Charles Henry “Kippy” Brown, the former Memphis quarterback who broke through as the first Black player to start at the position for the program and later spent decades coaching in college and the NFL, has died at 71.
Brown’s name first became part of Memphis State history from 1974-77, when the Sweetwater, Tennessee, native handled quarterback duties and helped deliver one of the program’s signature wins. His best-known moment came in 1975, when Memphis stunned seventh-ranked Auburn 31-20. Brown went 7 of 11 for 103 yards and two touchdowns in that game, finishing it off with a late scoring throw that put Auburn away.
After graduating from Memphis in 1977, Brown moved quickly into coaching. He started with the Tigers, spent a season at Louisville, then came back to Tennessee and became one of the people behind the school’s “Wide Receiver U” identity. He returned to Tennessee again in the 1990s and later near the end of the decade, and in 2010 he briefly took over as interim head coach.
Brown’s NFL run began in 1990 with the New York Jets, where he joined a staff that included Pete Carroll. A year later, his running backs helped the Jets reach the playoffs for the first time since 1986.
From there, his pro coaching path wound through Tampa Bay, Miami, Green Bay, Houston and Detroit. In Miami, he worked as offensive coordinator for Jimmy Johnson in 1998 and 1999.
His final NFL stop came in Seattle, where Carroll brought him in as the Seahawks’ wide receivers coach. Brown was with the team from 2010 through 2014 and helped develop Doug Baldwin, Golden Tate and Jermaine Kearse. That stretch ended with Seattle’s first Super Bowl title, a 43-8 win over the Denver Broncos in Super Bowl XLVIII.
Brown retired in 2015. He was inducted into the Memphis M Club Hall of Fame in 2016 and the Tennessee Sports Hall of Fame in 2019. He is survived by his wife, Deon, and two children.
In Other News...
LSU Just Dropped Auburn Into A Fresh SEC Eligibility Fight
A Louisiana judges ruling in favor of LSU players Zxavian Harris and DaeQuan Wright has added another layer to the SECs eligibility headaches just as the season is getting underway. The court allowed both players to regain college football eligibility despite their recent NFL roster status, and it blocked the SEC, NCAA and LSU from taking actions that would hurt their standing, putting the conference in a spot Auburn fans know well: another rules fight with real on-field consequences.
Harris and Wright have already been practicing with LSU as the Tigers prepare for their opener against Clemson, and the final decision on whether to add them to the roster now sits with LSU. For Auburn, the broader significance is hard to miss. Anything that shifts the SECs eligibility landscape can ripple through the league, and this latest ruling only deepens the uncertainty around how schools and conference officials will handle similar cases moving forward. [Read more 🡒]
Auburn Suddenly Has Another SEC Problem To Watch Closely
Auburns attention may be split between the usual late-summer roster questions and the broader SEC chessboard, because a new court ruling has suddenly opened the door for more than 40 athletes to remain eligible under NCAA and league rules. Among the players affected are former NFL players Zxavian Harris and DaeQuan Wright, both expected to land on LSUs football roster, a development that could ripple beyond Baton Rouge as conference programs monitor how the eligibility landscape is being handled.
The SEC is planning to appeal the injunction, and it has also filed a separate lawsuit aimed at enforcing new punishments against teams that add ex-professional players. For Auburn and the rest of the league, the practical issue is less about one roster move than the possibility of a longer fight over who can play, who can be added, and what penalties might follow while the legal process continues to work itself out. [Read more 🡒]
Auburns First Captains Under Alex Golesh Just Sent A Clear Message
Auburn named five captains for its upcoming game against Baylor, giving Alex Golesh a first look at which players the team is leaning on as his tenure begins. Quarterback Byrum Brown, safety Champ Anthony, offensive lineman Cole Best, safety Cade Carlson and linebacker Elijah Melendez will wear the honors when the Tigers open at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta as part of the Aflac Kickoff.
The list says plenty about how Auburn wants to frame this matchup: leadership on both sides of the ball, from the quarterback to the trenches to the back end of the defense. For Golesh, it is also an early snapshot of the voices in the room as he gets ready for a spotlight game that will serve as his debut on the Auburn sideline. [Read more 🡒]