University of Minnesota Athletics

Tom Brown - M Club Hall of Fame

Tom Brown
Football, 1958-60
Men’s Track & Field, 1958-60
HOF Class of 1991

Tom Brown was one of Minnesota’s greatest offensive or defensive linemen ever. Coach Murray Warmath compared the Minneapolis Central High School grad to a "rolling boulder" for his ability to open holes for Gopher ball carriers.

The nation agreed: In his 1960 senior year Brown won the Outland Trophy as the country’s best lineman. That year, the Gopher defense allowed only 88 points all season. Minnesota tied for the Big Ten title, was voted national champion, and went to the Rose Bowl. Brown was selected as the Big Ten MVP.

Brown was also a 1960 first-team All-American, and a runner-up in Heisman Trophy voting - the closest a lineman has ever come to winning the award.

"Brownie," who also starred on the track team as a shot-putter and discus thrower, was drafted by the NFL's Baltimore Colts and by the Canadian Football League’s British Columbia Lions. He chose the latter and in 1964 as team MVP led the Lions to the Grey Cup championship. He won another Grey Cup in B.C. before a 1967 neck injury forced his retirement.

Brown was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 2003.