Brown of the Browns

At midseason 1958, a big (6 ft. 2 in., 228 Ibs.) Negro fullback named James Nathaniel Brown of the Cleveland Browns is the most spectacular professional football player in the U.S. With the twelve-game season only half gone, Jimmy Brown, 22, is already within a whisker of topping the all-time pro records for touchdowns (18) and total rushing yardage (1.146) set by Philadelphia's Steve Van Buren in the 19403. In six games Brown has piled up 15 touchdowns, gained 928 yards, been the prime mover in the Cleveland Browns' try for their eighth division championship in nine years.

The Test. Brown has tremendous power, is also the fastest man on the team. The combination is devastating. Most fullbacks are short-yardage power specialists, but Jimmy has roared off on touchdown gallops of 23, 38, 41. 48, 59 and 62 yards this season. He explodes from a standing start at top speed, follows his interference to the line of scrimmage, then picks a hole and takes off, running over everything in his way.

Even his rival pros, who have cut down many a college star to size, speak of him with a respect that borders on awe. "He's the only player I know who can run faster sideways than he can straight ahead," says Pittsburgh's guard Dale Dodrill. Says the Steelers' speedy defensive halfback Jack Butler: "I don't really know how to stop him. I haven't been able to catch up to him yet." Los Angeles Linebacker Dick Daugherty, one of the surest tacklers in football, recalls the day last year that he zeroed in on Brown for a tackle: "I really hit him hard--bounced him back. It would have stopped anyone else, but not Jimmy. He took off again to the right and ran 70 yards to a touchdown as if nothing had happened." Onetime Philadelphia Coach Earle ("Greasy") Neale says: "He's the best back in the history of pro football."

The Record. The son of a sometime professional fighter. Jimmy attended Manhasset High School on Long Island, averaged 14.9 yards a try as a senior halfback, 38 points a game for the basketball team, set a school high-jump record (6 ft. 3 in.), pitched and played first base for the baseball team. After sifting 45 scholarship offers, he chose Syracuse, majored in sociology, put on a spectacular one-man show in the 1957 Cotton Bowl by scoring three touchdowns, booting three conversions against Texas Christian in a 28-27 losing cause.

Cleveland's Coach Paul Brown grabbed Jimmy in the draft, built a new ground offense around Brown. Last year Jimmy led the league in ground-gaining, was runaway choice for rookie of the year. This year, with Rookie Speedster Bobby Mitchell operating at halfback to keep the defense spread to cover an outside threat, Cleveland has the best ground game the pro league has seen in years.

Last week Fullback Brown came face to face with the New-York Giants, best defensive team in the league.

In the second quarter, Brown plowed off left tackle, seemed hopelessly buried in a cloud of Giant defenders, then suddenly squirted free and outfooted the secondary to race 58 yards to a touchdown. But the Giants ganged up on Jimmy after that, held him to only 113 yards rushing (v. an average 163 a game to date), considered their afternoon's labor well spent as they upset the Browns 21-17.

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