Marshall University football fans know him simply as Troy. His fame in Huntington, like that of Chad and Randy and Byron, comes from his playing days, not only as a star with the Thundering Herd, but in the NFL.

If you hadn’t already figured it out, Troy is Troy Fitzgerald Brown, whose football exploits as a wide receiver and punt returner, both at Marshall in the early 1990s and with the New England Patriots the past 14 years, are legendary in Thundering Herd country and Boston.
At Marshall, Troy caught 101 passes for 1,654 yards and 16 touchdowns in the memorable 1992 season when the Herd won its first NCAA Division I-AA football championship. He was chosen as the team’s most valuable player that year.

“Troy was the ultimate team player whose skill level was unmatched in I-AA,” Jim Donnan, his coach at Marshall in 1991 and 1992, says today.

The professional story of “Football Troy” is one that started slowly in 1993 when the sure-handed, 5-foot-10 standout, admittedly “more quick than fast,” was drafted 198th overall by the Patriots – not exactly breaking news in Huntington or Boston. He caught a grand total of two passes in his first two years in the league, and had to wait until his fifth season with New England to make his first start.

The rest, as they say is history.

Today, 10 years after that first start, 36-year-old Troy Brown is considered the greatest receiver in New England Patriots history with a team-record 557 catches and 6,366 receiving yards, second-most in team history. He also has 1,862 yards in kickoff returns, 2,570 yards in punt returns, three career interceptions and … for good measure, three Super Bowl rings.

Patriots Coach Bill Belichick spoke of Troy’s versatility, talent and determination in 2004. “You can’t ask for any more than that,” Belichick said, referring to Troy’s willingness to play offense, defense and special teams in his 12th season. “Troy just epitomized it: (He said) ‘What do you want me to do? Put me in there. I will do the best I can.’ ”

And so, “Football Troy” has defied the odds and reached the summit at the game’s highest level. The statistics, the championships and the records speak for themselves.
Still, there is so much more to Troy Brown than all of the football highlights. There is “Citizen Troy,” the man who not only gives 100 percent effort on the field, but off the field as well. To many whose lives he has touched or even changed, Troy is their MVP – Most Valuable Person. Helping people or organizations in need comes as naturally to Troy Brown as splitting two defenders and snaring one of quarterback Tom Brady’s bullet passes for a first down.

Why does Troy care? Why does he insist on spending his “spare” time as community ambassador, along with his wife, Kim, for Hospice of Huntington, or running a fantasy football camp to raise money for Marshall’s Child Development Academy, or joining with former Marshall teammate Mike Bartrum in organizing and conducting the Bartrum and Brown Football Camp, which funds youth programs and charities in Huntington and Pomeroy, Ohio?

Why does he sponsor local AAU basketball teams, funding their travel and buying their uniforms, or set up mentoring and tutoring programs at the A.D. Lewis Center, or volunteer to coach one of his son’s soccer teams during the off-season? “That’s just the way I am,” he says. “I just like seeing people smile.” Kim believes there is more to it than that.

“Growing up he didn’t have a lot,” Kim says. “He wants to give back and help kids who are in the same situation as he was. He is very giving of his time, his money, just of himself overall.” Troy, Kim, and their sons, Sirmon, 9, and SaanJay, 6, live in Huntington when Troy is not playing football, and plan to remain there once his playing days are over. Kim is a Huntington High School graduate; Troy is from Barnwell, S.C., but Huntington is his adopted hometown. “Kim’s a local girl and the kids are involved in a lot of sports,” Troy says. “City life is OK, but here in a smaller area it’s not as congested. It’s a little more fun, a little more laid back.”

Troy admits he has, at times, been a little overwhelmed by all of the requests for his time. Still, just like in football, Troy gives everything he has to the cause at hand. “I’m trying to give kids hope. It’s all about the kids,” he says. “I want to see them have a chance to succeed, and not just through sports programs.”

It all goes back to his days growing up in South Carolina. “A lot of programs weren’t around,” Troy says. “They just didn’t exist. No boys and girls clubs. No A.D. Lewis Center.” The A.D. Lewis Center, a youth center located on Hal Greer Boulevard in Huntington, is another beneficiary of Troy’s big heart. Proceeds from the Bartrum and Brown Camp helped keep the facility’s swimming pool open in 2006. Brown also has purchased supplies for the center, according to Kim.

Troy’s care for others is not limited to Huntington. Three years ago he was awarded the 2004 Ron Burton Community Service Award for the Patriot most dedicated to serving the community in a positive way. He currently hosts an annual “Troy Brown Celebrity Bingo” event that brings more than 900 participants to Gillette Stadium, the Patriots’ home, where they compete for more than $10,000 in prize money. The bingo event helps fund the Celebrities for Charity Foundation and other children’s charities.

Bill and Debbie Sheils of Huntington are good friends of Troy and Kim. They’ve experienced up close the football and humanitarian sides of the couple.
“For Troy, it’s not about him, but what he can do to make those around him better,” Bill Sheils says. “He leads by example. He has great integrity and an unbelievable work ethic. You can’t help but admire him. He is very soft spoken, humble, grounded and he has a very strong will to succeed. He shows a selfless devotion to other people, his family, friends, team and community.”

For years, Troy has been a favorite on-field target of Brady, a two-time Super Bowl MVP. Following New England’s third Super Bowl victory in four years in February 2005, Brady shared his thoughts on Troy with the media. “As a team player, Troy is right at the top of the list,” Brady said. “There is not another guy who has the respect of his teammates like Troy.”

The Patriots and Troy Brown held a press conference on September 25,2008 to announce his official retirement from the NFL. I know it is unprecedented to have two hero declarations in two days, but hey, it’s TROY BROWN. He played 15 years, and in this day in age it is truly remarkable that they were all as a Patriot.

Hero status is the least we can bestow upon the man who I will forever refer to as The Patriot. The man was the consummate team player, doing whatever was asked of him. Not only that but he did it with an ear to ear grin on his face. Troy didn’t need to play to the media or the fans, he was just who he was and everyone loved him. Everyone. Teammates, opposing players, coaches, media. I dare you to find someone who has ever muttered the words “You know, I just don’t like that Troy Brown”.

Good luck......... because you won't.

Click here for a Troy Brown video tribute