Dr. RICHARD BROWN (1955)

  

Dick had a kind of storybook experience at Blair, topped off by an almost perfect athletic year as a senior. He excelled in four sports—football, baseball, basketball, and track. In the 1954–55 school year, Dick played for the undefeated County Champion football team, was the Captain of the undefeated State Champion basketball team, and played first base for the Bi-County Champion baseball team (they lost one game!).

Sports wasn’t his only interest during his senior year: he was also Class President.
After leaving Blair Dick received an appointment to the U.S. Naval Academy, where he continued his athletic career by playing both baseball and basketball. During his undergraduate years at the Academy he was selected as the Most Valuable Player on the basketball team (which defeated North Carolina in the NCAA Tournament) and was Captain and Most Valuable Player on the baseball team. He is an inductee in the Naval Academy Athletic Hall of Fame, and he later became an Assistant Professor there.

When he finished his military commitment, he embarked on a long career as a coach, teacher, and innovator in several sports. He earned his PhD in Human Physiology from the University of Oregon, where also taught and coached. He spent a large part of his career in track and field and he helped develop training and injury prevention systems for the Nike Foundation that have been adapted throughout the sports world. Dick has coached athletes in 26 Olympic Games and World Championships, authored two books, and won numerous awards for his work.