Posts about Jim Brown
Counting down to the beginning of the season I'm going to attempt to post one player per day for the last 99 matching their jersey number to the days left until kick off. The players will be random. Use this thread to celebrate and Talk About Some DudesTM
I'm totally cheating on #44. There's no way around it. The number is retired by Syracuse University and you'd be hard pressed to find a more storied and decorated number than #44 at Syracuse. The trio of all-time greats that wore the number from 1954-1966 is likely unmatched.
Jim Brown (1953-1956) was born on St. Simons Island, Georgia and played high school sports at Manhasset Secondary School in New York where he lettered 13 times combined in track, basketball, baseball, lacrosse and football. Lawyer (and eventually NY Supreme Court Judge) Kenneth Malloy was a benefactor of Brown and not only persuaded Syracuse to admit him and financed Brown's first year at Syracuse due to the unwillingness of Syracuse to admit black athletes. Brown was the only African-American in 1953 and was subject to racist taunts, housed in non-athlete dorms, warned against dating white women and despite being an NY HS legend at running back was played at punter, lineman and wide receiver. When finally given the opportunity to carry the ball he was an All-American in 1955 and a unanimous All-American in 1956 and finished 5th in the Heisman race. In 8 games he ran for 986 yards and 14 TDs on a school record 6.2 yards per carry. In addition to his gridiron success Brown lettered in basketball and track and was so dominant in lacrosse they changed the rules (at the time) requiring a lacrosse player to keep their stick in constant motion when carrying the ball. He was a lacrosse All-American and Hall of Famer in addition to his football success. After college he advanced to the NFL where he was drafted by the Cleveland Browns and was an NFL champion, 3x MVP, rookie of the year, 8x first-team All-Pro, 1x second-team All-Pro, 8x league rushing leader, 5x rushing TD leader, and finished his career as the NFLs all-time leading rusher. Brown is a member of the College and Pro Football Halls of Fame and his #32 is retired by the Browns.
Ernie Davis (1959-1961) was born in New Salem, Pennsylvania and eventually moved to Elmira, New York where he excelled at baseball, basketball and football and earned two HS All-American honors. He was heavily recruited by was persuaded to attend Syracuse University by Jim Brown. In his first year on varsity in 1959 Davis lead his Orangemen to a National Championship in a Cotton Bowl victory over Texas where he was named MVP. During the awards banquet in Dallas he and his two other black teammates were not allowed to sit at the same tables with the white athletes and were escorted out after food and awards were issued while the remainder of the athletes danced and partied. 1960 saw Davis earn consensus All-American honors after tallying 877s and 100 or more yards in six of nine games. He also broke Brown's YPC record with a staggering 7.8 average. 1961 saw Davis tally another 823 rushing yard and 15 TDs while also leading the team in receiving with 15 catches for 157 yards. The Orangemen finished 10th in the polls and Ernie was a unanimous All-American, the Walter Camp award winner and the first black player to win the Heisman trophy. He finished with school records in career rushing yards, all purpose yards, scoring and TDs. He was drafted first overall in the 1962 draft but was taken by leukemia before ever playing a down in the NFL and died in 1963. He was posthumously inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame.
Floyd 'the Franchise' Little (1964-1966) was born in New Haven, Connecticut and attended the Bordentown Military Institute in Bordentown, New Jersey where he was recruited by Gen. Douglas MacArthur to play football at the military academy but had his mind made up to attend Notre Dame before being persuded by Ernie Davis to attend Syracuse. 1964 saw him tally 157 carries for 874 yards and 9 TDs to pair with 17 catches for 257 yards and 1 TD and All-America honors. In 1965 he racked up 1065 yards and 14 TDs to pair with 21 catches for 248 yards and 1 TD, led the nation in all-purpose yardage, breaking both Brown and Davis's records to average 199 yards per game earning him a fifth place Heisman finish and All-American honors. His senior year of 1966 saw another stellar season totaling 811 yards and 12 TDs with 13 catches for 86 yards and 2 TDs, another fifth place Heisman finish and again All-American honors. He was the sixth ever draft pick of the NFL/AFL 'common draft' and the first first-round pick to sign with the Denver Broncos where he earned his name as 'the Franchise.' He was first-team All-Pro in 1969, lead the NFL in rushing in 1970 and 1971 and in TDs in 1973. He was an inaugural member of the Denver Broncos Ring of Honor and his #44 was retired there. He's a member of both the College and Pro Football Halls of Fame.
The number 44 was only issued six more times after the trio's collegiate careers and was shelved for good after NFL fullback Rob Konrad graduated in 1998.
Jim Brown vs TCU 1957, Ernie Davis Heisman winner, Floyd Little vs FSU
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