Charles Henry "Kippy" Brown
1993 Tennessee Volunteers Football Guide
', UTSports.com, p. 26. Accessed November 1, 2015. (born March 6, 1955) is an
American football
American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team wi ...
former coach and former player who most recently was the wide receivers coach for the
Seattle Seahawks of the
National Football League
The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the ...
(NFL). He was a college-level starting
quarterback
The quarterback (commonly abbreviated "QB"), colloquially known as the "signal caller", is a position in gridiron football. Quarterbacks are members of the offensive platoon and mostly line up directly behind the offensive line. In modern Ame ...
for
Memphis
Memphis most commonly refers to:
* Memphis, Egypt, a former capital of ancient Egypt
* Memphis, Tennessee, a major American city
Memphis may also refer to:
Places United States
* Memphis, Alabama
* Memphis, Florida
* Memphis, Indiana
* Memp ...
and coached in various capacities at both the college and professional levels of
American football
American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team wi ...
. He retired in May 2015.
Playing career
Kippy Brown began his football career at
Sweetwater High School in
Sweetwater, Tennessee
Sweetwater is a city in Monroe and McMinn counties in the U.S. state of Tennessee, and the most populous city in Monroe County. The population was 5764 at the 2010 census and 6,312 at the 2020 census. Sweetwater is the home of the Craighead C ...
, under long-time Sweetwater coach King Berrong (1925–2013). He led Sweetwater to the 1971 and 1972 state championships,
1983 Tennessee Volunteers Football Guide
', UTSports.com, p. 27. Accessed November 1, 2015. and helped the team lead the state in scoring in 1972 and 1973.
Following his high school career, Brown attended Memphis State University (now known as University of Memphis) where he was quarterback for the Tigers from 1975 to 1977. Notably, Brown's Tigers upset seventh-ranked
Auburn University 31–20 in 1975. Brown engineered this victory by completing 7 of 11 passes for 103 yards and two
touchdown
A touchdown (abbreviated as TD) is a scoring play in gridiron football. Whether running, passing, returning a kickoff or punt, or recovering a turnover, a team scores a touchdown by advancing the ball into the opponent's end zone. In Amer ...
s, including a 37-yard strike to
Keith Wright in the fourth quarter that put the game out of reach.
Coaching career
1978–1999
After graduating from MSU in 1977 with a B.A. in Communications, Brown switched gears from playing to coaching at his
alma mater and served as
running back
A running back (RB) is a member of the offensive backfield in gridiron football. The primary roles of a running back are to receive handoffs from the quarterback to rush the ball, to line up as a receiver to catch the ball,
and block. Ther ...
s coach in 1978 under head coach Richard Williamson and receivers coach from 1979 to 1980.
After coaching two years with the Tigers, he moved to
Louisville, Kentucky
Louisville ( , , ) is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky and the 28th most-populous city in the United States. Louisville is the historical seat and, since 2003, the nominal seat of Jefferson County, on the Indiana border ...
to coach
receivers at the
University of Louisville
The University of Louisville (UofL) is a public research university in Louisville, Kentucky. It is part of the Kentucky state university system. When founded in 1798, it was the first city-owned public university in the United States and one o ...
(U of L) Cardinals for the 1982 campaign. One of his pupils was
Mark Clayton, who would go on to become a five-time Pro Bowl receiver for the
Miami Dolphins
The Miami Dolphins are a professional American football team based in the Miami metropolitan area. They compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member team of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) East division. The team p ...
from 1983 to 1992.
Following the 1982 season at U of L, Brown returned to his roots in the state of Tennessee helping coach the
Johnny Majors
John Terrill Majors (May 21, 1935June 3, 2020) was an American professional football player and college coach. A standout halfback at the University of Tennessee, he was an All-American in 1956 and a two-time winner of the Southeastern Confe ...
-run
University of Tennessee
The University of Tennessee (officially The University of Tennessee, Knoxville; or UT Knoxville; UTK; or UT) is a public land-grant research university in Knoxville, Tennessee. Founded in 1794, two years before Tennessee became the 16th state ...
Volunteers football team. During his first stint with the Vols from 1983 to 1989, Brown helped Tennessee acquire the nickname "Wide Receiver U.,"
coaching numerous pass catchers to greatness. Receivers
Lenny Taylor
Leonard Moore Taylor (born February 15, 1961) is a former wide receiver in the National Football League (NFL) and the Arena Football League (AFL).
Biography
Taylor was born Leonard Moore Taylor on February 15, 1961, in Miami, Florida.
Caree ...
,
Clyde Duncan
Clyde Louis Duncan, Jr. (February 5, 1961 – February 16, 2015) was a professional American football wide receiver in the National Football League (NFL). He played two seasons for the St. Louis Cardinals in 1984 and 1985, finishing his caree ...
,
Tim McGee
Timothy Dwayne Hatchett McGee (born August 7, 1964) is a former professional American football wide receiver who played in the National Football League (NFL) for the Cincinnati Bengals and the Washington Redskins from 1986 to 1994. Before his N ...
,
Joey Clinkscales,
Anthony Miller,
Alvin Harper
Alvin Craig Harper (born July 6, 1967) is a former football wide receiver in the National Football League for the Dallas Cowboys, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Washington Redskins and New Orleans Saints. He was drafted by the Dallas Cowboys in the first ...
,
Anthony Morgan, and
Carl Pickens
Carl McNally Pickens (born March 23, 1970) is a former American football wide receiver who played in the National Football League (NFL) for the Cincinnati Bengals and Tennessee Titans.
Early life
Pickens attended Murphy High School in Murphy, ...
all benefited from Brown's tutelage prior to their joining the professional ranks.
[Kiffin Trying to Lure Brown Back to Tennessee]
" ESPN, December 16, 2009. Retrieved: November 1, 2015.
Brown caught the attention of the
New York Jets while with Tennessee and coached for the Jets from 1990 to 1992. While with the Jets in 1991, he coached running backs for New York head coach
Bruce Coslet
Bruce Coslet (born August 5, 1946) is a former American college and professional football player and professional football coach. A tight end, he played for the University of the Pacific and in 1969 debuted with the American Football League's C ...
and saw his backs rank fifth in the
NFL in
rushing. That 1991 squad also returned to the
playoffs
The playoffs, play-offs, postseason or finals of a sports league are a competition played after the regular season by the top competitors to determine the league champion or a similar accolade. Depending on the league, the playoffs may be eit ...
for the first time since 1986.
Brown later returned to Tennessee when the Vols' new head coach
Phillip Fulmer convinced him to return to the collegiate ranks as assistant head coach and wide receivers coach for two seasons (1993–1994).
He brought an offensive flair from the professional ranks to the UT offensive package as the Vols compiled an 18–6 record and outscored their opponents 847–383 over the course of those two years. Receivers he worked with during this period included
Cory Fleming,
Billy Williams,
Joey Kent
Joey Kent (born April 23, 1974 in Huntsville, Alabama) is a former American football wide receiver in the National Football League. He was drafted by the Tennessee Oilers in the second round of the 1997 NFL Draft. He played college football at ...
, and
Marcus Nash
Marcus DeLando Nash (born February 1, 1976) is a retired American football wide receiver, formerly of the Dallas Desperados of the Arena Football League. He was drafted by the Denver Broncos 30th overall in the 1998 NFL Draft. He played colleg ...
.
A young
Peyton Manning also benefited from Brown's guidance during his
freshman campaign as the Vols' signal caller.
Following a highly successful 1994 Tennessee season, Brown was again called to the pro ranks, joining
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are a professional American football team based in Tampa, Florida. The Buccaneers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) South division. The cl ...
in 1995. Then-Tampa Bay head coach
Sam Wyche
Samuel David Wyche (; January 5, 1945 – January 2, 2020) was an American football quarterback and coach. He was a quarterback and head coach for the Cincinnati Bengals and a quarterbacks coach for the San Francisco 49ers. As head coach, he ...
named Brown running backs coach stating, "Getting Kippy is a major coup for us." While in
Tampa, he also worked closely with former Bucs head coach and former head coach of the
Indianapolis Colts,
Tony Dungy
Anthony Kevin Dungy ( ; born October 6, 1955) is an American former football safety and coach who served as a head coach in the National Football League (NFL) for 13 seasons with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Indianapolis Colts. Dungy's teams be ...
.
From 1996 to 1999, he was on
Jimmy Johnson's Miami Dolphins coaching staff, where he was the
offensive coordinator from 1998 to 1999 and the running backs coach from 1996 to 1997. In 1996, Brown helped running back
Karim Abdul-Jabbar
Abdul-Karim al-Jabbar (born Sharmon Shah; June 28, 1974), known previously as Karim Abdul-Jabbar, is an American former professional football player who was a running back in the National Football League (NFL). Al-Jabbar played college footba ...
become the first Dolphins running back to reach 1,000 yards in 18 years, and in 1997, Abdul-Jabbar tied a league-high 15 rushing touchdowns.
2000–2015
In 2000, Brown joined the
Green Bay Packers as running backs coach under head coach
Mike Sherman
Michael Francis Sherman (born December 19, 1954) is an American gridiron football coach and former player who most recently was the head coach of the Montreal Alouettes of the Canadian Football League (CFL). He was the head coach of the Green B ...
. Following the creation of the
XFL in 2001, Brown took command of his hometown
Memphis Maniax
The Memphis Maniax were an American football team based in Memphis, Tennessee. The team was part of the XFL begun by Vince McMahon of World Wrestling Entertainment and by NBC, a major television network in the United States. Home games were playe ...
finishing the year 5–5; second in the Western Division and was the only team to defeat eventual XFL champions
Los Angeles Xtreme
The Los Angeles Xtreme was a professional American football team based in Los Angeles, California. The team was a member of the XFL, begun by Vince McMahon of World Wrestling Entertainment and by NBC, a major television network in the United Stat ...
twice. The team disbanded after one year as the XFL league collapsed.
After the demise of the XFL, Brown spent four seasons as the
Houston Texans wide receivers coach. Among his pupils in Texas was WR
Andre Johnson
Andre Lamont Johnson (born July 11, 1981) is a former American football wide receiver who played most of his 14-year career with the Houston Texans of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Miami, and was drafted by ...
, who was taken by Houston with the third overall pick in the
2003 draft. Johnson became the first Texans offensive player to earn a trip to the
Pro Bowl
The National Football League All-Star Game (1939–1942), Pro Bowl (1951–2022), or Pro Bowl Games (starting in 2023) is an annual event held by the National Football League (NFL) featuring the league's star players.
The format has changed thro ...
, selected for his outstanding 2004 season that included club records of 79
receptions for 1,129 yards.
Brown arrived in
Detroit
Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at t ...
,
Michigan
Michigan () is a U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest, upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the List of U.S. states and ...
for the 2006 season with the
Detroit Lions. There, he reunited with
Larry Beightol
Larry Beightol (born November 21, 1942) is an American football coach. He has been inducted into both the Pennsylvania Sports Hall of Fame (Western Division) and the Catawba College Hall of Fame.
Early years
Beightol played high school football ...
, with whom Brown worked on the New York Jets in 1990–92, Miami in 1996–98 and Green Bay Packers in 2000. For the 2008 Season, Brown served as Assistant Head Coach/Passing Game Coordinator.
On December 17, 2009, Brown accepted an offer from University of Tennessee head coach
Lane Kiffin
Lane Monte Kiffin (born May 9, 1975) is an American football coach who is currently the head coach of the Ole Miss Rebels. Kiffin formerly was the offensive coordinator for the USC Trojans football team from 2005 to 2006, head coach of the Nati ...
to coach wide receivers and also become their "Passing Game Coordinator". This appointment was brief, however, as within a few weeks Kiffin resigned to become head coach at
Southern Cal. Brown was named the Vols' interim head coach, and expressed interest in becoming head coach permanently, but the university hired
Derek Dooley. On January 16, 2010, after not being named Kiffin's successor, he left to join
Pete Carroll
Peter Clay Carroll (born September 15, 1951) is an American football coach who is the head coach and executive vice president for the Seattle Seahawks of the National Football League (NFL). He was previously the head football coach at USC from ...
's staff as Wide Receivers Coach of the Seattle Seahawks. He won his first Super Bowl title when the Seahawks defeated the Denver Broncos in
Super Bowl XLVIII
Super Bowl XLVIII was an American football game between the American Football Conference (AFC) champion Denver Broncos and National Football Conference (NFC) champion Seattle Seahawks to decide the National Football League (NFL) champion for th ...
. Brown retired in March 2015.
In June 2014, Brown's hometown of
Sweetwater named the road circling Sweetwater High School "Kippy Brown Way."
Head coaching record
XFL
Family life
Brown and his wife, Deon (Wilson), were married in Memphis in 1974. Deon is a native Memphian who taught locally at Craigmont High School from 1978 to 1981. The couple has two grown children, Jerome, born April 8, 1975, and Jennifer, born July 28, 1980.
Jerome earned a basketball scholarship at the University of Tennessee under former Vol head coach
Wade Houston, and competed on the
Buy.com
Rakuten.com/shop was an e-commerce marketplace based in San Mateo, California. Previously known as Buy.com, it was founded in 1997 by Scott Blum. In 2010, it was purchased by Japanese company Rakuten, and rebranded as Rakuten.com.Claire Cain M ...
golf
Golf is a club-and-ball sport in which players use various clubs to hit balls into a series of holes on a course in as few strokes as possible.
Golf, unlike most ball games, cannot and does not use a standardized playing area, and coping ...
tour. Jennifer studied at
Spelman College
Spelman College is a private, historically black, women's liberal arts college in Atlanta, Georgia. It is part of the Atlanta University Center academic consortium in Atlanta. Founded in 1881 as the Atlanta Baptist Female Seminary, Spelman rece ...
in
Atlanta, Georgia
Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,7 ...
.
Brown is the older brother of former Atlanta Falcons running backs coach
Gerald Brown.
Footnotes
External links
Detroit Lions
{{DEFAULTSORT:Brown, Kippy
1955 births
Living people
Detroit Lions coaches
Green Bay Packers coaches
Houston Texans coaches
Louisville Cardinals football coaches
Tennessee Volunteers football coaches
Memphis Tigers football players
Miami Dolphins coaches
New York Jets coaches
People from Sweetwater, Tennessee
Seattle Seahawks coaches
Tampa Bay Buccaneers coaches
Memphis Maniax coaches
Players of American football from Tennessee
Coaches of American football from Tennessee