On Thursday morning, New England Patriots wide receiver Troy Brown and the New England Patriots held a press conference to announce Brown's retirement from the National Football League.
Brown retired after 15 seasons with the New England Patriots in which he set a team record for most receptions (557), punt returns (252) and punt return yardage (2,625), and second in reception yardage (6,366) and seasons (16) with the team, behind former quarterback Steve Grogan.
Brown has a Division I-AA championship ring from his senior season at Marshall University, where he made All-America twice and had his jersey number retired.
He helped Blackville-Hilda High School in South Carolina win the Class A title his senior season, in 1988, earning all-state honors. His jersey is retired there, too.
The wide receiver, who hasn't played this season, made the announcement at a news conference Thursday attended by team owner Robert Kraft and coach Bill Belichick.
Brown spent his entire NFL career with the Patriots after they drafted him in the eighth round in 1993 out of Marshall. Brown was "discovered" by a Marshall scout while he played in college locally at Lees-McRae. The story is told that the scout was actually making the trip to scout another player, but Brown's skills on the field were impressive enough for the Thundering Herd to take a chance on the receiver.
Brown was not recruited out of high school, and he only landed at Lees-McRae Junior College in Banner Elk, N.C., on the recommendation of Mike Pope, his coach at Blackville-Hilda.
“He went up there and made All-American in junior college, and then Marshall came to scout another kid and saw Troy,” Pope said. “Marshall took a chance.”
It paid off. Brown helped the Thundering Herd win the I-AA national title his senior season. Brown took the next improbable step in his career when he was drafted by the Patriots in the eighth round of the 1993 NFL draft.
Brown did not catch on immediately in Foxboro, Mass. He was drafted 198th overall and was waived and re-signed in 1994. His breakout season didn’t occur until 2000, when he had 944 receiving yards on 83 catches, the seventh-highest single-season reception total in franchise history.
“It was hard work just getting my foot in the door, and even tougher staying there and getting some playing time,” Brown said. “ ... When money’s involved, a lot of politics get into it. You kind of get playing time based on where you’re drafted and not by what you do, unless you really stand out and shine.
“That’s kind of what I had to do: make myself noticeable in practice by doing some things some of the other guys weren’t doing — working harder in practice than they were, and when it came time to get on the field, just making the plays they couldn’t make.
“And at the end of the day, it earned me more playing time and more respect from my teammates.”
Brown played in one Pro Bowl, after the 2001 season, and is the owner of three Super Bowl rings with the Patriots. He also played defensive back late in his career. In 2007, he played in one game.
Information from the Associated Press and TheState.com contributed to this post.
Brown retired after 15 seasons with the New England Patriots in which he set a team record for most receptions (557), punt returns (252) and punt return yardage (2,625), and second in reception yardage (6,366) and seasons (16) with the team, behind former quarterback Steve Grogan.
Brown has a Division I-AA championship ring from his senior season at Marshall University, where he made All-America twice and had his jersey number retired.
He helped Blackville-Hilda High School in South Carolina win the Class A title his senior season, in 1988, earning all-state honors. His jersey is retired there, too.
The wide receiver, who hasn't played this season, made the announcement at a news conference Thursday attended by team owner Robert Kraft and coach Bill Belichick.
Brown spent his entire NFL career with the Patriots after they drafted him in the eighth round in 1993 out of Marshall. Brown was "discovered" by a Marshall scout while he played in college locally at Lees-McRae. The story is told that the scout was actually making the trip to scout another player, but Brown's skills on the field were impressive enough for the Thundering Herd to take a chance on the receiver.
Brown was not recruited out of high school, and he only landed at Lees-McRae Junior College in Banner Elk, N.C., on the recommendation of Mike Pope, his coach at Blackville-Hilda.
“He went up there and made All-American in junior college, and then Marshall came to scout another kid and saw Troy,” Pope said. “Marshall took a chance.”
It paid off. Brown helped the Thundering Herd win the I-AA national title his senior season. Brown took the next improbable step in his career when he was drafted by the Patriots in the eighth round of the 1993 NFL draft.
Brown did not catch on immediately in Foxboro, Mass. He was drafted 198th overall and was waived and re-signed in 1994. His breakout season didn’t occur until 2000, when he had 944 receiving yards on 83 catches, the seventh-highest single-season reception total in franchise history.
“It was hard work just getting my foot in the door, and even tougher staying there and getting some playing time,” Brown said. “ ... When money’s involved, a lot of politics get into it. You kind of get playing time based on where you’re drafted and not by what you do, unless you really stand out and shine.
“That’s kind of what I had to do: make myself noticeable in practice by doing some things some of the other guys weren’t doing — working harder in practice than they were, and when it came time to get on the field, just making the plays they couldn’t make.
“And at the end of the day, it earned me more playing time and more respect from my teammates.”
Brown played in one Pro Bowl, after the 2001 season, and is the owner of three Super Bowl rings with the Patriots. He also played defensive back late in his career. In 2007, he played in one game.
Information from the Associated Press and TheState.com contributed to this post.
