Robert Roswell "Buster" Brown (November 28, 1879 – December 24, 1950) was 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 with ...

player, coach of football,

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 (appr ...

, and

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding tea ...

, and college athletics administrator. After playing

college football College football (french: Football universitaire) refers to gridiron football played by teams of student athletes. It was through college football play that American football rules first gained popularity in the United States. Unlike most ...

Dartmouth College Dartmouth College (; ) is a private research university in Hanover, New Hampshire. Established in 1769 by Eleazar Wheelock, it is one of the nine colonial colleges chartered before the American Revolution. Although founded to educate Native A ...

, he coached football teams at

Virginia Tech Virginia Tech (formally the Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University and informally VT, or VPI) is a Public university, public Land-grant college, land-grant research university with its main campus in Blacksburg, Virginia. It also ...

North Carolina North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia and So ...

Washington and Lee , mottoeng = "Not Unmindful of the Future" , established = , type = Private liberal arts university , academic_affiliations = , endowment = $2.092 billion (2021) , president = William C. Dudley , provost = Lena Hill , city = Lexington ...

, and

Tulane Tulane University, officially the Tulane University of Louisiana, is a private university, private research university in New Orleans, Louisiana. Founded as the Medical College of Louisiana in 1834 by seven young medical doctors, it turned into ...

. In 1910, he moved to

Roswell, New Mexico Roswell () is a city in, and the County seat, seat of, Chaves County, New Mexico, Chaves County in the U.S. state of New Mexico. Chaves County forms the entirety of the List of micropolitan areas in New Mexico, Roswell micropolitan area. As of ...

, where he served for more than 25 years as the football coach and

athletic director An athletic director (commonly "athletics director" or "AD") is an administrator at many American clubs or institutions, such as colleges and universities, as well as in larger high schools and middle schools, who oversees the work of coaches and ...

at the

New Mexico Military Institute New Mexico Military Institute (NMMI) is a public military junior college and high school in Roswell, New Mexico. Founded in 1891, NMMI operates under the auspices of the State of New Mexico, under a dedicated Board of Regents that reports to the G ...

Athlete

Brown was born on November 28, 1879, in

Joliet, Illinois Joliet ( ) is a city in Will County, Illinois, Will and Kendall County, Illinois, Kendall counties in the U.S. state of Illinois, southwest of Chicago. It is the county seat of Will County. At the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census, the cit ...

. He attended high school in

Elgin, Illinois Elgin ( ) is a city in Cook and Kane counties in the northern part of the U.S. state of Illinois. Elgin is located northwest of Chicago, along the Fox River. As of the 2020 Census, the city had a population of 114,797, the seventh-large ...

, graduating in 1898. He played football and baseball in high school and also competed for the Elgin Athletic Club football team in 1898 and 1899. In 1900, he enrolled at

where he played football for the

Dartmouth Big Green football The Dartmouth Big Green football team represents Dartmouth College in NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) college football competition as a member of the Ivy League. The team possesses a storied tradition that includes a natio ...

team as a halfback and fullback. He attended Dartmouth from 1900 to 1903.

College coach

Early years

Brown served as the head football coach at Virginia Agricultural and Mechanical College and Polytechnic Institute—now

Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University Virginia Tech (formally the Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University and informally VT, or VPI) is a public land-grant research university with its main campus in Blacksburg, Virginia. It also has educational facilities in six regi ...

—in 1902, at

University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States ...

in 1904, and

Washington and Lee University , mottoeng = "Not Unmindful of the Future" , established = , type = Private liberal arts university , academic_affiliations = , endowment = $2.092 billion (2021) , president = William C. Dudley , provost = Lena Hill , city = Lexingto ...

from 1905 to 1908. In 1909, he was head football coach at

Tulane University Tulane University, officially the Tulane University of Louisiana, is a private university, private research university in New Orleans, Louisiana. Founded as the Medical College of Louisiana in 1834 by seven young medical doctors, it turned into ...

, which he led to a 4–3–2 record.Exchanges
''The Cavalier Daily'', April 24, 1909. Brown was also the head baseball coach at Virginia Tech in 1904. In 1905, Brown accepted a position as the athletic director and coach at Washington and Lee. He remained at Washington and Lee until 1910.

New Mexico

Brown moved to

in 1910 and became the football coach and athletic director at the

. In his first year as the head coach at NMMI, he led the team to a 2–0 record with wins over New Mexico State (5–0) and New Mexico (80–0). He also led the team to undefeated records in 1912, 1916, 1917, and 1919. Players from his 1912 team were selected for four of the eleven spots on the 1912 All-Southwestern Eleven. In a historical account of that institution's football program, Brown is credited with the development of the program: "Gradually, football got under way and with the arrival of Mr. R.R. Brown and professional, precision coaching in 1910, interest in the sport boomed and regional success followed." With the exception of a brief period when he coached at New Mexico College of Agriculture, Brown remained the head coach at the New Mexico Military Institute until at least 1937. Brown also served as the head football coach at New Mexico College of Agriculture, now known as

New Mexico State University New Mexico State University (NMSU or NM State) is a public land-grant research university based primarily in Las Cruces, New Mexico. Founded in 1888, it is the oldest public institution of higher education in New Mexico and one of the state's tw ...

from 1923 to 1925. He led the 1923

New Mexico State Aggies football The New Mexico State Aggies football team represents New Mexico State University in NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) college football as an independent. Although New Mexico State is a member of the Western Athletic Conference (WAC ...

team to an undefeated 9–0 record, including victories over Hardin–Simmons,

University of New Mexico The University of New Mexico (UNM; es, Universidad de Nuevo México) is a public research university in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Founded in 1889, it is the state's flagship academic institution and the largest by enrollment, with over 25,400 ...

, and

University of Texas at El Paso The University of Texas at El Paso (UTEP) is a public research university in El Paso, Texas. It is a member of the University of Texas System. UTEP is the second-largest university in the United States to have a majority Mexican American stud ...

. In April 1928, Brown was selected as an aid in the southwest to

Notre Dame Fighting Irish football The Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team is the intercollegiate football team representing the University of Notre Dame in Notre Dame, Indiana, north of the city of South Bend, Indiana. The team plays its home games at the campus' Notre Dame ...

coach

Knute Rockne Knut (Norwegian and Swedish), Knud (Danish), or Knútur (Icelandic) is a Scandinavian, German, and Dutch first name, of which the anglicised form is Canute. In Germany both "Knut" and "Knud" are used. In Spanish and Portuguese Canuto is used whi ...

. In July 1928, Brown traveled to the

1928 Summer Olympics The 1928 Summer Olympics ( nl, Olympische Zomerspelen 1928), officially known as the Games of the IX Olympiad ( nl, Spelen van de IXe Olympiade) and commonly known as Amsterdam 1928, was an international multi-sport event that was celebrated from ...

as part of Rockne's Olympic party, a group that also included

Pop Warner Glenn Scobey Warner (April 5, 1871 – September 7, 1954), most commonly known as Pop Warner, was an American college football coach at various institutions who is responsible for several key aspects of the modern game. Included among his inn ...

. As of 1918, Brown was also employed as a bank clerk at the First National Bank in Roswell. In a passport application filed that same year, he identified his profession as an athletic director and teacher. During

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, he traveled to France for one year as part of a

Y.M.C.A. YMCA, sometimes regionally called the Y, is a worldwide youth organization based in Geneva, Switzerland, with more than 64 million beneficiaries in 120 countries. It was founded on 6 June 1844 by George Williams in London, originally ...

service.U.S. Passport Application for Robert Roswell Brown dated September 4, 1918. The application stated that Brown was unmarried and was born in Joliet, Illinois on November 28, 1879. The application identifies his father as Roswell Stuart Brown, deceased. National Archives and Records Administration (NARA); Washington D.C.; Passport Applications, January 2, 1906 - March 31, 1925; Collection Number: ARC Identifier 583830 / MLR Number A1 534; NARA Series: M1490; Roll #: 640. Ancestry.com. U.S. Passport Applications, 1795-1925 atabase on-line At the time of the 1930 U.S. Census, Brown was still living in Roswell, New Mexico, where he was employed as a teacher at the state school. Brown died on December 24, 1950, in Roswell. He had retired from his position as athletic director at the

in 1948.

Head coaching record

Football

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Brown, R. R. 1879 births 1950 deaths American football fullbacks American football halfbacks Basketball coaches from Illinois Dartmouth Big Green football players New Mexico Military Broncos football coaches New Mexico State Aggies athletic directors New Mexico State Aggies football coaches New Mexico State Aggies men's basketball coaches North Carolina Tar Heels football coaches Virginia Tech Hokies football coaches Virginia Tech Hokies baseball coaches Tulane Green Wave football coaches Washington and Lee Generals baseball coaches Washington and Lee Generals football coaches Sportspeople from Elgin, Illinois Sportspeople from Joliet, Illinois People from Roswell, New Mexico Players of American football from Illinois