The Niles Star

ND’s Tim Brown among those headed to Hall

DALLAS – Thousands of college football fans from across the country will join the National Football Foundation from July 16-17 at the College Football Hall of Fame in South Bend, Ind., for the organization’s annual Enshrinement Festival, which will pay tribute to the storied careers of Tim Brown from  the University of Notre Dame along with 23 other football standouts as they are formally enshrined into the Hall of Fame.

“We are very pleased to have the opportunity to enshrine another exceptional class of college football legends,” said NFF President & CEO Steven J. Hatchell. “Each year our hard-working honors courts do an outstanding job ensuring the game’s greatest players and coaches find their place on college football’s mountain top. We look forward to celebrating in South Bend with this amazing class and their loyal fans from around the country.”

As a two-time All-America, Tim Brown easily earned the nickname “Touchdown Timmy.” Setting a freshman record with 28 receptions his first year with the Fighting Irish, Brown would continue to establish himself as a standout player on the field and in the record books. During his sophomore season, Brown totaled 25 catches and three touchdowns. The following year he set a Notre Dame record for single season all-purpose yards with 1,937.

Brown’s head coach Lou Holtz declared Brown to be the most intelligent football player he had ever been around and was later quoted as saying that, “I can’t imagine that there’s anyone else who can have such a major effect on a football game in as many ways as Tim Brown can.” During the 1987 game against Michigan State, Brown became the first player in college football history to score on two consecutive punt returns. Brown electrified the crowd with a 71-yard return and followed it with a 66-yard run. Leading Brown’s coach to state that, “The only way we’re going to keep the ball out of Tim Brown’s hands is if they intercept the snap from center.” The 1987 season also had Brown totaling 275 all-purpose yards in 14 touches. During the game against Michigan that same season he made a remarkable catch between two defenders for the winning touchdown. Setting 19 school records, Brown had 39 catches for 846 yards, returned 34 punts, rushed 144 yards and scored seven touchdowns his senior year, securing him the Walter Camp Award. Most outstandingly, Brown became the first wide receiver to be awarded the Heisman Trophy.

Following his tremendous senior season, the Los Angeles Raiders selected Brown as sixth overall draft pick. During his rookie season, Brown set the NFL record for most combined yards gained (2,317), which he still holds today. Also in his rookie year, Brown led the league in kickoff returns, return yards and yards per return average.

A member of the NFL 1990′s All-Decade team, he was named to the Pro Bowl nine times. He set an NFL record with 75 receptions in 10 straight seasons. In 2001, Brown became the oldest player in NFL history to score a touchdown on a kick return. Brown retired in 2005 with the second-highest total for receiving yards (14,934) in NFL history. Upon retirement, Brown became the only player to have 1,600 receiving yards with four different teams (Chargers, Chiefs, Seahawks, Broncos).