Kippy Brown has sadly passed away at the age of 71. He's best known for his time as an assistant coach on the New York Jets and the Seattle Seahawks. His death was announced by The University of Memphis, where Brown had a legendary career as a college quarterback.
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"The University of Memphis is mourning the loss of M Club and Tennessee Sports Hall of Famer Kippy Brown, who passed away Aug. 31 at the age of 71," the statement reads. "Brown played for the Tigers from 1974-77 and was a pioneer as the first Black quarterback in Memphis football history."
The statement continued by detailing some of the success Brown enjoyed within the Universities football program.
"In his first season as Memphis' starting quarterback, Brown led the Tigers to a 31-20 upset victory over No. 7 Auburn and a 7-4 overall record. During his four-year tenure with the Tigers, Memphis never had a losing season."
Brown began his coaching career with Memphis, joining the staff in 1978, where he coached running backs. The following year, he became a wide-receivers coach, and stuck with that role during coaching spells with Memphis, Louisville and Tennessee.
Throughout his career, Brown also worked as an assistant coach for the Jets, Seahawks (where he was on the staff for the 2014 Super Bowl win), Miami Dolphis, Green Bay Packers, Houston Texans, and Detroit Lions.
Brown retired in 2015.
Former Seahawks Coach, Pete Carroll, Pays Tribute to Kippy Brown
Upon learning of Brown's death, Pete Carroll, a former coach for the Seahawks, paid tribute to Brown.
"He was a great friend to everybody, because he had such a positive, good, fun-loving spirit," Carroll said. "Everybody loved being around Kip. And he had a light about him, he wanted to have a good time and have fun and make things pleasant for everyone around him. That's why so many people have rallied around him in this last month or so and reached out to (his wife) Deon, being supportive and loving. He was a wonderful person, and my heart goes out to Deon and the family. It's a beautiful family."
Currently there's no information regarding Brown's cause of death. Furthermore, no details regarding his upcoming funeral has been made public. Both of those things will likely remain private.
