Kippy Brown

Kippy Brown (born March 6, 1955 in Sweetwater, Tennessee) is the wide receivers coach of the Seattle Seahawks. He was a collegiate level starting quarterback for Memphis State and has coached in various capacities at both the collegiate and professional levels of American football. He graduated from Memphis State in 1977 with a degree in communications.

Playing career
Kippy Brown began his football career at Sweetwater High School in Sweetwater, Tennessee winning the 1971 and 1972 state championships. He also helped his prep team lead the state in scoring in 1972 and 1973.

Following a stellar high school career, Brown attended Memphis State University (now known as University of Memphis) where he was quarterback for the Tigers from 1975 to 1977. Brown was an outstanding field general, and his leadership ability combined with his unique scrambling talents and strong arm paid dividends when the Tigers upset sixth-ranked Auburn University 31–20 in 1975. In what was probably the Tigers’ best win during his tenure, Brown engineered this victory by completing seven of 11 passes for 103 yards and two touchdowns.

Coaching career 1978–1999
After graduating from MSU in 1977 with a B.A. in Communications, Brown switched gears from playing to coaching at his alma mater and served as running backs coach in 1978 under head coach Richard Williamson and receivers coach from 1979 to 1980.

After coaching two years with the Tigers, he moved to Louisville, Kentucky to coach receivers at the University of Louisville (U of L) Cardinals for the 1982 campaign. One of his pupils was Mark Clayton who later played for the Miami Dolphins from 1983 to 1992.

Following the ’82 season at U of L, Brown returned to his roots in the state of Tennessee helping coach the Johnny Majors-run University of Tennessee Volunteers football team. During his first stint with the Vols from 1983 to 1989, Brown helped Tennessee acquire the nickname “Wide Receiver U.,” coaching numerous pass catchers to greatness. Receivers Anthony Miller, Tim McGee, Alvin Harper and Carl Pickens all benefited from Brown’s tutelage prior to their joining the professional ranks.

Brown caught the attention of the New York Jets while with Tennessee and coached for the Jets from 1990 to 1992. While with the Jets in 1991, he coached running backs for NY head coach Bruce Coslet and saw his backs rank fifth in the NFL in rushing. That 1991 squad also returned to the playoffs for the first time since 1986.

Brown later returned to Rocky Top when Tennessee head coach Phillip Fulmer convinced him to return to the collegiate ranks as assistant head coach and wide receivers coach for two seasons (1993–1994). He brought an offensive flair from the professional ranks to the UT offensive package as the Vols compiled an 18–6 record and outscored their opponents 847–383 over the course of those two years. A young Peyton Manning also benefited from Brown’s guidance during his freshman campaign as the Vols’ signal caller.

Following a highly successful 1994 Tennessee season, Brown was again called to the pro ranks, joining Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 1995. Then-Tampa Bay head coach Sam Wyche named Brown running backs coach stating, “Getting Kippy is a major coup for us.” While in Tampa, he also worked closely with former Bucs head coach and former head coach of the Indianapolis Colts, Tony Dungy.

From 1996 to 1999, he was on Jimmy Johnson’s Miami Dolphins coaching staff, where he was the offensive coordinator from 1998 to 1999 and the running backs coach from 1996 to 1997. In 1996, Brown helped RB Karim Abdul-Jabbar become the first Dolphins running back to reach 1,000 yards in 18 years, and in 1997 Abdul-Jabbar tied a league-high 15 rushing touchdowns.

Coaching career 2000–present
In 2000, Brown joined the Green Bay Packers as running backs coach under head coach Mike Sherman. Following the creation of the XFL in 2001, Brown took command of his hometown Memphis Maniax finishing the year 5–5; second in the Western Division and was the only team to defeat eventual XFL champions Los Angeles Xtreme twice. The team disbanded after one year as the XFL league collapsed.

After the demise of the XFL, Kippy Brown spent four seasons as the Houston Texans wide receivers coach. Among his pupils in Texas was WR Andre Johnson, who was taken by Houston with the third overall pick in the 2003 draft. Johnson became the first Texans offensive player to earn a trip to the Pro Bowl, selected for his outstanding 2004 season that included club records of 79 receptions for 1,129 yards.

Brown arrived in Detroit, Michigan for the 2006 season with the Detroit Lions. There, he reunited with Larry Beightol, with whom Brown worked on the New York Jets in 1990–92, Miami in 1996–98 and Green Bay Packers in 2000. For the 2008 Season, Brown served as Assistant Head Coach/Passing Game Coordinator.

On December 17, 2009, Brown accepted an offer to coach the University of Tennessee wide receivers and also become their "Passing Game Coordinator". On January 16, 2010, after not being named Lane Kiffin's successor as Head Coach at Tennessee, he left to join Pete Carroll's staff as Wide Receivers Coach of the Seattle Seahawks.

Family life
Brown and his wife, Deon (Wilson), were married in Memphis in 1974. Deon is a native Memphian who taught locally at Craigmont High School from 1978 to 1981. The couple has two grown children, Jerome, born January 8, 1975, and Jennifer, born July 28, 1980.

Jerome earned a basketball scholarship at the University of Tennessee under former Vol head coach Wade Houston, and competed on the Buy.com golf tour. Jennifer studied at Spelman College in Atlanta, Georgia.