Thomas Brown (born May 15, 1986) 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 with ...

coach and former

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 American football plays#Offensive terminology, handoffs from the quarterback to Rush (American football)#Offen ...

who is the

offensive coordinator An offensive coordinator is a member of the coaching staff of an American football or Canadian football team who is in charge of the team's offense. Generally, along with the defensive coordinator and the special teams coordinator, this coach re ...

for the

Carolina Panthers The Carolina Panthers are a professional American football team based in Charlotte, North Carolina. The Panthers compete in the National Football League (NFL), as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) South division. T ...

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). Brown previously served as the offensive coordinator and running backs coach at the

University of Miami The University of Miami (UM, UMiami, Miami, U of M, and The U) is a private research university in Coral Gables, Florida. , the university enrolled 19,096 students in 12 colleges and schools across nearly 350 academic majors and programs, incl ...

. He played

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 ...

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States Georgia may also refer to: Places Historical states and entities * Related to the ...

. Thereafter, he played professionally in the NFL for the

Atlanta Falcons The Atlanta Falcons are a professional American football team based in Atlanta. The Falcons compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) South division. The Falcons joined th ...

and the

Cleveland Browns The Cleveland Browns are a professional American football team based in Cleveland. Named after original coach and co-founder Paul Brown, they compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference ( ...

College career

Brown was a freshman All-SEC selection in 2004 after totaling 172 carries for 875 yards and eight touchdowns as well as 16 receptions for 150 yards, amassing 1,043 all-purpose yards. He had 100-yard games against

Vanderbilt Commodores The Vanderbilt Commodores are the college athletics in the United States, intercollegiate athletic teams that represent Vanderbilt University, located in Nashville, Tennessee. Vanderbilt fields 16 varsity teams (6 men's teams and 10 women's team ...

Arkansas Razorbacks The Arkansas Razorbacks, also known as the Hogs, are the intercollegiate athletics teams representing the University of Arkansas, located in Fayetteville. The University of Arkansas student body voted to change the name of the school mascot (ori ...

Kentucky Wildcats The Kentucky Wildcats are the men's and women's intercollegiate athletic squads of the University of Kentucky (UK), a founding member of the Southeastern Conference. The Kentucky Wildcats is the student body of the University of Kentucky. 30,473 ...

, and

Wisconsin Badgers The Wisconsin Badgers are the athletic teams representing the University of Wisconsin–Madison (University of Wisconsin). They compete as a member of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I level (Football Bowl Subdivisi ...

. In addition to his All-SEC selection, he was the recipient of the Offensive Newcomer of the Year Award and the team’s Victors Club Award. Brown continued to be productive in his second year, starting all 12 games and leading the Bulldogs with 736 yards and four touchdowns on 147 attempts. He added 67 yards on six receptions and returned two kickoffs for 19 yards. His season-high of 146 rushing yards on 20 carries against

South Carolina )''Animis opibusque parati'' ( for, , Latin, Prepared in mind and resources, links=no) , anthem = " Carolina";" South Carolina On My Mind" , Former = Province of South Carolina , seat = Columbia , LargestCity = Charleston , LargestMetro = ...

. A 9-yard halfback touchdown pass to quarterback Joe Tereshinski, playing for the injured D.J. Shockley, came against the

Florida Gators The Florida Gators are the intercollegiate athletic teams that represent the University of Florida, located in Gainesville. The University of Florida, its athletic program, its alumni and its sports fans are often collectively referred to as t ...

. Brown also ran for a career-long 52-yard touchdown against

West Virginia West Virginia is a state in the Appalachian, Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States.The Census Bureau and the Association of American Geographers classify West Virginia as part of the Southern United States while the Bur ...

in the 2006 Nokia

Sugar Bowl The Sugar Bowl is an annual American college football bowl game played in New Orleans, Louisiana. Played annually since January 1, 1935, it is tied with the Orange Bowl and Sun Bowl as the second-oldest bowl games in the country, surpassed onl ...

. In 2006, Brown started in five of seven games while registering 62 carries for 256 yards and one touchdown and also added seven catches for 71 yards. He returned 15 kickoffs for 379 yards with a school record 99-yard kickoff return against

Tennessee Tennessee ( , ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked state in the Southeastern region of the United States. Tennessee is the 36th-largest by area and the 15th-most populous of the 50 states. It is bordered by Kentucky to th ...

. He averaged 100.9 all-purpose yards per game after tallying 706 for the season. A torn ACL against Vanderbilt sidelined Brown for the rest of the season. Brown rushed for 779 yards on 148 attempts and 10 touchdowns in his senior season at Georgia in 2007 despite sitting out for three games with a broken collarbone and splitting playing time with talented redshirt freshman

Knowshon Moreno Knowshon Rockwell Moreno (born July 16, 1987) is a former American football running back. He played college football at the University of Georgia and was selected with the 12th overall pick in the 2009 NFL Draft by the Denver Broncos. He also pl ...

. He also caught 10 passes for 84 yards and two scores. Returned 15 kickoffs for 333 yards (22.2 avg.) while amassing 1,196 all-purpose yards, an average of 119.6 yards per game. During his senior season, Brown was named SEC Offensive Player of the Week after running for a career-high 180 yards and three touchdowns against the

University of Mississippi The University of Mississippi (byname Ole Miss) is a public research university that is located adjacent to Oxford, Mississippi, and has a medical center in Jackson. It is Mississippi's oldest public university and its largest by enrollment. ...

. Appeared in 10 games, starting in six, including the 2008 Sugar Bowl against

Hawaii Hawaii ( ; haw, Hawaii or ) is a state in the Western United States, located in the Pacific Ocean about from the U.S. mainland. It is the only U.S. state outside North America, the only state that is an archipelago, and the only stat ...

Professional career

Atlanta Falcons

Brown was drafted by the

in the sixth round of the

2008 NFL Draft The 2008 NFL Draft was the 73rd annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible American football players. The draft took place at Radio City Music Hall in New York City, New York, on April 26 and April 27, ...

. His rookie season was cut short by a horse collar tackle during the preseason, landing him on

injured reserve The injured reserve list ( IR list) is a designation used in North American professional sports leagues for athletes who suffer injuries and become unable to play. The exact name of the list varies by league; it is known as "injured reserve" in th ...

. He was waived prior to the following season on September 5, 2009.

Cleveland Browns

Brown was signed to the

practice squad In sports, the practice squad, also called the taxi squad or practice roster, is a group of players signed by a team but not part of their main roster. Frequently used in gridiron football, they serve as extra players during the team's practices, ...

on November 10, 2009. He was promoted to the active roster on January 2, 2010 after

linebacker Linebacker (LB) is a playing position in gridiron football. Linebackers are members of the defensive team, and line up three to five yards behind the line of scrimmage and the defensive linemen. They are the "middle ground" of defenders, p ...

David Veikune was placed on

. He was released June 17, 2010.

Coaching career

Early Coaching Career

In 2012, Brown was hired as running backs coach for the

Chattanooga Mocs The Chattanooga Mocs (formerly the Chattanooga Moccasins) are the 16 teams representing the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga in intercollegiate athletics. The Mocs compete in the NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) and a ...

. In 2013, Brown was hired at the same position for the

Marshall Thundering Herd The Marshall Thundering Herd is the intercollegiate athletic collection of teams that collectively represent the Marshall University in Huntington, West Virginia. Thundering Herd athletic teams compete in the Sun Belt Conference, which are member ...

Wisconsin

On February 24, 2014, Brown was hired to be the

running back coach.

Georgia

On February 16, 2015, Brown returned to his alma mater as the running backs coach at

University of Georgia , mottoeng = "To teach, to serve, and to inquire into the nature of things.""To serve" was later added to the motto without changing the seal; the Latin motto directly translates as "To teach and to inquire into the nature of things." , establ ...

under head coach

Mark Richt Mark Allan Richt (born February 18, 1960) is a retired American football head coach, former player, and television analyst. He was the head football coach at the University of Georgia for 15 years and at the University of Miami, his alma mater, ...

, under whom Brown played. The move united the position coach of the 2014 NCAA rushing yards leader,

Melvin Gordon Melvin Gordon III (born April 13, 1993) is an American football running back for the Kansas City Chiefs of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Wisconsin, and was drafted by the San Diego Chargers in the first roun ...

, with one of the nation's most prolific returning running backs in

Nick Chubb Nicholas Jamaal Chubb (born December 27, 1995) is an American football running back for the Cleveland Browns of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Georgia and was drafted by the Browns in the second round of the ...

Miami

On December 30, 2015, Brown was hired to be the running backs coach and offensive coordinator at the

, where he would work under Mark Richt again.

South Carolina

On January 9, 2019, Brown was named the running backs coach at the University of South Carolina.

Los Angeles Rams

On February 12, 2020, Brown joined the

Los Angeles Rams The Los Angeles Rams are a professional American football team based in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. The Rams compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) West division. The Rams play ...

coaching staff as running backs coach. He was given the additional title of assistant head coach on February 23, 2021. Brown won

Super Bowl LVI Super Bowl LVI was an American football game played to determine the champion of the National Football League (NFL) for the 2021 season. The National Football Conference (NFC) champion Los Angeles Rams defeated the American Football Conference ...

when the Rams defeated the

Cincinnati Bengals The Cincinnati Bengals are a professional American football team based in Cincinnati. The Bengals compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) AFC North, North division. The c ...

23-20. In 2022 he transitioned from running backs coach to the team’s tight ends coach while retaining the assistant head coach title.

Carolina Panthers

On February 17, 2023, Brown was hired as an

by the

References

External links

Carolina Panthers bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Brown, Thomas 1986 births Living people African-American coaches of American football African-American players of American football American football running backs Atlanta Falcons players Carolina Panthers coaches Cleveland Browns players Chattanooga Mocs football coaches Georgia Bulldogs football coaches Georgia Bulldogs football players Los Angeles Rams coaches Marshall Thundering Herd football coaches Miami Hurricanes football coaches People from Tucker, Georgia Players of American football from Georgia (U.S. state) South Carolina Gamecocks football coaches Sportspeople from DeKalb County, Georgia Wisconsin Badgers football coaches 21st-century African-American sportspeople 20th-century African-American people National Football League offensive coordinators