Chase Brown passes Illinois legend on program’s all-time list with efficient start, quick TD to Week 4 contest

Chase Brown is climbing the program all-time ranks at Illinois, and he passed an especially legendary figure in the first half of action against Chattanooga.

On the opening drive of the Thursday night contest, Brown carried the ball 3 times for 24 yards and a touchdown. He finished the drive with a 9-yard plunge to give the Illini the lead before 3 minutes of game time had expired.

In that first drive, Brown surpassed Red Grange for 16th on the program’s all-time rushing list. Grange rushed for 2,074 yards during his Illini career in the 1920s and was famous for the “Galloping Ghost” moniker.

𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐜𝐥𝐢𝐦𝐛 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐮𝐞𝐬…

With his 13-yard gain, @chasebrown____ passes #Illini legend Red Grange on the Illinois career rushing yards leaderboard!#HTTO | #famILLy pic.twitter.com/YzzwZcl2DO

— Illinois Football (@IlliniFootball) September 23, 2022

We’ll see how high Brown can climb on the list for the Illini by season’s end. He’s off to an electric start to the season and should see a lot of usage throughout the B1G slate.

The Fighting Illini strikes first on Thursday Night Football 🙌@IlliniFootball pic.twitter.com/FW7abhLUXO

— FOX College Football (@CFBONFOX) September 23, 2022

Paul Harvey

Paul is a lifelong fan and student of all things college football. He has been covering college football since 2017 and the B1G since 2018.