Ron Brown (wide receiver)

Ronald James Brown (born March 31, 1961) is an American former athlete and professional football player. He won a gold medal in the 4 × 100 metres relay at the 1984 Summer Olympics.^[2] Brown played as a wide receiver in the National Football League (NFL). He went to Arizona State University.^[3]

Ron Brown

No. 89, 24, 81
Position:	Wide receiver
Personal information
Born:	(1961-03-31) March 31, 1961 (age 64) Los Angeles, California, U.S.
Height:	5 ft 11 in (1.80 m)
Weight:	181 lb (82 kg)
Career information
High school:	Baldwin Park (Baldwin Park, California)
College:	Arizona State
NFL draft:	1983: 2nd round, 41 (by the Cleveland Browns)[1]th pick
Career history
Los Angeles Rams (1984–1989) Los Angeles Raiders (1990) Los Angeles Rams (1991)
Career highlights and awards
First-team All-Pro (1985) Pro Bowl (1985)
Career NFL statistics
Receptions: 98 Receiving yards: 1,791 Touchdowns: 13 Return yards: 4,493 Return touchdowns: 4 Stats at Pro Football Reference

High school career

Brown played high school football at powerhouse Baldwin Park High School in Baldwin Park, California until his senior year. He then moved to Northern California and played for Northgate High School in Walnut Creek.^{[citation needed]}

Track and field

Olympic medal record
Men's athletics
Representing the  United States
	1984 Los Angeles	4 × 100 m relay

Brown was also a track star, he ran the second leg in the 4 × 100 metres relay team that won the gold medal and set the world record in the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles, with a time of 37.83 seconds.

Brown also competed in the 60 meters, 100 meters and 200 meters, posting personal bests of 6.64 seconds, 10.01 seconds and 20.44 seconds, respectively.

Football career

Brown was drafted in the second round of the 1983 draft by the Cleveland Browns, but never reported to them as he was training for the Olympics. The Browns traded their rights to the Los Angeles Rams, and Brown joined the Rams after the Olympics.^[4] He caught 23 passes in 1984 for 478 yards with four touchdowns as a rookie in 1984 before being tasked to return kicks the following year. In 1985, he returned 28 kicks for 918 yards for three touchdowns (his touchdowns and 32.8 yards per return were league highs). This resulted in Pro Bowl and All-Pro honors. Only his 1989 year would exceed that season, with him returning 47 (a league high) for 968 yards. In his eight seasons, he recorded 1,000 all-purpose yards (receiving + returns) four times (1985–87, 1989) before his career ended in 1990 at the age of 30.

Brown appeared in the 1986 Rams promotional video, Let's Ram It,^[5] where he went by the name "Speedball Brown" and claimed to be the fastest man in town.^[6]

Personal bests

Event	Time (seconds)	Venue	Date
60 meters	6.64	Tokyo, Japan	March 10, 1984
100 meters	10.01	Eugene, Oregon	April 24, 1983
200 meters	20.44	Eugene, Oregon	June 4, 1983