Donald A. Brown Jr. (born July 31, 1955) is an American

college football College football is gridiron football that is played by teams of amateur Student athlete, student-athletes at universities and colleges. It was through collegiate competition that gridiron football American football in the United States, firs ...

coach and former player. He was most recently the head football coach for the

University of Massachusetts Amherst The University of Massachusetts Amherst (UMass Amherst) is a public land-grant research university in Amherst, Massachusetts, United States. It is the flagship campus of the University of Massachusetts system and was founded in 1863 as the ...

, a position he held from 2004 to 2008 and again from 2022 to 2024. In between his two stints as UMass, Brown was the

defensive coordinator A defensive coordinator (DC) is a coach responsible for a gridiron football team's defense. Generally, the defensive coordinator, offensive coordinator and special teams coordinator represent the second level of a team's coaching structure, wit ...

at the

University of Maryland, College Park The University of Maryland, College Park (University of Maryland, UMD, or simply Maryland) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in College Park, Maryland, United States. Founded in 1856, UMD i ...

, the

University of Connecticut The University of Connecticut (UConn) is a public land-grant research university system with its main campus in Storrs, Connecticut, United States. It was founded in 1881 as the Storrs Agricultural School, named after two benefactors. In 1893, ...

Boston College Boston College (BC) is a private university, private Catholic Jesuits, Jesuit research university in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1863 by the Society of Jesus, a Catholic Religious order (Catholic), religious order, t ...

, the

University of Michigan The University of Michigan (U-M, U of M, or Michigan) is a public university, public research university in Ann Arbor, Michigan, United States. Founded in 1817, it is the oldest institution of higher education in the state. The University of Mi ...

, and the

University of Arizona The University of Arizona (Arizona, U of A, UArizona, or UA) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Tucson, Arizona, United States. Founded in 1885 by the 13th Arizona Territorial Legislature, it ...

. He served as the head football coach at

Plymouth State University Plymouth State University (abbrevriated PSU), formerly Plymouth State College, is a public university in Plymouth, New Hampshire, United States. As of fall 2020, Plymouth State University enrolls 4,491 students (3,739 undergraduate students and ...

from 1993 to 1995 and

Northeastern University Northeastern University (NU or NEU) is a private university, private research university with its main campus in Boston, Massachusetts, United States. It was founded by the Boston Young Men's Christian Association in 1898 as an all-male instit ...

from 2000 to 2003. Brown was also the interim head baseball coach at

Yale University Yale University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701, Yale is the List of Colonial Colleges, third-oldest institution of higher education in the United Stat ...

in 1992, tallying a mark of 26–10.

Early life and college

Brown was born in

Spencer, Massachusetts Spencer is a town in Worcester County, Massachusetts, Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 11,992 at the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census. For geographic and demographic information on the census-designated pl ...

, where he attended David Prouty High School. He went on to play football as a fullback at

Norwich University Norwich University is a private university in Northfield, Vermont, United States. The university was founded in 1819 as the "American Literary, Scientific and Military Academy". It is the oldest of six senior military college, senior militar ...

. He served as team captain during his senior season in 1976. Brown graduated in 1977. In 1996, he earned a master's degree from Plymouth State University.

Coaching career

Early positions

Brown began his coaching career as an assistant football,

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball sport played between two team sport, teams of nine players each, taking turns batting (baseball), batting and Fielding (baseball), fielding. The game occurs over the course of several Pitch ...

, and

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appro ...

coach for Hartford High School in

Hartford, Vermont Hartford is a town in Windsor County, Vermont, United States. It is on the New Hampshire border, at the intersection of Interstates 89 and 91. It is the site of the confluence of the White and Connecticut rivers; the Ottauquechee River also f ...

. In 1979, he was promoted to head baseball coach following the resignation of Bob Potter but still served as an assistant football coach under him. He served as the

backfield The offensive backfield is the area of an American football field behind the line of scrimmage, and players positioned there on offense who begin plays behind the line, typically including the quarterback and running backs ( halfbacks and full ...

coach. He resigned from coaching all three sports in 1982 to accept a part-time football position for Dartmouth. Brown taught physical education while coaching for Hartford. With Dartmouth, Brown served as a

graduate assistant A graduate assistant serves in a support role at a university, usually while completing post-graduate education. The assistant typically helps professors with instructional responsibilities as teaching assistants or with academic research resp ...

working with the

linebackers Linebacker (LB) is a playing position in gridiron football. Linebackers are members of the defensive team, and typically line up three to five yards behind the line of scrimmage and so back up the defensive linemen. They play closer to the lin ...

for one season in 1982. The team won the

Ivy League The Ivy League is an American collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference of eight Private university, private Research university, research universities in the Northeastern United States. It participates in the National Collegia ...

and finished with a 5–5 record. He was hired as the

for Mansfield under first-year head coach Tom Elsasser in 1983. In 1984, he returned to Dartmouth as the team's

defensive backs In gridiron football, defensive backs (DBs), also called the secondary, are the players on the defensive side of the ball who play farthest back from the line of scrimmage. They are distinguished from the other two sets of defensive players, the ...

coach. He was fired alongside the rest of the coaching staff aside from one after Joe Yukica was fired. After being highly recommended by Yukica, Brown was hired for the same position for

Yale Yale University is a private Ivy League research university in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701, Yale is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States, and one of the nine colonial colleges ch ...

. In 1989, he was promoted to defensive coordinator.

Yale baseball

In 1988, Brown served as the

junior varsity A varsity team is the highest-level team in a sport or activity representing an educational institution. Varsity teams train to compete against each other during an athletic season or in periodic matches against rival institutions. At High school, ...

head coach and assistant varsity baseball coach for

. After one season he did not retain an official role with the team but occasionally helped with practices throughout his tenure as an assistant football coach. Brown was named the interim head baseball coach at Yale during the 1992 season after the resignation of long-time head coach Joe Benanto late in the summer. Brown led the Bulldogs to a 26–10 record, including a 14–4 mark in the

Eastern Intercollegiate Baseball League The Eastern Intercollegiate Baseball League was a baseball-only conference that existed from 1930 to 1992. It consisted of the eight Ivy League schools along with Army and Navy. The league disbanded after the 1992 season, when Army and Navy joined ...

(EIBL), the EIBL championship, and a bid to the

NCAA The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates College athletics in the United States, student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, and Simon Fraser University, 1 in Canada. ...

tournament. Competing in the Midwest Regional, Yale lost the opener to Clemson, before taking an elimination game against Nicholls State. The Bulldogs were then eliminated by

UCLA The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California, United States. Its academic roots were established in 1881 as a normal school then known as the southern branch of the C ...

Plymouth State

In 1993, Brown assumed his first head coaching job at

Plymouth State Plymouth State University (abbrevriated PSU), formerly Plymouth State College, is a public university in Plymouth, New Hampshire, United States. As of fall 2020, Plymouth State University enrolls 4,491 students (3,739 undergraduate students and 7 ...

, a

Division III In sport, the Third Division, also called Division 3, Division Three, or Division III, is often the third-highest division of a league, and will often have promotion and relegation with divisions above and below. Association football *Belgian Third ...

school. During his last two years, he led the team to win the Freedom Football Conference (FFC) championship and advanced to the Division III playoffs. Brown was named the FFC Coach of the Year in all three of his seasons at Plymouth State. In 1994, he was also named the

American Football Coaches Association The American Football Coaches Association (AFCA) is an association of over 11,000 American football coaches and staff on all levels. According to its constitution, some of the main goals of the American Football Coaches Association are to "mainta ...

District I Coach of the Year.

Assistant coach

Brown and UMass

In 1996, he took over as the defensive coordinator at

Brown Brown is a color. It can be considered a composite color, but it is mainly a darker shade of orange. In the CMYK color model used in printing and painting, brown is usually made by combining the colors Orange (colour), orange and black. In the ...

. In his second season, Brown posted its best record (7–5) in 20 years, led the nation with a school record 28

interception In Ball game, ball-playing Competitive sport, competitive team sports, an interception or pick is a move by a player involving a pass of the ball—whether by foot or hand, depending on the rules of the sport—in which the ball is intended for ...

s, and ranked second in takeaways with 36. Opponents scored an average of 19.4 points per game. In 1998, Brown moved to

UMass The University of Massachusetts is the public university system of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. The university system includes six campuses (Amherst, Boston, Dartmouth, Lowell, a medical school in Worcester and a law school in Dartmouth ...

as its defensive coordinator. That year, UMass won the

Division I-AA The NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision (FCS), formerly known as Division I-AA, is the second-highest level of college football in the United States, after the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS). Sponsored by the National Collegiate A ...

national championship. In 1999, they earned a share of the

Atlantic 10 The Atlantic 10 Conference (A-10) is a collegiate athletic conference whose schools compete in the National Collegiate Athletic Association's (NCAA) Division I. The A-10's member schools are located mostly on the East Coast and Midwest of the ...

championship and secured another berth in the Division I-AA playoffs.

Northeastern

From 2000 to 2003, Brown held his second head coaching job at Northeastern. The season prior to his arrival, the Huskies finished with a 2–9 record. In 2000, Northeastern scored a 35–27 upset victory over

Division I-A The NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS), formerly known as Division I-A, is the highest level of college football in the United States. The FBS consists of the largest schools in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). As ...

Connecticut Connecticut ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York (state), New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. ...

. In 2002, he led Northeastern to an 11th-place final ranking, the school's highest-ever placement. The Huskies' ten wins were also the most in school history. That season, he was named Atlantic 10 Conference Coach of the Year, New England Football Writers Coach of the Year, and American Football Coaches Association Region I Coach of the Year. In 2003, he led the Huskies to a third-place finish in the Atlantic 10, and the eight-win season matched the second-most in school history. Northeastern was the only team to record a victory against

Delaware Delaware ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic and South Atlantic states, South Atlantic regions of the United States. It borders Maryland to its south and west, Pennsylvania to its north, New Jersey ...

, which went on to become the Division I-AA champions. In 2003 Brown signed a contract with Northeastern through the end of the 2009 football season, but then

breached Breached was a Canadians, Canadian rock band from Toronto, Ontario, active from 2010 to 2015. Its members were Bobby Noakes (vocals), Age of Days, Mike Diesel (guitar/vocals), Ryan Alexander (bass), and Dear Jane, I..., Neil Uppal (drums). Mike ...

his contract in 2004 to work for UMass.

UMass

In 2004, Brown returned to UMass to take over as its head coach. During his tenure as head coach from 2004 to 2008, UMass posted the best five-year record in school history, 43–19. In his first year, he led the Minutemen to a 6–5 record, including victories over fourth-ranked Colgate, seventh-ranked , and ninth-ranked . In 2005, Brown led UMass to a 7–2 start and a final ranking of #19. That year, the Minutemen defeated fourth-ranked

James Madison James Madison (June 28, 1836) was an American statesman, diplomat, and Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father who served as the fourth president of the United States from 1809 to 1817. Madison was popularly acclaimed as the ...

and handed Delaware their worst home loss in two decades, 35–7. In 2006, Brown led Massachusetts to the Atlantic 10 conference championship and a finished as runners-up in the national championship. They ended the season ranked No. 2 with a 13–2 record. At home, he set a school record with a perfect 8–0 record in

McGuirk Stadium Warren McGuirk Alumni Stadium, is a 17,000-seat multi-purpose stadium in Hadley, Massachusetts, on the campus of the University of Massachusetts Amherst. It has been the Massachusetts Minutemen football team's home stadium since 1965, with the ...

. That season, Brown was named the AFCA Region I Coach of the Year, Atlantic 10 Coach of the Year, and New England Football Coach of the Year. In 2007, UMass again won its conference as a member of the

Colonial Athletic Association The Coastal Athletic Association (CAA), formerly the ECAC South Conference and the Colonial Athletic Association, is a collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference affiliated with the National Collegiate Athletic Association, NCAA' ...

. The team advanced to the semifinals and finished the season with a No. 6 final ranking.Player Bio: Don Brown
, Official University of Massachusetts Athletics Website, retrieved January 10, 2009.

Second stint as assistant coach

Maryland

On January 9, 2009, the

University of Maryland The University of Maryland, College Park (University of Maryland, UMD, or simply Maryland) is a public land-grant research university in College Park, Maryland, United States. Founded in 1856, UMD is the flagship institution of the Univ ...

announced the hiring of Brown as its defensive coordinator, which filled the vacancy created by the departure of

Chris Cosh Chris Cosh (born May 12, 1959) is an American football coach and former player. He currently serves as the defensive coordinator at Hampton University. Playing career Cosh played linebacker for the Virginia Tech Hokies football, Virginia Tech Ho ...

.Brown Hired As Defensive Coordinator
, University of Maryland Terrapins Football, January 9, 2009, retrieved January 9, 2009. Maryland paid UMass a $25,000 buyout in accordance with the terms of Brown's contract. With a dearth of experience and talent, especially on the

offensive line In gridiron football, a lineman is a player who specializes in play at the line of scrimmage. The linemen of the team currently in possession of the ball are the offensive line (OL), while linemen on the opposing team are the defensive line ( ...

, Maryland suffered a 2–10 record during the 2009 season.Patrick Stevens
Breaking down why Terrapins broke down
''The Washington Times'', November 28, 2009. The loss of cornerback

Nolan Carroll Nolan Alexander Carroll II (born January 18, 1987) is an American former professional football cornerback. He played college football for the Maryland Terrapins. He was selected by the Miami Dolphins in the fifth round of the 2010 NFL draft. He h ...

due to a broken leg was cited as a serious detriment for the defense. The defense struggled to pressure opposing

quarterback The quarterback (QB) is a position in gridiron football who are members of the offensive side of the ball and mostly line up directly behind the Lineman (football), offensive line. In modern American football, the quarterback is usually consider ...

s with the implementation of Brown's aggressive,

blitz Blitz, German for "lightning", may refer to: Military uses *Blitzkrieg, blitz campaign, or blitz, a type of military campaign *The Blitz, the German aerial campaign against Britain in the Second World War *, several ships of the Prussian, Imperia ...

-oriented scheme. Maryland finished tied for last in the

Atlantic Coast Conference The Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) is a collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference in the United States. Headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina, the ACC's eighteen member universities compete in the National Collegiate Athlet ...

in scoring defense, allowing an average of 31.2 points per game causing just twelve turnovers, and recording two sacks. The lower-than-expected figures were attributed to a lack of players suited to the defensive scheme. With a year of experience in Brown's defense and a stronger secondary, the unit was expected to improve during the 2010 season. Maryland rebounded with a 9–4 record and a bowl game victory, with a markedly improved defense.DC Don Brown: 'I know I've got a lot of good football in me'
''The Washington Post'', December 23, 2010. ''

The Washington Post ''The Washington Post'', locally known as ''The'' ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'' or ''WP'', is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C., the national capital. It is the most widely circulated newspaper in the Washington m ...

'' described Brown's scheme as "organized chaos" and "blitzing nearly 85 percent of the time." Highly touted junior safety Kenny Tate emerged as a playmaker, and Brown praised his play at "virtually every position on the field" as "unbelievable". Brown was credited with preparing the team well for the 2010 Military Bowl, where Maryland beat the 12th-ranked offense of East Carolina, 51–20. After the season, head coach

Ralph Friedgen Ralph Harry Friedgen (born April 4, 1947) is a former American football coach. He was most recently the special assistant coach for Rutgers in 2015 after serving as their offensive coordinator in the 2014 season. He was the head coach at the Un ...

was fired, and Brown stated a desire to remain at Maryland on the next coaching staff.

Connecticut and Boston College

On February 4, 2011, Brown was hired as the defensive coordinator at the University of Connecticut. He kept that position until December 19, 2012, when he was hired to serve the same position at

Michigan

On December 21, 2015, Brown was named defensive coordinator at Michigan under head coach

Jim Harbaugh James Joseph Harbaugh ( ; born December 23, 1963) is an American professional football coach and former quarterback who is the head coach of the Los Angeles Chargers of the National Football League (NFL). He previously served as the head coach at ...

. Brown replaced former defensive coordinator D. J. Durkin, who had departed to take the head coaching job at

Maryland Maryland ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It borders the states of Virginia to its south, West Virginia to its west, Pennsylvania to its north, and Delaware to its east ...

. Brown was fired from Michigan on December 22, 2020, after five seasons. Under Brown, Michigan's defense was ranked 2nd (2016), 6th (2017), 8th (2018) and 10th (2019) but dropped to 56th in 2020.

Arizona

It was announced on January 6, 2021, that

Jedd Fisch Jedd Ari Fisch (born May 5, 1976) is an American football coach, currently the head coach at the University of Washington. He was previously the head coach at the University of Arizona for three seasons. Prior to his tenure at Arizona, Fisc ...

would name Brown as the defensive coordinator at the

. After taking over, he improved Arizona’s defense from the previous 2020 season, which was the 100th-ranked defense, to the 57th-ranked total defense.

Second stint at UMass

In November 2021 UMass, now an FBS independent, again hired Brown as its head coach. The Minutemen are a combined 4–20 in Brown's two seasons, showing improvement from 1–11 in 2022 to 3–9 in 2023. On November 18, 2024, Brown was fired after a 2–8 start to the 2024 season and a 6–28 overall record.

Coaching philosophy

Brown is regarded as one of the top defensive minds in the country. He has led FBS programs to close to a dozen top-10 national finishes in total defense, with three of those seasons in the top three. He is known for coaching aggressive, high-energy, hard-hitting defenses. Sometimes nicknamed “Dr. Blitz” for his defenses always being on the attack, he is also known for being a players' coach. He believes in players taking accountability for themselves and each other, and in leaders rising as a result. Brown stresses discipline, technique, and fundamentally sound football.

Development

Brown is known for maximizing players' potential and developing players to the next level. He has coached over 50 All-Big Ten and numerous other all-conference players. He has coached numerous

NFL The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league in the United States. Composed of 32 teams, it is divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The N ...

players and coached seven

All-Americans The All-America designation is an annual honor bestowed on outstanding athletes in the United States who are considered to be among the best athletes in their respective sport. Individuals receiving this distinction are typically added to an Al ...

Devin Bush Jr. Devin Marquese Bush Jr. (born July 18, 1998) is an American professional American football, football linebacker for the Cleveland Browns of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Michigan Wolverines football, Mic ...

, Lavert Hill,

Chase Winovich Chase Camden Winovich () (born April 19, 1995) is an American former professional football player who was a defensive end for five seasons in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Michigan Wolverines. He was a tw ...

, Chris Wormley, and consensus picks Maurice Hurst Jr., Jourdan Lewis, and

Jabrill Peppers Jabrill Ahmad Peppers (born October 4, 1995) is an American professional American football, football Safety (gridiron football position), safety for the New England Patriots of the National Football League (NFL). He was a two-time college football ...

. At UMass he coached NFL players such as Victor Cruz, James Ihedigbo, Jeremy Cain, Emil Igwenagu, and Vladimir Ducasse.

Head coaching record

*Fired after 10 games.

References

External links

Maryland profile

Boston College profile

Michigan profile

Arizona profile

UMass profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Brown, Don 1955 births Living people American football running backs Arizona Wildcats football coaches Boston College Eagles football coaches Brown Bears football coaches UConn Huskies football coaches Dartmouth Big Green football coaches Mansfield Mounties football coaches Maryland Terrapins football coaches Michigan Wolverines football coaches Northeastern Huskies football coaches Norwich Cadets football players Plymouth State Panthers football coaches UMass Minutemen football coaches Yale Bulldogs baseball coaches Yale Bulldogs football coaches High school baseball coaches in the United States High school basketball coaches in Vermont High school football coaches in Vermont Plymouth State University alumni People from Spencer, Massachusetts Coaches of American football from Massachusetts Players of American football from Worcester County, Massachusetts Baseball coaches from Massachusetts Basketball coaches from Massachusetts