My Heroes

# 1. Jim Brown

Love, and indeed hero worship, is blind. My admiration of Jim Brown, former running-back for the Cleveland Browns in the NFL, was born before I had seen him play - for me the legend was enough.

I first heard about Brown while watching American Football with my dad in the mid-1990s. Barry Sanders, another legendary back, was having the best season in his long and distinguished career, and the commentary team were discussing how good Sanders ranked in terms of the greatest ever. Both analysts agreed; Sanders was good, the best of his generation. But he was no Jim Brown. Sanders’ own father told his son exactly that when he was getting a little big for his boots.

Jim Brown left Syracuse College in 1956 having broken all of the school’s long standing rushing records, and was drafted to the Cleveland Browns. Ten years later, he retired. In the time in between, Brown broke every record there was. He garnered over 12,000 career yards, scored 126 touchdowns and averaged over 5 yards per carry and 100 yards per game over his career. But statistics tell only half of the story.

It was Brown’s style that earned the most plaudits. Often, he was simply impossible to bring down. He had the speed and the quick feet to befuddle a defender. If that didn’t work, he would drop his shoulder and run through the defender. He played by a simple philosophy - “If you are going to tackle me, I’m going to make sure it hurts you more than me.”

Another component to my adoration for Brown is that he simply didn’t give a flying fish. For that reason, Brown’s playing career only lasted nine years. After Art Model (owner of the Browns) refused Brown leave from training to finish filming The Dirty Dozen, Brown simply retired. Seventeen years later, he considered coming out of retirement when a player he didn’t like looked like breaking his all time rushing record. He played by his rules - I’ll play when I want, I’ll quit when I want and if I want to come back, I will.

I have now watched every piece of Jim Brown footage I can find. I know I will never be as good as him. I know I could never replicate his style. But I don’t care. There aren’t many people who can reduce me to flat out hero worship, but for Jim Brown, I would do anything!

By Tom Snee, Live Media UK