The BCSP reported a week ago, while outlining the HBCU products working Sunday’s Super Bowl LIV as officials, that there were no HBCU products either on the rosters of the San Francisco 49ers or Kansas City Chiefs.
We were wrong.
Former South Carolina State defensive back Alex Brown, a rookie free agent who wore jersey No. 30, was on the Chiefs’ roster and be-came the 12th Bulldog to play in football’s biggest game.
In Kansas City’s big 31-20 come-from-be-hind win over San Francisco Sunday, Brown got in on seven plays on special teams without making a tackle.
Brown, at 5-11, 170 pounds, wowed pro scouts at his Pro Day when he ran a 4.42 time in the 40-yard dash had a 41.5 inch vertical leap. Still, he had a rather circuitous route to joining the new Super Bowl champs.
Ironically, after his playing career at SC State ended in 2018 with a second team all-ME-AC selection, he was not drafted but was signed as a free agent on May 16, 2019 by the team the Chiefs played in Sunday’s Super Bowl, the 49ers. He was released by San Francisco on July 25.
He was picked up by Philadelphia on July 27 and released by the Eagles on August 4. He was then picked up by the New York Jets on the next day (Aug. 5) and released on Aug. 31.
Brown was signed to the Chiefs’ practice squad on Sept. 2, just in time to be on the 2019 CSPNFL Report of HBCU players on NFL opening day rosters.
“He’s a great story,” South Carolina State head coach Oliver “Buddy” Pough told The Undefeated Jerry Bembry in a story last week about Brown and other former Bulldogs making headlines as Super Bowl LIV approached.
“He (Brown) didn’t even start for us until his redshirt junior season and he has always continued to work hard.”
“He was kind of a development kind of player,” Pough told the BCSP Tuesday. “I really didn’t think of him as a pro prospect, but he just got stronger and stronger and started to show some of that athleticism that impressed the pros late in his career. He’s such a great kid and I’m really happy for him.”
This was the scouting report on Brown by Lance Zierlein of NFL.com prior to the 2019 Draft:
“Explosive, fast athlete with the size of a nickel cornerback but lacking the play traits for a smooth transition inside. Brown has decent ball production and his monster workout numbers will have teams scrambling for additional tape . . . His length and recovery speed are major check marks in his favor, but a practice squad spot could be the goal as he continues to work on the fundamentals of the position.
“He was promoted to the Chiefs’ active roster in the final four games of the regular season, playing eight snaps on special teams in games against New England, Denver and Chicago.
He posted one solo special team tackle in games against New England and Denver. He got in for nine plays on defense vs. the Chicago Bears without posting a stat. He was active but did not see any action in the final regular season game vs. the LA Chargers. He also was active for postseason wins for the Chiefs over Houston and Tennessee but did not play a snap.
Regardless of what it took for him to get there, Brown is now a Super Bowl champion.