Ronald Jeffery Brace III (December 18, 1986 – April 23, 2016) 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 wi ...

nose tackle A defensive tackle (DT) is a position in American football that will typically line up on the line of scrimmage, opposite one of the offensive guards, however he may also line up opposite one of the tackles. Defensive tackles are typically the l ...

. He was drafted by the New England Patriots in the second round of the

2009 NFL Draft The 2009 NFL Draft was the seventy-fourth annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible football players. The draft took place at Radio City Music Hall in New York City, New York, on April 25 and 26, 2009. ...

as a

defensive end Defensive end (DE) is a defensive position in the sport of gridiron football. This position has designated the players at each end of the defensive line, but changes in formations over the years have substantially changed how the position is ...

. He played college football at Boston College.

Early years

Brace attended Burncoat Senior High School in

Worcester, Massachusetts Worcester ( , ) is a city and county seat of Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. Named after Worcester, England, the city's population was 206,518 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the second-List of cities i ...

. As a senior, Brace earned All-State and

Worcester Telegram & Gazette The ''Telegram & Gazette'' (and ''Sunday Telegram'') is the only daily newspaper of Worcester, Massachusetts. The paper, headquartered at 100 Front Street and known locally as ''the Telegram'' or the ''T & G'', offers coverage of all of Worceste ...

all-star honors. He was also a three-time conference all-star choice and played in the 2004 Massachusetts Shriners Football Classic. He was the team captain and team MVP in 2003 and also excelled in

track and field Track and field is a sport that includes athletic contests based on running, jumping, and throwing skills. The name is derived from where the sport takes place, a running track and a grass field for the throwing and some of the jumping eve ...

, winning the state shot put title in 2003 and 2004. Brace was rated as a 3-star recruit coming out of high school by both 247 Sports and Rivals. Brace received offers from Boston College,

Connecticut Connecticut () is the southernmost state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. Its capita ...

Hofstra Hofstra University is a private university in Hempstead, New York. It is Long Island's largest private university. Hofstra originated in 1935 as an extension of New York University (NYU) under the name Nassau College – Hofstra Memorial of New ...

, UMass, and

Northeastern The points of the compass are a set of horizontal, radially arrayed compass directions (or azimuths) used in navigation and cartography. A compass rose is primarily composed of four cardinal directions—north, east, south, and west—each se ...

. He committed to Boston College in February 2004.

College career

After redshirting the 2004 season, Brace made his college debut for Boston College in the 2005 season opener at

BYU Brigham Young University (BYU, sometimes referred to colloquially as The Y) is a private research university in Provo, Utah. It was founded in 1875 by religious leader Brigham Young and is sponsored by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day S ...

. He finished the season with 11 tackles (six solos) and one tackle for loss in 12 games (one start). He had one solo tackle against Boise State in the MPC Computers Bowl. Brace played and started in 11 games at defensive tackle in 2006. He had 20 tackles (11 unassisted) and registered 3.5 tackles for loss. He made a career-high five tackles (three solo), including one tackle-for-loss, and recovered one fumble in BC's Meineke Car Care Bowl victory versus

Navy A navy, naval force, or maritime force is the branch of a nation's armed forces principally designated for naval and amphibious warfare; namely, lake-borne, riverine, littoral, or ocean-borne combat operations and related functions. It in ...

. Brace finished the 2007 season with 27 total tackles (14 solos), 7.5 tackles for loss, and 2.5 sacks He registered three tackles (one solo) and 0.5 tackles for loss in the ACC Championship Game against

Virginia Tech 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 re ...

and two tackles in the 2007 Champs Sports Bowl against

Michigan State Michigan State University (Michigan State, MSU) is a public land-grant research university in East Lansing, Michigan. It was founded in 1855 as the Agricultural College of the State of Michigan, the first of its kind in the United States. It i ...

. He was an All-ACC team honorable mention. Brace began his 2008 senior season on the

Outland Trophy The Outland Trophy is awarded to the best college football interior lineman in the United States as adjudged by the Football Writers Association of America. It is named after John H. Outland. One of only a few players ever to be named an All-Am ...

and All-ACC team watch lists. He played in all 14 games in 2008, recording 27 tackles and three sacks while paired with defensive tackle B. J. Raji, a first round pick in the

. After the season, he was named to the second-team All-ACC. He was member of the Iota Phi Theta fraternity.

Professional career

Pre-draft

New England Patriots

2009 season

Brace was drafted by the Patriots in the second round (40th overall) of the

. On July 17, 2009, he was signed to a 4-year contract with approximately $2.82 million in guaranteed money. Brace was active for six of the first 13 games of the season, recording two tackles. Brace started his first NFL game on December 20, 2009 against the Buffalo Bills in place of an injured

Vince Wilfork Vincent Lamar Wilfork (born November 4, 1981) is a former American football nose tackle who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 13 seasons, primarily with the New England Patriots. He played college football for the University of Mi ...

and Pryor at

. He started again for the Patriots in Week 16 and finished the season with eight tackles in nine games played (two starts). Brace was inactive for the Patriots' playoff loss against the

Baltimore Ravens The Baltimore Ravens are a professional American football team based in Baltimore, Maryland. The Ravens compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) North division. The team plays it ...

2010 season

Prior to the 2010, Brace was moved to defensive end, and missed most of training camp after failing his conditioning test. However, he returned and started the first three games of the regular season, including a four-tackle game in Week 2 against the New York Jets. Brace soon lost his starting job to rookie Brandon Deaderick, and was inactive for the team's Week 7 win over the San Diego Chargers. Brace was active again in Week 8, and returned to the starting lineup two weeks later against the Pittsburgh Steelers. He was a reserve the next week against the Indianapolis Colts, but tied his season-high of four tackles in the game. Three weeks later, he started the Patriots' Week 13 game in

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

, but sustained a concussion that kept him out of their Week 15 game against the Green Bay Packers. After playing in Week 16, Brace missed the team's regular season finale with an elbow injury. Brace was placed on injured reserve on January 3, 2011, prior 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 ...

. He finished the regular season with 23 tackles in 13 games played (five starts).

2011 season

Brace started the season on the "PUP" list and returned to practice after week six.

2012 season

On December 29, 2012, Brace was released.

Washington Redskins

Brace signed with the

Washington Redskins The Washington Commanders are a professional American football team based in the Washington metropolitan area. The Commanders compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) N ...

on February 14, 2013. He was released on August 31, 2013.

Death

Brace died of a heart condition on April 23, 2016, in Springfield, Massachusetts, at the age of 29.

References

External links

New England Patriots bio

{{DEFAULTSORT:Brace, Ron 1986 births 2016 deaths Sportspeople from Springfield, Massachusetts African-American players of American football American football defensive ends American football defensive tackles Boston College Eagles football players Players of American football from Worcester, Massachusetts New England Patriots players Washington Redskins players 20th-century African-American people 21st-century African-American sportspeople