Brown To Become Third Husker in Pro Football Hall of Fame

Former Nebraska All-American Bob Brown will earn a permanent place among the greats of the game on Sunday when he is enshrined into the Pro Football Hall of Fame at ceremonies held at Fawcett Stadium in Canton, Ohio.

 

Brown played 10 seasons for the Philadelphia Eagles (1964-68), Los Angeles Rams (1969-70) and Oakland Raiders (1971-73), earning first-team All-NFL honors seven times in his illustrious career. The offensive tackle was a six-time Pro Bowler and was named NFL/NFC offensive lineman of the year three times during his career. Brown, who was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 1993, was a unanimous All-American at Nebraska for Coach Bob Devaney in 1963 and was the second player selected in the 1964 Draft.

 

Brown will be the third former Husker to be inducted into the NFL Hall of Fame, joining Guy Chamberlin (1920-27) and William (Roy) Lyman (1922-34). Brown will join Chamberlin as the only former Huskers who are members of both the College and NFL Hall of Fame.

 

Brown is part of a distinguished 2004 Hall of Fame Class, that also includes former Denver Broncos quarterback John Elway, former Detroit Lions running back Barry Sanders and former Minnesota Vikings offensive lineman Carl Eller.

 

The Hall of Fame induction ceremonies will be carried live on ESPN from Noon-3 p.m. on Sunday and will be shown on ESPN Classic from 4-6 p.m. (CDT) on Sunday.

 

A native of Cleveland, Ohio, Brown was known for dominating the line of scrimmage and earned the respect of opposing coaches and players throughout his career in the National Football League. His aggressive style is evident in the way Brown described his own style of play.

 

“I didn’t want to be a shock absorber,” Brown said. “I wanted to deliver the shock.”

 

His fellow 2004 inductee, Eller, often lined up against Brown and remembers the intense battles the two had on the gridiron.

 

“He would strike at you,” Eller said. “He wanted to do bodily harm. I always felt satisfied when I had a good game against Bob because his intention was to inflict pain.”

 

Some of the game’s greatest coaches were fully aware of Brown’s impact on a game.

 

“Brown is the most devastating football player I’ve ever seen,” former Raiders coach John Madden said in 1971.

 

A 1969 quote from the NFL’s all-time winningest coach, Don Shula, summed up Brown’s huge impact in the National Football League.

 

“He is the best to ever play his position,” Shula said.