American Heroes~JAMES NATHANIEL “JIM” BROWN (1936- )~by rldubour

JAMES NATHANIEL “JIM” BROWN (1936- )

Was born in St.Simons, Georgia
Parents divorced when he was young.
Mom and James moved to Long Island
Always to his Mom he clung.

Attending Manhasset High School
Earned thirteen letters playing sports.
And despite his many talents
Going to college seemed out of sorts.

Benefactor, Kenneth Malloy
At Syracuse University
Paid for James first year of college.
Knew of his sports abilities.

Nineteen-hundred-fifty-seven
Graduated from Syracuse.
Not only earned a scholarship
Many records he did produce.

Recognized All-American
In both football and lacrosse.
To play professional football
Drafted by Cleveland on a toss.

They wanted Dawson from Purdue
Their regrets did disappear.
As their second choice was James Brown
When he won Rookie of the Year!

In all but two of his nine seasons
During his stay with the Cleveland Browns.
He rushed more than one-thousand yards
Another record to mark down.

Over two-hundred-ninety-one carries
In nineteen-hundred and sixty-three.
Unheard of six point four yards per
In his hands he would make this be.

Not one game did Jim Brown miss
He had great durability.
Rushed for over fifteen-thousand yards
Plus one-hundred and twenty-six TDs.

Very few athletes will achieve
One of the greatest in his sport.
His name is in three Halls of Fame
A rare triple crown of sorts.

In nineteen-hundred-eighty-eight
He left football with no regrets.
Turned to the underprivileged youth
To teach them goals that they could set.

In Los Angeles he started
A program called Amer-I-can.
Another record he would set
To save a life of his fellow man.

His goal to save as many kids
From their violent street gang scene.
Jim Brown is a living legend
Being a hero is routine.

 

 

AUTHOR NOTES*
Jim Brown was selected in the 1st round of the 1956 NFL draft out of Syracuse by the Cleveland Browns. At Syracuse University, Brown was All-America in both football and lacrosse and a letterman in basketball. Brown began his legendary career with the Browns rushing for 942 yards, and 9 TDs, which earned him the NFL Rookie of The Year honors. Brown continued to dominate the NFL for 9 more seasons, accumulating career totals of 12,312 rushing yards, 15,459 combined net yards for a total of 126 touchdowns, statistics which easily eclipsed the current records of the time.
In all, Brown’s amazing achievements included first team All-NFL eight times, Pro Bowl selection nine times, and named the NFL’s Most Valuable Player four times. Brown amazingly decided to voluntarily cut short his legendary career in 1966 when he announced his early retirement. For all the records Brown held and still holds, the most impressive point could be that he achieved all of this in such a relatively short period of time. Brown’s memorable professional career led to his induction into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1971, while The Sporting News selected him as the greatest football player of all time in 1999. Brown also earned a spot in the Lacrosse Hall of Fame, Brown being one the greatest in that sport as well. Brown’s football talents at Syracuse garnered him a berth in the College Football Hall of Fame, giving him a rare triple crown of sorts as well as being one of the few athletes to be a Hall of Fame member in more than one sport. Brown currently works with kids caught up in the gang scene in Los Angeles through the Amer-I-Can program, which he founded in 1988. It is a self-esteem-building organization that operates in inner cites and prisons. He is devoted to helping the youth find direction and determination in their future. Countless young people he has turned around to lead a very productive life. James Nathaniel “Jim” Brown is a true hero.