Did you ever see Larry Brown play?

welch · Post by **welch** » Mon Feb 07, 2011 1:15 am

Went lookig for Chris Hanburger high-lights, but first saw Larry Brown, the greatest RB in Redskin history.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5HxHyHkh ... re=related (part 1)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KbP6aBXm ... re=related (part 2)

Just watch the team in the mud and snow. Watch Brown take the pitch-out. Watch him catch passes.

Brown deserves the HoF.

NC43Hog · Post by **NC43Hog** » Wed Feb 09, 2011 8:55 am

No argument from me - best back I ever saw wear the Burgandy and Gold

SkinsJock · Post by **SkinsJock** » Wed Feb 09, 2011 9:52 am

I don't get it - I understand the HOF is for VERY special players, why are some of the best to ever play the game not in there? I have a feeling that it's because there are some that don't deserve to be there and that's making the HOF voters try and "rectify" the mistakes

The NFL HOF is really not a true HOF without many past players that really deserve to be in there - players like Larry Brown

Irn-Bru · Post by **Irn-Bru** » Wed Feb 09, 2011 10:17 am

Awesome highlights. Thanks for passing that on, welch.

crazyhorse1 · Post by **crazyhorse1** » Wed Feb 09, 2011 11:20 am

SkinsJock wrote:I don't get it - I understand the HOF is for VERY special players, why are some of the best to ever play the game not in there? I have a feeling that it's because there are some that don't deserve to be there and that's making the HOF voters try and "rectify" the mistakes

The NFL HOF is really not a true HOF without many past players that really deserve to be in there - players like Larry Brown

I have to agree with you here, though it pains me to agree with anything you say. I saw all of Larry Brown's games in the pro's (unless there were a couple that weren't televised). There's no doubt he was one of the NFL greats. I think he's been neglected because he didn't have blinding speed, tremendous power, or particularly flashly moves. What he did have was a blend of all three, plus a tremendous heart that made up for whatever else he might have lacked. Also discounted is the number and quality of his receptions, which is frequently disregarded in relation to a running back.

Redskin in Canada · Post by **Redskin in Canada** » Wed Feb 09, 2011 3:48 pm

I saw him play. His career got caught short due to some bad injuries. I blame those injuries more than the HOF Committee for not being there yet.

Allen used him well but had Vince Lombardi lasted at least another year before his very sad and untimely passing, Larry would have been placed in a great position to run the schemes that VL was already famous for.

The success of Larry Brown was already predicted by VL. That is how good LB was.

langleyparkjoe · Post by **langleyparkjoe** » Wed Feb 09, 2011 3:50 pm

Very appreciative of technology.. I was never able to see those greats so ANY footage is always awesome. Thanks for posting bro!

Red_One43 · Post by **Red_One43** » Wed Feb 09, 2011 7:03 pm

Red_One43 - the 43 is not my age, but the number of the gutsiest runner of all time in my book. Speaking of books. Larry Brown's autobiography, I'll Always Get Up is a must read.

http://www.amazon.com/Ill-Always-Get-La ... 0671216147

People ask me how I became a Redskins fan being a Native Texan. It was my admiration for the man who always got up, no matter how hard he was knocked down, that made me decide that I he was my favorite player. I could not pull against the team my favorite player played on, so I became a Redskin fan. It was because of Larry Brown that I am a Redskin fan today.

welch · Post by **welch** » Thu Feb 10, 2011 1:52 am

My memory...it was almost 40 years ago... is that Brown had the fast take-off of any runner in the NFL. Len Hauss (another long-time star) would snap the ball and Brown would be through the line.

I think Lombardi or Allen once timed the players...a new idea back then. Charlie Taylor was fastest over 100 yards, but Larry Brown was fastest over 10 or 20 yards.

He wore his knees out, but even in the late '70s the Post reporters titled stories like, "Without Brown, the Hall is missing..."

And his reciving...holy tamales! Did anyone see Brown's 85 yard TD reception against the Jets in '72? The ball traveled about 10 yards, and Brown did the rest. Jets laying stretched all over the field. Couldn't touch him.

Yes, John Riggins was a powerful runner, but he began his Redskins career as the blocking back for Larry Brown. Ah, and imagine Joe Gibbs designing plays with Joey T and the great receivers and The Hogs for a young and healthy Larry Brown. In the winter, imagination can be wonderful!

Hail to the Redskins, and hail Larry Brown!

yupchagee · Post by **yupchagee** » Thu Feb 10, 2011 2:02 am

welch wrote:My memory...it was almost 40 years ago... is that Brown had the fast take-off of any runner in the NFL. Len Hauss (another long-time star) would snap the ball and Brown would be through the line.

I think Lombardi or Allen once timed the players...a new idea back then. Charlie Taylor was fastest over 100 yards, but Larry Brown was fastest over 10 or 20 yards.

He wore his knees out, but even in the late '70s the Post reporters titled stories like, "Without Brown, the Hall is missing..."

And his reciving...holy tamales! Did anyone see Brown's 85 yard TD reception against the Jets in '72? The ball traveled about 10 yards, and Brown did the rest. Jets laying stretched all over the field. Couldn't touch him.

Yes, John Riggins was a powerful runner, but he began his Redskins career as the blocking back for Larry Brown. Ah, and imagine Joe Gibbs designing plays with Joey T and the great receivers and The Hogs/b] for a young and healthy Larry Brown. In the winter, imagination can be wonderful!

Hail to the Redskins, and hail Larry Brown!

My recollection is that:
1) it was a screen pass.
2) It was 89 yards.

He ran over 90 yds after the catch.

TCIYM · Post by **TCIYM** » Thu Feb 10, 2011 10:42 am

My recollection of Larry Brown is that he had the athleticism of Barry Sanders but made no effort to avoid contact like Sanders did. In my mind that alone places him in the very top echelon of running backs in NFL history.

Countertrey · Post by **Countertrey** » Thu Feb 10, 2011 12:48 pm

The bottom line is, he had a huge career. At the end of the 1973 season, he had averaged over 1000 yards in each of his previous 5 seasons. At that time, there had been only 2 other players to accomplish that.

Consider how rare a 1000 yard rusher was at that time (14 game seasons... ugh) He was a devastating power back... who could put on escape moves that would have pleased Barry Sanders. He was an exceptional... I MEAN exceptional... receiver out of the backfield, who understood YAC. And, he was a devastating (there's that word again) blocker in the protection of his quarterback (I believe it was his blocking that had caught the eye of Lombardi).

No one ever put more of himself into his game. Every game got his best effort... and he always left every ounce of it on the field. When you watched him, there were times that you could feel his pain, as he worked to pick himself up, out of the mud... limp back to the huddle... and then explode for another first down...

Larry Brown's absence from the Hall of Fame borders on obscene.

NC43Hog · Post by **NC43Hog** » Thu Feb 10, 2011 3:51 pm

Red_One43 wrote:Red_One43 - the 43 is not my age, but the number of the gutsiest runner of all time in my book.

And check out my avatar and username. He also is the reason I am a Redskin fan and always will be.

Countertrey wrote:Larry Brown's absence from the Hall of Fame borders on obscene.

My favorite line in this thread.

It's why he got a Special Wallpaper from me and it's on his website - how do you think that makes me feel!

http://www.schultesports.com/larry-brown

Damn GREAT!!

Red_One43 · Post by **Red_One43** » Thu Feb 10, 2011 9:57 pm

NC43Hog wrote:
Red_One43 wrote:Red_One43 - the 43 is not my age, but the number of the gutsiest runner of all time in my book.
And check out my avatar and username. He also is the reason I am a Redskin fan and always will be.

Countertrey wrote:Larry Brown's absence from the Hall of Fame borders on obscene.
My favorite line in this thread.

It's why he got a Special Wallpaper from me and it's on his website - how do you think that makes me feel!

http://www.schultesports.com/larry-brown

Damn GREAT!!

The Wallpaper is AWESOME, NC43Hog! AND for it to be on his website, PRICELESS! The #43 anywhere has become symbolic of Larry Brown for me. Even Richard Petty became my favorite NASCAR driver because he drove the 43 car.

UK Skins Fan · Post by **UK Skins Fan** » Fri Feb 11, 2011 6:27 am

Thanks for posting those welch. #43 was before my time as a Redskins fan, and it's great to be able to see the great man in action.

SKINFAN · Post by **SKINFAN** » Fri Feb 11, 2011 3:41 pm

The man was a freight train with the ball. He does not shy away from contact, he cuts it in right into tacklers. He was a helluva runner. Riggo had the benefit of the hogs, #43 didn't. Riggo is in there (HOF) because of it IMHO. Thanks for posting this welch!

Kilmer72 · Post by **Kilmer72** » Fri Feb 11, 2011 8:07 pm

SKINFAN wrote:The man was a freight train with the ball. He does not shy away from contact, he cuts it in right into tacklers. He was a helluva runner. Riggo had the benefit of the hogs, #43 didn't. Riggo is in there (HOF) because of it IMHO. Thanks for posting this welch!

Actually, Riggo was pretty darn good before the HOGS...He was a world class sprinter. Yes, the hogs got most of his yards but lets not think of it as in, if it wasn't for them....

I was just a kid when Larry played, but I remember. Larry was run into the ground. His career was cut short because of it.

welch · Post by **welch** » Sat Feb 12, 2011 12:15 am

Just a few things to note:

- Larry Brown was 195 pounds. Not a giant, except at the moment of impact

- Yes, Brown was a blocking back in college. In pre-season, Lombardi noticed that Brown was waiting to see the ball be snapped. Turned out Brown was partially deaf. They put a kind of hearing aid in his helmet, and suddenly Brown was taking off on the count...and a big-time RB

- Notice how Brown cuts and slips through tacklers. The old joke was that the George Allen offense was "Larry Brown left, Larry Brown right, Kilmer throwing long to Taylor or Jefferson".

- Look at the other players. You will see George Starke, a rookie in '71 or '72, and later the oldest Hog. Number 31, often picking Brown off the ground, was the up-back, Charlie Harraway. Riggins replaced Harraway when the Jets wouldn't sign Riggo and there was some brief sort of free-agency. You will see the two WRs, Charlie Taylor wearing 42 and Roy Jefferson wearing 80.

- One of these games appears to be snipped from a Giant game in which the Giants had a 14 or maybe 17 point lead going into the 4th quarter. Billy Kilmer, an Allen favorite, hurt his ankle...forcing Allen to play Sonny Jurgensen. Sonny came in and completed about 15 straight passes, even though he had a banged-up leg himself, and even though the Giants knew he was going to throw. Notice how, on that TD, Sonny seems to reach over the line and almost hand the ball to Brown for the winning TD. You see the play from behind the Giants defense, and Sonny puts the ball into an empty spot; Brown is covered, but turns left slightly, cuts right to place where the ball will be. Arrives just as Sonny's pass arrives. That's a reason I remember Jurgensen and Brown as two of the best players I have ever seen. Neither looks physically dominating, but they both seem to be thinking and re-acting twice as fast as the defenders.

Red_One43 · Post by **Red_One43** » Sat Feb 12, 2011 11:27 am

Welch, you keep making a great post even better.

Here is some more info concerning Larry as a blocking back in college.

He was the blocking back for Cornelius Davis until Larry's senior year. He beat out Corny and led the team in rushing with 402 yards in Kansas State's pass happy offense. In his autobiography, "I'll Always Get Up," Larry says, "They (K State) ran the hell out of him (Corny), like they've done with me on the Redskins. He took a lot of punishment. My senior year, he couldn't lift a chair his shoulders hurt so much." Corny finished with 225 yards. In that backfield for Larry's senior year, Lynn Dickey was the QB (Houston Oilers, Green Bay Packers), the diminutive one, Mack Herron (New England Patriots), Russell Harrison (drafted by the LA Rams, 1971) and Corny (drafted by the Vikings in round 5 in 1969 - 3 rounds before Larry in that same round. Corny never carried the ball in a regular season game).

Thanks a million for posting this thread!!!