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By Jon Paul Hoornstra
Contributing Sports Writer
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In football, linemen have the least glamorous job on the gridiron. Yet for three seasons at the University of Minnesota, Tom Brown turned the blunt mechanics of line play into a path to fame in two countries.
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Brown, who died at age 89 according to multiple reports Monday, came as close as any lineman to the Heisman Trophy as a college senior. In 1960, he finished second in the voting to Navy halfback Joe Bellino after leading the Golden Gophers to a national title.
Drafted twice — once by the NFL's Baltimore Colts, once by the AFL's New York Titans — Brown chose to sign with the BC Lions in 1961 instead. He would go on to play seven seasons in the CFL and earn a place in the British Columbia Sports Hall of Fame.
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"In addition to being one of the best defensive players in our team's history, Tom played a major role in helping the BC Lions take the next step in becoming champions," the Lions wrote in a statement posted to the team's X account on March 16. "A great player, teammate, and family man, he will be missed by our organization a great deal. Our thoughts go out to his wife, Marnie, and their entire family at this difficult time."
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Brown arrived in Minneapolis in 1958, a product of Minneapolis Central High School. He played both sides of the line for the Golden Gophers — offensive guard when Minnesota had the ball, defensive lineman when it didn’t. In an era when two-way play was common, Brown stood out: short by lineman standards at 5-foot-11, thick through the shoulders, and sturdy enough to earn the nickname "Rock of Gibraltar."
By the end of his junior season in 1959, Brown was already one of the Big Ten’s most punishing interior linemen. Yet the Gophers were stuck near the bottom of the standings. What followed in 1960 remains one of the conference’s most dramatic reversals.
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As a senior, Brown delivered one of the most decorated seasons ever produced by a college lineman. Anchoring a defense that allowed just 88 points all year, he helped power Minnesota to an 8–2 record, a share of the Big Ten championship, and the program’s first trip to the Rose Bowl in nearly two decades.
The team was voted national champion before the bowl game, capping a turnaround from last place the year before.
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Brown won the Outland Trophy as the nation’s best interior lineman. He also earned All-America recognition and the Chicago Tribune Silver Football as the Big Ten’s most valuable player. Brown's second-place finish in the Heisman Trophy voting was the highest placement ever for a lineman at the time.
Making an immediate impact in the CFL, Brown made the Western All-Star Team and the All-Canadian Team for three consecutive years from 1961-63. He was also named “Outstanding Lineman” in the Western Conference for the same three-year period.
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Brown helped the Lions capture their first Grey Cup in 1964. He won the Jeff Nicklin Memorial Trophy, given to the Western Conference MVP, that same year.
Brown was inducted to the Canadian Football Hall of Fame in 1984 and the College Football Hall of Fame in 2003.
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