Qua Brown had a dream as a kid to play basketball at the next level and now his dream has come true.
The Morgan County senior signed a letter of intent to play collegiately at North Carolina A&T last week.
“The process went smoothly,” Brown said. “They have been recruiting me since I was in the ninth grade. So, I already had a relationship with them and built it with the fans and people at A&T.”
Brown, who was once committed to the University of Georgia, developed a relationship with former North Carolina A&T interim head coach Phillip Shumpert. He then kept ties with the Aggies once new head coach Monté Ross was hired away from the University of Delaware on April 10.
“I started loving North Carolina A&T. Once I started talking to coach Monté (Ross), and we had a good conversation, I felt like it was still the move,” Brown said. “I am excited about this chance.”
Brown is a Madison native but attended Newton County High School for the past three years. He transferred back to MCHS before the start of the season to play for first-year head coach Cody Anderson, who joined the program last summer after former coach Jamond Sims took another job.
“I had been asking my mom if I could come back to Morgan County since we moved,” Brown said. “After we moved, I was asking to come back. I wanted to play my last couple of years at home. I’ve matured a lot and I got to come home and play in front of my hometown. It was a big step for me.”
However, just a few games into his senior season, he suffered a season-ending injury at the Bulldogs’ win over Putnam County in early December, a few days before he committed to NC A&T.
Morgan County had just knocked off the rival War Eagles and Brown was celebrating after the game. He jumped in the air and landed wrong following the game. A few days later, Brown had surgery to repair his Achilles tendon, which took him out of competition for the rest of the season.
“He was leading us in most of our statistical categories,” Anderson said. “However, he persevered and has worked hard to get back. Qua cheered his teammates on from the sideline and helped motivate the team. He was a blessing to coach in my first full year here at Morgan County.”
According to Brown, he has been working his way back to being “100 percent healthy.”
“I feel great,” Brown said. “My goal is to be ready to go before the start of next season at A&T.”
The 6-foot-4, 175-pound shooting guard is the first official signee of the Monte Ross era at North Carolina A&T. He also hopes to make an impact right away when he steps foot on the Aggies’ campus.
Brown also now joins a long list of Morgan County players to have signed to play at the Division I level. He looks up to former Bulldogs such as Jailyn Ingram, Tookie Brown and Tyrin Lawrence for inspiration.
“It feels good to be the next ‘Dog that’s signed,” Brown said. “It feels really good. Glad I could come home.”