Tampa Bay Times from St. Petersburg, Florida • 122

nn KEBrJATiDO COUNTY'S BEST EVER in in i mmmmmmmm 1 1 Ml iuufl 1 1 I Hernando County never has seen a player quite like the Leopards' Jerome Brown. IV if; i i.1 "iD Valentine remembers the play vividly. Like an old fisherman recounting the big one he landed 17 years ago, the former Springstead High tight end gleams as he describes the afternoon he felled Jerome Brown. "His senior year, we worked on this play all week," he said. "I came down right in his hole and hit him." Each team had its own philosophy in dealing with a 6-foot-4, 265-pound monster that was hulking enough to dominate on the lines but athletic enough to star at fullback and routinely thump kickoffs through the goal posts.

Some schools ran away from Hernando High's star during his varsity seasons of 1980-82. Some ran at him. Some tried not to change their attack. Some just hoped for the best But in some way, he usually found a way to impact a JEROME BROWN SCHOOL Hernando. POS: DTFBK YEARS: 1979-82.

HIGH SCHOOL CAREER: At 6feet 4, 265 pounds, Brown was a behemoth on the high school field, a hard-to-stop fullback and intimidating defensive lineman. Athletic for his size, he also caught passes and kicked field goals and extra points. He was, as former Hernando assistant coach Tom Darby noted, "a one-in-a-million occurrence." Brown still holds the Hernando High records for fumble recoveries in a career (8) and sacks in a season (16 in 198 Hand career (28). He was named all-state as a junior and senior. AFTER HIGH SCHOOL: Brown was a first-team Ail-American, UPI Lineman of the Year, and Outland Trophy finalist in 1986 at the University of Miami, where he won a national championship as a freshman and lost another in the Fiesta Bowl as a senior.

Brown finished with 184 total tackles and 21 sacks and was chosen by the Philadelphia Eagles ninth overall in the 1987 NFL draft. In five seasons with the Eagles, he played in two Pro Bowls and with linemates Reggie White and Clyde Simmons in 1991, led arguably one of the most dominating defenses in NFL history. The Buddy Ryan-directed unit led the league in fewest yards allowed and was tops against the run and pass. Brown died with his nephew on June 25, 1992, in a car crash in Brooksville. CURTISBUNCH SCHOOL Hernando.

YEARS: 1975-78. HIGH SCHOOL CAREER: The imposing Bunch parlayed a dominating career with the Leopards into a scholarship at Albany State. AFTER HIGH SCHOOL Bunch, a 6-5, 245-pounder, was an all-conference performer his senior season when he recorded 20 solo tackles, 1 1 assists and 2 defensive touchdowns. He played in the NFL with Pittsburgh and United States Football League's Tampa Bay Bandits. CURTISS BUNCH SCHOOL Central.

POS: DETE. YEARS: 1989-91. HIGH SCHOOL CAREER: The 6-3, 230-pounder is the nephew of his virtual namesake. Bunch had 55 tackles and five sacks in his junior season for the Bears and parlayed his status as a student-athlete into a scholarship at Duke. AFTER HIGH SCHOOL Bunch recorded 31 tackles in three seasons for the Blue Devils.

JASON BYRD SCHOOL Springstead. POS: RBLBCBS. YEARS: 1978-80. HIGH SCHOOL CAREER: In 1980, Byrd, the younger brother of fellow Top 25er Rodney, became the first Eagles back to rush for more than 1 ,000 yards. He also held marks for total career yards, touchdowns and rushing average.

In his final game, he rushed for 144 yards (on 13 carries) and a 78-yard touchdown against Hernando to finish with his career. AFTER HIGH SCHOOL Byrd joined his brother and fellow i'f (A in iLO Hernando's John Capel, here in a game against Pasco, scored 17 touchdowns and rushed for 1 ,229 yards as he led Hernando to a 9-3 record in senior year. game, and thafs why he was selected by the Times as the greatest player in Hernando County history. Few players escaped with a story like Valentine's. "It was early in the game, and I think the coaches just wanted to run a play to hit him," Valentine said.

"I was so pumped up on the play. If you look at it on tape, it looked like a big tree falling over." The play worked for a James Thomas touchdown, and Valentine, by now even more pumped up, took it maybe a little too far. "I saw our running back scamper into the end zone, and I just growled at (Brown)," Valentine said. think that sort of set the dislike between us." The moment for both Valentine and Springstead ELSEWHERE The Times did similar projects to determine the top players in the history of other counties we cover. Here is a list of each top player with school, position and senior season: CITRUS: Larry Key, Citrus, RB, 73.

HERNANDO: Darren Hambrick, Pasco, LB, '92. HILLSBOROUGH: Kenny Kelly, Tampa Catholic, QB, '96. PINELLAS: Shaun King, Gibbs, QB, '94. For a complete list of each team, see the Times Web site at www.sptimes.com. Jerome Brown, with a handful of face mask, was almost unstoppable when he played nose guard.

But he TimM Dhoto 119971 TON! SANDYS 1 Times photo (1997) Springstead's Ed Chester went on to become a 1997 second-team All-American at Florida. He also recorded a sack of Thad Busby in the Gators' 1997 Sugar Bowl victory over Florida State. HIGH SCHOOL CAREER: At Central High, his No. 14 jersey was retired after he earned all-state honors his senior year. AFTER HIGH SCHOOL Goodson set the Auburn University career receptions record.

He separated his shoulder in the ninth game of his senior year, however, and aside from a 51-yard touchdown catch in the SEC Championship game against Tennessee, he had only four catches for 30 yards in his test three games. JERMAINE GREEN SCHOOL Hernando. POS: RBKR. YEARS: 1990-92. HIGH SCHOOL CAREER: Green earned all-state honors as a kick returner in 1992 and rushed for 1,747 yards and 23 touchdowns.

He holds the Leopards career records for most rushing yards in a game (315 in 1992), best rushing average for a season (13.2 in 1991), two-point rushes for a season (8 in 1991), career two-point rushes (1 1), and longest Please see BEST 16X FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 3, 1999 1 5x GEORGE FLOYD SCHOOL Hernando. YEARS: 1975-77. HIGH SCHOOL CAREER: Floyd stood out on a defense comprising 1 1 seniors in 1977, when Hernando went 7-3. Several who saw both he and Jerome Brown play consider Floyd the best player Hernando County ever produced. AFTER HIGH SCHOOL A ferocious hitter, Floyd helped Eastern Kentucky win its first Division l-AA national title in 1979 and to championship appearances in 1980 and 1981.

He still holds the Colonels' school record with 22 career interceptions, and he was a first-team Ail-American his last two seasons. Floyd was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame on Aug. 13-14. He played for the New York Jets from 1982-1984 before a knee injury ended his career. RICKY FEACHER SCHOOL Hernando.

POS: RBDBWR. YEARS: 1969-71. HIGH SCHOOL CAREER: At Hernando High, Feacher was voted most outstanding athlete his senior year after earning MVP honors in football, basketball and track. His sophomore and junior seasons saw him play defensive back, running back and wide receiver, but a knee injury forced him to move outside to wide receiver exclusively for his senior season. AFTER HIGH SCHOOL Feacher was a four-year varsity player and had 54 receptions for 1 ,062 yards and eight touchdowns at Mississippi Valley State.

He was a 10th-round draft choice of the New England Patriots in 1976 but was released three weeks into his rookie season and signed by the Cleveland Browns. Feacher played for the Browns until 1985 and retired with 1 13 career receptions for 2,084 yards and an 18.4-yard per catch average. The per-catch average is the third-highest in Browns history, behind only Ray Renfro (19.6) and Paul Warfield (19.2). TOM FISHER SCHOOL Hernando. POS: LB.

YEARS: 1960-62. HIGH SCHOOL CAREER: Fisher earned a scholarship to the University of Tennessee after starring for the Leopards. AFTER HIGH SCHOOL Fisher was regarded as a sure-fire Ail-American if a March 1 966, car crash had not taken his life. Fisher still holds the University of Tennessee single-game record for solo tackles (21), set in 1964 against Auburn, and also assisted on seven stops that day. His 1 18 stops in 1964 are second on the Vols' all-time single-season list Fisher lettered in 1964 and '65, when he helped the Vols to an 8-1-2 record, 27-6 Bluebonnet Bowl victory over Tulsa and final No.

7 rankings by AP and UPL Hernando High's football stadium is named for him. TYRONE G00DS0N SCHOOL Central. YEARS: 1990-92. HT TIMES Hernando County players George Floyd and Mike Wagers at Eastern Kentucky. RODNEY BYRD SCHOOL Hernando.

YEARS: 1975-77. HIGH SCHOOL CAREER: Byrd starred at defensive back, helping lead a formidable unit that included George Floyd. AFTER HIGH SCHOOL Byrd was a three-time letterman and helped lead Eastern Kentucky to three NCAA l-AA finals and a championship in 1979. He was a second-team All-Ohio Valley Conference pick as a junior, when he had 63 tackles, 31 assisted tackles, intercepted five passes, and returned 10 punts for 29 yards. He finished his career with 126 tackles, 86 assists and 13 interceptions.

J0HNCAPEL SCHOOL Hernando. POS: WRRB. YEARS: 1996-97. HIGH SCHOOL CAREER: A developing sprinter, Capel scored 17 touchdowns, rushed for 1,229 rush yards on 135 carries and amassed 434 more on 28 catches as he helped the Leopards to a 9-3 record as a senior. AFTER HIGH SCHOOL Capel was a Parade magazine All-America and named one of the country's top prospects by The Sporting News before signing with Florida.

The NCAA 200 meters champion has no career receptions, but averaged 27.4 yards on kickoff returns and 9.6 yards on punt returns as a freshman. Capel is expected to become more involved in the offense this season. ED CHESTER SCHOOL Springstead. YEARS: 1991-94. HIGH SCHOOL CAREER: Chester was the Times All-Suncoast defensive player of the year and a USA Today honorable mention All-American as a senior, when he led Springstead to its first district football championship.

He also was named the District 5 MVP by the Florida Athletic Coaches Association and chosen to play in the Florida-Georgia all-star game. He began gaining national attention as a junior, when he recorded 98 tackles and eight sacks. AFTER HIGH SCHOOL A 1997 second-team Ail-American at Florida, Chester seemed bound for a professional career before he dislocated his knee and suiterea severe nerve damage on the first play from scrimmage Oct 10 against Louisiana State. Chester finished with 1 18 total tackles and nine sacks as a Gator. Allsport (1989) also contributed as a fullback kicker for Hernando.

1 4,1 I Times photo (1983) CHERIE Brawn with coach Dub Palmer and principal Don named a Parade All-Am I In i it W' DIEZ Brown was almost always the most physically gifted player on the field, but many, including sometimes grateful opponents, noted he didn't always seem to be trying his hardest Maybe that was part of the nice-guy syndrome. Maybe he was just getting a little bored. "Jerome was a massive kid," said Tom Darby, who coached against Brown at Citrus High. "He was a man playing with children's dimensions, and he could run and catch and block with anybody when he wanted. "He was an awesome spectacle." Vendrone agreed, sounding like a man who looked into the devil eyes and lived to tell of it wft aHed bimsdt he unstoppable," he said.

We double-team him, and it wouldn't work if he wanted to get you. But he took some plays off sometimes. i Jle was so athletic, though, he could just make up for Valentine was a little more acerbic. "He wasn't always exactly Charlie Hustle," he said. Its a little disconcerting to mink Brown wasn't really trying.

3 He set the Hernando records for sacks in a season (16 as junior) and in a career (28) and fumble recoveries (8), all of which stand today. Brown was named to the aH-state team his junior and senior seasons, and before his final year, he was named a Street Smith's preseason AD-America. Brown was hobbled with an ankle injury but was still named an All-America by rarade magazine. Please see BROWN 25X was fleeting. Newly inspired by the upstart Eagles, Hernando scored the next 55 points in an easy victory to give coach Dub Palmer his 200th career victory.

They kind of ran off after that," Valentine said while laughing. "We got him on that particular play, but he made us look twice as bad in the end." Valentine, who later became friends with members of the Brown family, including Jerome's cousin, Lionel, remembers the on-field wars but is careful not to speak harshly of a player who is widely regarded as the best and is definitely most fondly remembered in Hernando County history. Brown's contributions before his death in a 1992 automobile crash, and afterward as his name was carried on as part of the Jerome Brown Foundation, are undeniable. But competitors, especially good ones, do not become elite in their field by always being Samaritans. Brown was no different, as evidenced by the crushing elbow he delivered into Valentine's back that next basketball season.

Valentine, 33, is convinced to his day the shot was in retribution for his flooring Brown that football season. "It was cheap shot," Valentine said. "I had nothing against him off the field, but I didn't think much of that "Here I am the sixth man on the team, and he goes and does that" Perhaps it was Valentine's exuberance that day that fueled Brown's ire. Most of his opponents deemed him rather civil, as much as could be expected when he launched his superstructure into their general areas. Don Vendrone, who stared across an uneasy breach at Brown as a former Springstead quarterback, said the lineman spared him more than once.

"It was very scary," Vendrone, 33, said. "He was a nose guard, and you knew he was twice as heavy as the center. It was only going to be about two seconds before he was in your pants, so you had to be in a rush to get rid of it "But he wasn't intimidating in the sense you could get hurt It seemed like he just wanted to bring you down without hurting you. I guess that made him a pretty good guy." Central coach Steve Crognale was a 190-pound sophomore center at Springstead the night Brown, a senior, intercepted a Vendrone pass one-handed and ran it back for a touchdown. "On a screen play, you're told to let the lineman get through like a rush," Crognale said, "and he was somewhere between the offensive line and the quarterback.

All I saw was this big palm go up, and the ball stopped. And that was it" That game was Crognale's one and only against Brown, but it was enough to convince him the legend was based in fact "No doubt about it," he said. "He was every bit what they say. "After that game, maybe I felt a little bad, but after watching his career, I guess it didn't turn out any worse than anybody else who had to block him." 1999 HT 14x TIMES a FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 3,.