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Speedster Brown took long, tough road to NFL

By WTOP Staff

BOB BAUM
AP Sports Writer

TEMPE, Ariz. (AP) — As fast as John Brown is — and he is very fast — his route to the NFL was a slow, difficult one.

The Arizona Cardinals’ third-round draft pick finally wound up at Pittsburg State, an NCAA Division II school in Kansas, where he had an electrifying career as a receiver and punt returner.

He had bounced around from Mars Hill College in North Carolina, then academic problems sent him to Coffeyville Community College in Kansas, where he didn’t make the active roster but still practiced with the team.

About that time, his older brother died of gunshot wounds, and Brown says that, for a minute, he thought about giving up the game.

But he decided to carry on, in Kansas, some 1,400 miles from those awful memories in Homestead, Florida.

“I just wanted to get far away,” he said.

Pittsburg State, a Division II powerhouse, offered Brown a full scholarship, just based on what they saw of him in Coffeyville’s practice. It had been two years when he finally took the field for the Gorillas two seasons ago.

After Pittsburg State held the opponent to a three-and-out, Brown came on to return the punt.

“I told the guys when I first got in, like two months before the season, the first time I touch the ball I’m going to score,” he told reporters at Cardinals headquarters on Thursday. “We three-and-outed them and got an 89-yard punt return, and I took it to the house untouched.”

Scouts were well aware of Brown, and he helped himself with his play in the East-West Shrine Game. But his stock rose at the NFL combine, where his 40-yard time of 4.34 seconds was third-fastest of everyone there. Only Dre Archer of Kent State (4.26) and first-round draft pick Brandin Cooks of Oregon State (4.33) were faster.

Arizona coach Bruce Arians loves speed, and he sees Brown in the mold of two other small, fast receivers he coached — T.Y. Hilton in Indianapolis and Antonio Brown in Pittsburgh. With great speed deep and “fearless across the middle.”

“It’s kind of crazy because every time we talk he mentioned those guys,” Brown said. “He believes I can do what those guys do.”

He might get a chance to return punts for Arizona, too. Arians has talked about easing Patrick Peterson out of that role to allow the three-time Pro Bowl player to concentrate on his main job of cornerback.

Ed Stinson, the Alabama defensive end drafted by Arizona in the fifth round, grew up a few blocks from Brown and the two are longtime friends.

Stinson said Brown was “the slowest kid on the block.”

But as a senior in high school, Brown said he picked up the speed.

No major college showed any interest in him, and in 2008 he played as a freshman for Mars Hill. Academic problems sidelined him for the 2009 season and in 2010 he wound up at Coffeyville, where he never played in a game. The team had a 12-man limit on out-of-state players and Brown said he was No. 13.

In early 2011, Brown’s older brother, James Walker — a father figure — died of gunshot wounds sustained nine months earlier in a fight outside a Miami bar.

The death remains a major motivation.

“It just made me a better man,” Brown said, “just seeing the stuff that I had to see with my brother, putting up a fight for nine months before he passed. It just taught me a lesson. No matter how hard things get, you can’t give up.”

At Pittsburg State, Brown was a three-time Division II All-American.

Now the 5-foot-10, 179-pound receiver is in Arizona, where he, second-round draft pick tight end Troy Niklas of Notre Dame and the team’s other third-round pick, defensive end Kareem Martin of North Carolina, signed four-year contracts Thursday.

With a young daughter back in Florida, Brown said he’s ready for this latest challenge for a guy who made it to the pros the hard way.

“I’ve had a chip on my shoulder, a point to prove, since I was little,” Brown said. “They told me I wasn’t going to be able to play varsity, they told me I wasn’t going to start in college and they told me I wouldn’t make it to the NFL.”

___

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Don’t Settle for Student Loans to Pay for Online Education

By WTOP Staff
Online college programs are becoming a more popular choice for prospective students, with one study finding that more than 6 million students enrolled in at least one online course in fall 2015. The popularity of these courses can be attributed in part to their flexibility with working adults' schedules, students' ability to progress more quickly through online programs and, oftentimes, cheaper tuition. [See 10 low-cost online bachelor's programs for out-of-state students.]Online degrees can be beneficial to many college students, but some studies have shown online learners complete their programs at lower rates than students at traditional brick-and-mortar campuses. Individuals with student loans but no degree comprise two-thirds of defaulted borrowers. Though these numbers are not encouraging, just like for traditional programs, there are ways to reduce how much you'll need to borrow for an online program to ensure you won't become one of these statistics. Don't just settle on borrowing student loans to cover the whole cost of your program and living expenses. Instead, start thinking about how to cut costs and cover your balance in different ways, such as the following. -- Grants and scholarships: Even though you are taking an online course, you can still apply and receive grants and scholarships. But your first step should be to complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, commonly referred to as the FAFSA, which will allow you to receive a Pell Grant if your expected family contribution is low enough. The EFC criteria and award amounts are adjusted annually, but the 2017-2018 academic year awards range from $606 to $5,920, which could significantly lower the amount you borrow annually. Your next step is to apply for scholarships. You can start by checking online scholarship search engines, such as the Salt Scholarship Search, College Board's BigFuture and Peterson's. But don't forget to take advantage of local organizations and your school's financial aid office. Both may offer scholarships that you can't find with a national scholarship search. [Review these 10 sites to kick off your scholarship search.]For instance, organizations like the Elks Club, Knights of Columbus or the Rotary Club typically offer scholarships annually to local students. Just because you're going to school online doesn't mean you're ineligible. Visit your local library for scholarship listings, and ask around town. You might be surprised how many local organizations offer scholarships. While these scholarships typically aren't large, every little bit counts. Each dollar you receive in a scholarship is a dollar you don't have to borrow and pay interest on. -- Work-study: Another option for online students may be work-study awards. Not all students enrolled in online programs are eligible, but students at some schools -- including, for example, SUNY Empire State College and Liberty University -- are. Work-study awards are not given upfront like scholarships and grants. In most cases, they are an offer to earn up to the awarded amount if you secure an eligible work-study job. While there is a misconception that all work-study jobs must be on campus, students can work for off-campus, nonprofit or public employers as long as the work is in the public's interest. You may be able to work for a for-profit employer if the job is relevant to your course of study. No matter who the outside employer is, it will need to have an established agreement with your college for you to receive work-study funds. Remember, to be eligible for federal financial aid, you must be enrolled and pursuing a degree or certificate. If you're not working toward a credential, Pell Grants and work-study won't be option, but you may still be able to take advantage of private scholarships -- just be sure to read the eligibility criteria carefully. [Explore what to know about financial aid in online programs.]-- Pay as you go: One of the great benefits to enrolling online is the flexible schedule, which can allow you to complete your college coursework around your responsibilities. But prospective students often overlook using their part- or full-time job earnings as an option for paying for college. Almost 80 percent of college students in 2015 worked at least part time while attending classes, according to the National Center for Education Statistics. By budgeting and thinking strategically about your college costs, you can likely reduce your dependence on student loans by paying a portion out of pocket. Many -- but not all -- online programs are less expensive than traditional programs and often have shorter payment periods. Six, eight or 10 weeks are common course durations. Because of the frequency of payments in an online setting, you may be well-placed to pay as you go and possibly avoid borrowing altogether. Attending college online and avoiding student loans may be challenging, but if you are willing to put in the effort, you can limit the amount you need to borrow. More from U.S. News Q&A: Understanding Student Loan Discharge Eligibility Student Loan Refinancing Isn't Right for All Borrowers
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