MAKING MOMMA PROUD
By Matthew Staudt
Note: This feature ran in Purdue's Game Day program on Nov. 8 for the Boilermakers game against Wisconsin.
Being a momma's boy isn't a bad thing. Just ask junior cornerback Anthony Brown, who is very proud of and grateful for the relationship he has with his mom.
"I'm a momma's boy," Brown admits. "I'm a momma's boy all the way. I grew up with her, and I've been with my mom all my life. I have a relationship with my dad as well, and I love him, too, but I'm a momma's boy at heart."
Brown is an only child and grew up in Tampa, Fla., with his mom and grandmother. He watched his mom, Yolanda, work as hard as she could every day to make sure that she could provide for him and give him everything that he needed to be happy. Yolanda sometimes worked two and three jobs at a time to make sure that there was food on the table, and to provide great Thanksgivings and Christmases.
Brown took notice.
"I loved growing up with my mom. It was fun," Brown says. "She taught me how to act and how to treat people with respect. She taught me the meaning of hard work and what it takes to accomplish my goals. My mom always made me happy and I love her for that."
Brown decided to try football in 2002 after he turned nine years old. Starting football is a big concern for a lot of parents, but not for Yolanda. She was very excited to watch her son play the game that she loves to watch, and she became his biggest fan. Brown joined the Winston Park Warriors Pop Warner team and was a standout on the offensive side of the ball.
He played offense exclusively until his junior year of high school. Then, he switched to defense and was the starting safety for Hillsborough High School. Brown played so well that school after school sent him letters and offers, but one stood out above the rest.
"I only took one visit when I was in high school," Brown says. "I came to Purdue as a junior, and I committed. After that, a lot of schools backed off. My mom was the one that told me to commit and told me to be true to my word. She was so happy, even though it's a long way from home. Really, she was happy for me to get out of Florida and the environment I group up in there."
Brown switched from safety to cornerback as a senior. He has made a switch between the positions twice since, playing cornerback as a Purdue freshman, before moving to safety as a sophomore and then back to corner this season. He has excelled, compiling impressive statistics that his mom keep tabs on game-in and game-out.
"After a game, my mom calls me and tells me all my stats," Brown says. "She knows them all right at the end of the game. She knew I was the second-leading tackler on the team last year. She also tells me what I've been doing right and wrong. She really knows the game. I think she could even be a coach, really. She just loves football."
Brown loves talking to his mom after games and listening to her breakdown his technique and big plays, especially after wins. He even refers to her as his "coach off the field" for her level of detail. Their conversations are usually over the phone because of his distance from home, though Yolanda has made it to at least one game each season. Brown hopes she will be able to make it up for the Old Oaken Bucket game later this month.
"I'm trying to get her up here for Thanksgiving weekend and take her to our game," Brown says. "I love playing in front of my mom and making her happy. There is no better feeling in the world than seeing her smile and making her proud."
So far, he's done a great job. Brown has 40 tackles, including 5.5 for loss and 1.5 sacks this season. He is also the team leader with eight pass breakups.
And that has made Boilermakers everywhere proud.