The decision to return to Georgia wasn’t quite as easy for Thomas Brown as a lot of folks might think.
The Bulldogs’ former star tailback had a pretty good job where he was at Wisconsin. And he and his wife Jessica had moved around a lot the last few. They idea of putting down some roots somewhere for awhile appealed to them.
“It was probably not as easy as people may assume,” Brown said Monday. “Obviously I have a lot of history here. I grew up in this great state, played here, had a chance to come back and work as a strength coach a few years ago. But I was in a great spot. I turned down a few jobs this past offseason and I was kind of adamant about wanting to stay where I was coming off a good year.”
But when Mark Richt, his former head coach, finally reached out with the phone call last Tuesday morning, Brown knew immediately in his heart he’d be coming home. And now, the Browns are thinking they can start putting down those roots in Athens.
Brown was named the Bulldogs’ new running backs coach last Tuesday. Bryan McClendon, his friend and former teammate, will move out to coach wide receivers.
Brown met with the media covering UGA for the first time on Monday. Here’s some of the highlights from his question and answer session with reporters:
Q: Once you were offered the position, did you run it by Bryan McClendon first?
A: "I didn't talk to him about that. I always talk to him. Bryan and I always stay in pretty good contact. We talked about a number of different things, from football to recruits to family stuff. So we've been pretty close since I came back as strength coach, I'd been hanging around him and trying to learn from him. I did reach out to him and talk to him about the dynamics of the program and what he thought about it and we did mention a little bit about the scenarios that would have to happen for me to come back.
Q: How have the running backs accepting the transition from McClendon to you?
A: "I think it will be a smooth transition. It helps out with Bryan still being here. I have some familiarity with those guys. Keith (Marshall) was coming in right when I was leaving, so I know him a little bit. Quayvon (Hicks) was kind of the same way. … I told the guys when I first met with them that I know a lot more about them than they probably know about me. I've had different jobs at Wisconsin, at Marshall, Georgia State, Tennessee-Chattanooga. But I always kept that 'G' up under whatever logo I've had on. I followed those guys from afar and kind of watched what they were doing and what was going on with them. He's done a great job with that room with recruiting and developing those guys. I've got some big shoes to fill. But I'm excited about it and I think I'll be OK."
Q: Do you feel better prepared having been at Wisconsin and coaching Melvin Gordon?
A: "Yeah, last year was huge. I obviously had a chance to walk into a pretty talented room there. … It was great to be around a guy like Melvin that was so talented but at the same time a humble super star. He was a guy when I came in who could've told me shut up and just watch me work. But he was a guy that was very humble who wanted to learn and wanted to grow. I probably learned as much from him as he did from me. It definitely prepared me for coaching a high-profile guy and learning how to manage him day-in and day-out, practice-reps wise and making sure he stays as healthy as possible throughout the year."
Q: How will dealing with the Heisman hype with Gordon might help you with Nick Chubb?
A: "Well, I tell those guys to try to ignore the noise. When you're a talented player people want to be attached to you and write stuff about you and tell you how great you are and what you're going to become. But I tell them just to focus on the stuff they can control. Obviously I was never in that spot as a player, but I had some positive stuff and said and written about me and I tried the best I could to stay away from it and focus on the daily process, the consistent grind."
Q: What are your impressions of UGA’s running backs?
A: "We're deep here. We've got some talented guys. It makes me proud to have played here and be part of that legacy. Those guys are a whole lot better than I ever was. But I'm excited about having the opportunity to coach them. I'm a big competition guy and I told them that from day one. I'm not really overly concerned with what you did in the past. I'm going to take it into consideration but you've got a clean slate with me. Every day is going to be an interview to see what you can do.' I think I became as good as I was because of the competition I had around me. We had some guys, three other NFL tailbacks, that wouldn't allow you to take days off. I kind of consider myself to be a pretty self-motivated guy, but those guys definitely helped remind me that if I didn't feel like working they were going to take my spot. So I kind of expressed that same thing to those guys."
Q: How much will your experience as Georgia tailback will help you in this job?
A: "I hope it helps a bunch. The fact that I actually played the position here and have some familiarity with it should help not just with the guys we have on the roster now but even from a recruiting standpoint. … I've always recruited the state of Georgia no matter where I've been because I have some connections here. I think that's definitely going to be an asset moving forward."
Q: Did you leave Tucker High expecting to be a coach one day?
A: "Heck no. It's funny because my dad, who for whatever reason seems to always be right about a lot of stuff in my life, but he always talked to me when I was growing up about aspirations outside of football. I had an array of different thoughts, from designing video games to being a sports broadcaster to whatever it was. He always mentioned, 'you might want to be a football coach.' I was like, 'those people are stupid. Those people spend way too much time at the office and you've got to deal with these crazy kids. Lo and behold, I'm that stupid guy sitting here trying to be a football coach. But, no, I didn't come with that aspiration from Tucker High School. … I dabbled in other stuff, but I missed the connection with the players and developing guys off the field."
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