Speaking both academically and athletically, Raymond Howard “Bull” Brown is definitely a man of letters. An avid senior golfer, Brown’s lists of accomplishments in sports and other campus matters covered more distance than his routine 200-yard plus drives. During his playing career at Tennessee Tech, Brown earned a total of fifteen athletic letters, more than any other person in the school’s history. He won four letters each in football, basketball, and baseball and three in track before completing his bachelor’s degree in 1942. From there, after serving in the Navy during World War II, Brown went to the University of Tennessee to earn his masters. In subsequent years, Brown served in various coaching capacities both at UT and Tech, while also finding time to fill numerous volunteer roles in community and campus endeavors. A former member of the Cookeville City Council, Brown worked in all areas of community development. Honored by Tennessee Tech in 1976, when he was inducted into the Golden Eagle Sports Hall of Fame, Brown also received many awards for his work off campus. Between his undergraduate days at Tennessee Tech and his work at UT, where he was a member of the staff of Tennessee’s Rose Bowl team, Brown was chairman of the health and physical education department, athletic director, and head coach at Milligan College. “Bull” Brown’s multifaceted career was always unified in one key aspect: excellence.
