection by Athlon Sports (3rd team), Lindy’s Sports (1st team), Phil Steele’s College Football Preview (2nd team) and Sporting News (1st team) ... tabbed the No. 6 inside linebacker in the nation by Lindy’s Sports ... candidate for the Bednarik Award, an honor presented annually to the best defensive player in the nation by the Maxwell Football Club ... candidate for the Bronko Nagurski Trophy, an honor presented annually to the nation’s most outstanding defensive player by the Charlotte Touchdown Club ... candidate for the Butkus Award, an honor presented annually to the nation’s top linebacker by the Butkus Foundation ... candidate for the Allstate AFCA Good Works Team, which honors 11 Football Bowl Subdivision student-athletes for excellence in community service ... candidate for the Wuerffel Trophy, an honor presented annually by the All Sports Association of Fort Walton Beach, Fla., to the college football player who best combines exemplary community service with athletic and academic achievement ... along with teammate S Jeremy Cash, named to the Lott IMPACT Trophy Watch List as Duke joined Ohio State and Stanford as the only schools nationally with multiple selections ... returns to the gridiron after missing the 2014 season while recovering from knee surgery to repair torn left anterior cruciate ligament performed August 14, 2014 ... granted extension of eligibility request by the NCAA on November 12, 2014 for sixth season of collegiate competition ... also has overcome two surgeries on right knee (December 15, 2010 & February 22, 2012) ... in 32 career games (29 starts), has 242 tackles, 23.5 tackles for loss, 4.0 quarterback sacks, two INTs, 15 QB pressures, six fumble recoveries, five PBUs and three caused fumbles ... has played 1,888 career snaps ... consummate student-athlete having graduated from Duke in June, 2014 with a 3.729 cumulative grade point average and a degree in evolutionary anthropology ... currently pursuing a graduate degree in Christian studies and holds a cumulative grade point average of 3.857 through the spring, 2015 semester ... one of two active ACC players to have earned both first team All-ACC and Academic All-ACC honors, joining teammate Will Monday ... alongside Cash (121 in 2013 & 111 in 2014) and S DeVon Edwards (133 in 2014), provides Duke with one of two active trios nationally to have recorded 100+ tackles each in a single season, joining Wake Forest’s group of Brandon Chubb, Ryan Janvion and Marquel Lee ... ranks 11th among active players nationally in career tackles, trailing Temple’s Tyler Matakevich (354), Illinois’ Mason Monheim (294), Houston’s Trevon Stewart (291), Tulsa’s Michael Mudoh (271), Georgia State’s Joseph Peterson (265), West Virginia’s Karl Joseph (264), Tulane’s Darion Monroe (259), Arizona’s Scooby Wright (246), Middle Tennessee State’s Kevin Byard (246) and Fresno State’s Kyrie Wilson (243) ... pairs with Cash (235; 14th) to provide Duke with the nation’s lone tandem of teammates ranking among the top 15 active players in career tackles ... enters the season as one of six active players nationally with 200+ tackles and 20.0+ TFL, joining Cash, Matakevich, Wright, Jatavis Brown of Akron Gerrand Johnson of Louisiana-Monroe ... pairs with Cash to give Duke the only pair of active teammates with 200+ tackles and 20.0+ TFL each ... along with younger brother, Kyler, forms the most prolific tandem among active siblings playing for the same school nationally with a combined 339 tackles entering the season ... begins 2015 as the ACC’s active leader in career tackles ... enters the 2015 campaign with a streak of 32 consecutive games with 3+ tackles ... has 26 career games with 5+ tackles ... has 7+ tackles in 15 career games ... has registered 10+ tackles nine times including a career-high 17 stops against both Georgia Tech (2013) and Miami (2013) ... in 20 career ACC regular season games, has amassed 160 total tackles (8.00) with 14.0 tackles for loss, nine QB pressures and six double digit tackle performances ... has registered 60+ tackles and 5.0+ tackles for loss in each of his three seasons at Duke (63 tackles & 5.5 TFL in 2010; 65 tackles & 7.0 TFL in 2011; 114 tackles & 11.0 TFL in 2013) ... enters the 2015 campaign 58 stops shy of becoming the 16th player in Duke history to reach the 300-tackle barrier ... begins the 2015 season 6.5 tackles for loss away from becoming the 12th player in school history to reach the 30.0-TFL barrier ... sits 58 tackles and 6.5 tackles for loss shy of joining Ryan Fowler (495 tackles & 47.5 TFL; 2000-03), Mike Junkin (513 tackles & 36.0 TFL; 1983-86) and Michael Tauiliili (434 tackles & 46.0 TFL; 2005-08) as the only players in Duke history to amass 300+ tackles and 30.0+ TFL in a career ... ranks tied for third on Duke’s career chart for fumble recoveries, three shy of the school record of nine held by Dan Brooks (1975-78) ... three-time ACC Linebacker Back of the Week honoree following outings against Virginia Tech (2013), N.C. State (2013) and Miami (2013) ... two-time Academic All-ACC selection.
2014: Team captain ... did not see game action while recovering from left knee surgery performed on August 14, 2014.
2013: First team All-ACC selection by the Atlantic Coast Sports Media Association ... second team All-ACC choice by the league’s head coaches ... Capital One Academic All-District III pick ... Academic All-ACC selection ... recipient of the Vincent Rey Award as Duke’s most outstanding linebacker ... three-time ACC Linebacker of the Week honoree after victories over Virginia Tech, N.C. State and Miami ... Walter Camp Foundation National Defensive Player of the Week following win over Virginia Tech ... played in 13 games with 12 starting assignments ... missed the Troy contest due to injury ... compiled 114 tackles, 11.0 tackles for loss, 1.0 quarterback sack, two INTs, two PBUs, two caused fumbles, two fumble recoveries and eight QB pressures ... in the ACC, ranked second in tackles per game (8.77), third in total tackles, tied for third in fumble recoveries, tied for 10th in fumble recoveries per game (0.15), 19th in tackles for loss per game (0.85) and tied for 20th in tackles for loss ... nationally, ranked tied for 34th in fumble recoveries and tied for 46th in tackles per game ... in eight ACC regular season contests, averaged a league-high 10.38 tackles per game ... cumulative tackle total ranks as the 36th-highest single-season total in school history ... reached double figures in the tackle column against Georgia Tech (17), Virginia Tech (14), N.C. State (10) and Miami (17) ... became the 14th player in Duke history to register 2+ games with 16+ tackles in a single season ... had 1+ TFL in eight games and carded multiple TFL in four weeks ... INTs came in wins over Virginia Tech and North Carolina ... INT of Virginia Tech QB Logan Thomas came with 4:22 remaining in the fourth quarter to help seal the 13-10 win over the then 16th-ranked Hokies in Blacksburg as Duke defeated a nationally-ranked opponent on the road for the first time since 1971 ... in the victory over N.C. State, logged 10 tackles, 2.0 tackles for loss, 1.0 quarterback sack and one caused fumble ... teamed with David Helton (133) and Jeremy Cash (121) to become just the second trio in Duke history to post 110+ tackles in the same season, joining Jim Reilly (137), Carl McGee (130) and Hank Rossell (130) in 1976 ... with Cash and Helton, provided Duke with one of four defensive trios nationally to post 100+ tackles each, joining Houston, Iowa and Wyoming ... on the field for 885 snaps.
2012: Did not see game action while recovering from right knee surgery performed on February 22, 2012.
2011: Academic All-ACC selection ... Mike Curtis Award recipient as Duke’s most outstanding linebacker ... also received the Mike Suglia Award, an honor presented annually to the sophomore member of the Duke football program who best exemplifies the academic and athletic qualities of the late Mike Suglia ... played in and started 10 games ... missed the Virginia and Georgia Tech weeks due to injury ... finished third on the team in total tackles (65) ... ranked 21st in the ACC in tackles per game (6.5) ... led Duke in tackles for loss (7.0) ... reached double figures in the tackle column three times ... had 10 tackles against both Richmond and Florida State before carding a season-high 13 stops versus Virginia Tech ... added 1.5 tackles for loss and a caused fumble against the Hokies ... matched career single-game best with 2.5 tackles for loss versus Wake Forest ... enjoyed Duke’s three-game stretch versus three eventual bowl teams — Florida State, Wake Forest & No. 15 Virginia Tech — in weeks 6-7-8 with combined totals of 29 tackles, 5.5 tackles for loss, 1.5 quarterback sacks and one caused fumble ... on the field for 580 snaps.
2010: Freshman All-America selection by Phil Steele (4th team) and College Football News (HM) ... finished third in the balloting for ACC Defensive Rookie of the Year by the Atlantic Coast Sports Media Association ... played in nine games with seven starts ... missed the first two games of the year while recovering from injury ... missed the season finale against North Carolina after suffering torn anterior cruciate and medial collateral ligaments in right knee the previous week at Georgia Tech ... underwent surgery on December 15, 2010 ... posted 63 tackles, 5.5 tackles for loss, 1.5 sacks, four fumble recoveries and five QB pressures ... led the nation in fumble recoveries per game (0.44) ... ranked second among ACC rookies in tackles per game (7.0) ... established Duke rookie record for fumble recoveries in a season (4) ... became just the third Duke player in the past 20 years to recover four fumbles in a season, joining John Zuanich (1994) and Terrell Smith (2002) ... fumble recoveries came against Alabama, Miami, Boston College and Georgia Tech ... the 63 tackles marked the eighth-highest single-season total by a rookie in Duke history ... logged 4+ tackles in all nine games appeared in ... top outing came in Duke’s 34-31 victory at Navy with a season-high 12 tackles, 2.5 tackles for loss, 0.5 sack and three QB pressures ... had 10 stops against Army ... made career debut in week three versus Alabama and posted four tackles, 1.5 tackles for loss, 1.0 sack and one fumble recovery while playing 19 total snaps ... played 423 snaps on the year.
PRIOR TO DUKE: Lettered three seasons at Charlotte Christian High School under coach Jason Estep ... charted as the 36th-top outside linebacker in the nation by Rivals.com ... All-Mid Atlantic Region choice by SuperPrep ... earned the Donnie Shell Defensive Player of the Year award for the Charlotte metropolitan area by the Charlotte Touchdown Club ... helped squad to three-year record of 29-9 including one state title (2008) and two state runner-up finishes (2007 & 2009) ... logged 105 tackles, five sacks and two INTs as a senior ... 2009 NCISAA first team all-state pick ... had 86 tackles, eight tackles for loss and two INTs as a junior ... two-time all-conference pick ... two-year team captain ... selected to the North Carolina squad for the fifth annual Oasis Shrine Bowl on November 27, 2009 in Charlotte, N.C.
PERSONAL: Son of Connie and Kelby Brown ... mother lettered three seasons (1981-82-84) in basketball at Northwestern ... father lettered three seasons (1979-80-81) in football at Northwestern ... brother, Kyler, is a member of the Duke football program ... born July 10, 1991 ... graduated from Duke in June, 2014 with a degree in evolutionary anthropology and is pursuing graduate degree in Christian studies.
| Kelby Brown's Career Stats | |||||||||||
| Year | G/GS | Solo | Ast | Total | TFL | QBS | INT | PBU | CF | FR | QBH |
| 2010 | 9/7 | 20 | 43 | 63 | 5.5-17 | 1.5-12 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 5 |
| 2011 | 10/10 | 31 | 34 | 65 | 7.0-32 | 1.5-12 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 |
| 2012 | — DNP — | ||||||||||
| 2013 | 13/12 | 57 | 57 | 114 | 11.0-29 | 1.0-9 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 8 |
| 2014 | — DNP — | ||||||||||
| Total | 32/29 | 108 | 134 | 242 | 23.5-78 | 4.0-33 | 2 | 5 | 3 | 6 | 15 |
| 2010 Game Log | ||||||||||
| Opponent | Solo | Ast | Total | TFL | QBS | INT | PBU | CF | FR | QBH |
| Elon | — DNP — | |||||||||
| Wake Forest | — DNP — | |||||||||
| Alabama | 1 | 3 | 4 | 1.5-9 | 1.0-8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Army | 6 | 4 | 10 | 1.0-1 | 0.0-0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Maryland | 2 | 4 | 6 | 0.5-1 | 0.0-0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Miami | 2 | 5 | 7 | 0.0-0 | 0.0-0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| Virginia Tech | 1 | 4 | 5 | 0.0-0 | 0.0-0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Navy | 3 | 9 | 12 | 2.5-6 | 0.5-4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| Virginia | 2 | 7 | 9 | 0.0-0 | 0.0-0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Boston College | 2 | 4 | 6 | 0.0-0 | 0.0-0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Georgia Tech | 1 | 3 | 4 | 0.0-0 | 0.0-0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| North Carolina | — DNP — | |||||||||
| 2011 Game Log | ||||||||||
| Opponent | Solo | Ast | Total | TFL | QBS | INT | PBU | CF | FR | QBH |
| Richmond | 0 | 10 | 10 | 1.5-3 | 0.0-0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Stanford | 3 | 2 | 5 | 0.0-0 | 0.0-0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Boston College | 3 | 2 | 5 | 0.0-0 | 0.0-0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Tulane | 1 | 2 | 3 | 0.0-0 | 0.0-0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| FIU | 3 | 1 | 4 | 0.0-0 | 0.0-0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Florida State | 6 | 4 | 10 | 1.5-9 | 1.0-9 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Wake Forest | 4 | 2 | 6 | 2.5-18 | 0.5-3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Virginia Tech | 5 | 8 | 13 | 1.5-2 | 0.0-0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Miami | 1 | 2 | 3 | 0.0-0 | 0.0-0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Virginia | — DNP — | |||||||||
| Georgia Tech | — DNP — | |||||||||
| North Carolina | 5 | 1 | 6 | 0.0-0 | 0.0-0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2013 Game Log | ||||||||||
| Opponent | Solo | Ast | Total | TFL | QBS | INT | PBU | CF | FR | QBH |
| N.C. Central | 2 | 5 | 7 | 0.5-1 | 0.0-0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Memphis | 5 | 2 | 7 | 0.0-0 | 0.0-0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Georgia Tech | 7 | 10 | 17 | 1.5-1 | 0.0-0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Pitt | 2 | 4 | 6 | 0.0-0 | 0.0-0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Troy | — DNP — | |||||||||
| Navy | 1 | 3 | 4 | 0.0-0 | 0.0-0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Virginia | 3 | 3 | 6 | 2.5-4 | 0.0-0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Virginia Tech | 4 | 10 | 14 | 1.0-2 | 0.0-0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| NC State | 6 | 4 | 10 | 2.0-10 | 1.0-9 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Miami | 6 | 11 | 17 | 1.0-3 | 0.0-0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Wake Forest | 4 | 2 | 6 | 0.0-0 | 0.0-0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| North Carolina | 6 | 1 | 7 | 0.0-0 | 0.0-0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| Florida State | 5 | 0 | 5 | 1.0-2 | 0.0-0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Texas A&M | 6 | 2 | 8 | 1.5-6 | 0.0-0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Coach Diaz Media Availability: Illinois
Wednesday, September 03
Jeremiah Hasley Media Availability: Illinois
Tuesday, September 02
Sahmir Hagans Media Availability: Illinois
Tuesday, September 02
Coach Diaz Press Conference: Illinois
Monday, September 01
