Brown Bears
The Brown Bears is a name shared by all sports teams at Brown University, a university located in Providence, Rhode Island in the United States. The Bears are part of the Ivy League conference. Brown's mascot is Bruno. Both the men's and women's teams share the name, competing in 37 National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I sports. In football, the Bears, along with all other the Ivy League teams, compete in the Football Championship Subdivision (FCS).[1]
History
Brown's first mascot was a burro, first introduced in 1902 in a game against Harvard.[2] The burro mascot was not retained after it seemed frightened by the noise of the game, and due to the laughter it provoked.[3] The University originally settled on the Bruin, but later changed it to a bear after the head of bear was placed at an archway above the student union in 1904.[3] In 1905 The Bears introduced Helen, the university's first live bear mascot, at a game against Dartmouth.[2] Bruno, Brown's current mascot, was introduced in 1921, originally also as a live bear.[3] A number of bears represented Bruno over the years, later being represented by a person in costume by the late 60's.[3]
Varsity athletics
The Bears participate in 37 NCAA sports, ranking them third among all Division I institutions for number of sports offered.[1] The Bears first fielded a football team in 1878, playing Amherst College in their inaugural game.[4] In addition to football, the Bears participate in baseball, men's and women's basketball, men's and women's crew, men's and women's cross country, equestrian, fencing, field hockey, men's and women's golf, gymnastics, men's and women's ice hockey, men's and women's lacrosse, skiing, men's and women's soccer, softball, men's and women's squash, men's and women's swimming and diving, men's and women's tennis, men's and women's track and field, volleyball, men's and women's water polo, and wrestling.
Notable athletes
The Bears have produced many athletes. One of Brown's most famous athletes is John Heisman, namesake of the Heisman Trophy. Before finishing college at the University of Pennsylvania, Heisman played college football at Brown as a lineman.[5]
- Bill Almon - professional baseball player, #1 pick in the 1974 Major League Baseball draft
- Mark Attanasio (Class of 1979) - financier and owner of the Milwaukee Brewers
- Curt Bennett (Class of 1970) - professional ice hockey player, St. Louis Blues and Atlanta Flames
- Thomas A. Barry (Class of 1902) - All American running back, head coach of The University of Notre Dame and University of Tulane football programs
- Don Colo (Class of 1950) - professional American football player, All-Pro who played for the Cleveland Browns
- Yann Danis (Class of 2004) - professional ice hockey player, Montreal Canadiens and New York Islanders
- Mark Donohue (Class of 1959) - professional racing driver, 1972 Indianapolis 500 champion
- Tommy Dowd - professional baseball player
- Dave Fultz (Class of 1898) - professional baseball player
- Cory Gibbs (Class of 2001) - professional football (soccer) player, Chicago Fire
- Irving "Bump" Hadley (Class of 1928) - professional baseball player, pitcher for the Washington Senators and New York Yankees
- John Heisman - college American football player and coach; namesake of the Heisman Trophy
- Fred Hovey (1890) - professional tennis player, U.S. Open Men's Doubles Champion (1893) and Men's Singles Champion (1895)
- Steve Jordan (Class of 1981) - professional American football player, 6-time All-Pro tight end who played for the Minnesota Vikings
- Jamie Koven (Class of 1995) - US national rower, World Champion in single scull 1997 France
- Ed Lawrence (Class of 1928) - American football player, member of the 1926 "Iron Men" football team
- Sean Morey - Special Teams Captain of 2005 Super Bowl XL Champion Pittsburgh Steelers
- Joe Paterno (Class of 1950) - quarterback and cornerback for the Bears, head coach of the Penn State Nittany Lions from 1966 to 2011
- Jimmy Pedro - most decorated American Judo athlete; Judo World Champion (1999), two-time Olympic bronze medalist (1996, 2004)
- Fritz Pollard - First African-American NFL coach and one of the first two African American players.
- Lee Richmond - professional baseball player, first major league player to throw a perfect game
- Earl Sprackling, Brown quarterback, 1909–11; named the deserving retrospective recipient of the Heisman Trophy for 1910 by "ESPN College Football Encyclopedia: The Complete History of the Game".
- Norman Taber (Class of 1913) - track and field athlete, member of the 1912 Olympic gold medal-winning 3,000-m relay team
- Fred Tenney - professional baseball player
- Thurston Towle (Class of 1928) - American football player, member of the 1926 "Iron Men" football team
- Wallace Wade (Class of 1917) - American football coach at the University of Alabama and Duke University, namesake of Duke's football stadium
- Chazz Woodson (Class of 2005) - Major League Lacrosse player currently with the Chicago Machine
- Denis Žvegelj (Class of 1997) - Slovenian Rower, Brown Crew Varsity Eight 1994, 1995, 1992 bronze medalist in Men's Coxless Pairs
- Porter Collins (Class of 1998) - American Rower, Brown Men's Crew Varsity Eight, 1996 and 2000 Olympian, 1999 World Champion in US Eight[6]
- Xeno Müller - Swiss Rower, Brown Men's Crew, 1996 Gold Medalist and 2000 Silver Medalist in Single Scull at Olympic Games, 3x Silver Medalist in Single Scull at World Championships[7]
References
External links
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