After Thomas Brown was hired to be the Los Angeles Rams’ running backs coach, Sean McVay noted that he’s been on his radar for quite a while. He was in consideration for the job when McVay joined the Rams in 2017, but the Rams opted to keep Skip Peete at his current post.
McVay’s connection to Brown doesn’t just go back three years, though. The two first crossed paths about 15 years ago when they were in high school and played against each other on the football field.
McVay went to Marist in Georgia, while Brown played running back for Tucker. The two schools were rivals, and both McVay and Brown remember facing each other each season.
Brown recalled those matchups in an interview recently, saying he went 2-2 against McVay.
“He went to a rival high school of mine called Marist,” Brown said. “We went back and forth between wins and losses between my team and his team, so definitely followed him for a long time.
“He was a really good player, for sure. He beat me twice. I think we beat him twice, so kind of 2-for-2.”
Tucker was a standout for Tucker High School, receiving offers from powerhouse schools such as Georgia and Florida State. He committed to Georgia and played four years with the Bulldogs, rushing for 2,646 yards and 23 touchdowns in his career. He was drafted by the Falcons in the sixth round of the 2008 NFL Draft but never appeared in a game.
McVay didn’t go on to play college football, but needless to say, he’s had some success in his coaching career already. Now, he and Brown will put their past rivalry aside with the goal of winning a Super Bowl in Los Angeles.