William Dorsey Brown is a former American football

American football

American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...

 player. Brown was a running back

Running back

A running back is a gridiron football position, who is typically lined up in the offensive backfield. The primary roles of a running back are to receive handoffs from the quarterback for a rushing play, to catch passes from out of the backfield, and to block.There are usually one or two running...

 in the National Football League

National Football League

The National Football League is the highest level of professional American football in the United States, and is considered the top professional American football league in the world. It was formed by eleven teams in 1920 as the American Professional Football Association, with the league changing...

 for 14 seasons, including 13 seasons with the Minnesota Vikings

Minnesota Vikings

The Minnesota Vikings are a professional American football team based in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The Vikings joined the National Football League as an expansion team in 1960...

, and was named to the Pro Bowl

Pro Bowl

In professional American football, the Pro Bowl is the all-star game of the National Football League . Since the merger with the rival American Football League in 1970, it has been officially called the AFC–NFC Pro Bowl, matching the top players in the American Football Conference against those...

 four times.

Brown attended the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

The University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign is a large public research-intensive university in the state of Illinois, United States. It is the flagship campus of the University of Illinois system...

. At Illinois, Brown was an All-Big Ten

Big Ten Conference

The Big Ten Conference is the United States' oldest Division I college athletic conference. Its twelve member institutions are located primarily in the Midwestern United States, stretching from Nebraska in the west to Pennsylvania in the east...

 fullback

Fullback (American football)

A fullback is a position in the offensive backfield in American and Canadian football, and is one of the two running back positions along with the halfback...

, and also won the Big Ten shot put

Shot put

The shot put is a track and field event involving "putting" a heavy metal ball—the shot—as far as possible. It is common to use the term "shot put" to refer to both the shot itself and to the putting action....

 title and set an Illinois record with a toss of 54 feet, 10.5 inches.

A second round choice of the Chicago Bears

Chicago Bears

The Chicago Bears are a professional American football team based in Chicago, Illinois. They are members of the North Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League...

 in the 1961 NFL Draft

1961 NFL Draft

The 1961 National Football League Draft took place on December 27–28, 1960. The league would later hold an expansion draft for the Minnesota Vikings expansion franchise, and the Vikings were also awarded the first selection position in this draft. This draft was also the first regular draft for...

, Brown was traded to the Vikings before the 1962 NFL season

1962 NFL season

The 1962 NFL season was the 43rd regular season of the National Football League. Before the season, CBS signed a contract with the league to televise all regular-season games for a $4.65 million annual fee....

, for a fourth-round draft pick in the 1964 NFL Draft

1964 NFL Draft

The 1964 National Football League Draft took place on December 2, 1963.-Player selections:-Round one:* HOF Member of the Professional Football Hall of Fame-Round two:-Round three:-Round four:...

. Brown played for the Vikings for 13 seasons, and was named to the Pro Bowl

Pro Bowl

In professional American football, the Pro Bowl is the all-star game of the National Football League . Since the merger with the rival American Football League in 1970, it has been officially called the AFC–NFC Pro Bowl, matching the top players in the American Football Conference against those...

 after the 1964

1964 NFL season

The 1964 NFL season was the 45th regular season of the National Football League. Before the season started, NFL commissioner Pete Rozelle reinstated Green Bay Packers running back Paul Hornung and Detroit Lions defensive tackle Alex Karras, who had been suspended for the 1963 season due to...

, 1965

1965 NFL season

The 1965 NFL season was the 46th regular season of the National Football League.Because the Green Bay Packers and Baltimore Colts ended up tied in the Western Conference standings after the regular season ended, a conference playoff game was held in Green Bay. Although the Packers had defeated the...

, 1967

1967 NFL season

The 1967 NFL season was the 48th regular season of the National Football League. The league expanded to 16 teams with the addition of the New Orleans Saints. The league's teams were realigned into four divisions: the Capitol and Century Divisions in the Eastern Conference, and the Central and...

, and 1968

1968 NFL season

The 1968 NFL season was the 49th regular season of the National Football League. As per the agreement made during the 1967 realignment, the New Orleans Saints and the New York Giants switched divisions; the Saints joined the Century Division while the Giants became part of the Capitol Division.The...

 NFL seasons, earning the nickname "Boom-Boom" for his reckless, and often violent, running style.

Brown holds many Vikings team records. Brown holds Vikings records for most games played by a running back (182), most consecutive games played by a running back (101), and most games started

Starting lineup

A starting lineup in sports is an official list of the set of players who will actively participate in the event when the game begins. The players in the starting lineup are commonly referred to as starters, whereas the others are substitutes or bench players.The starters are commonly the best...

 by a running back (111). He ranks fourth for career rushing yards (5,757), trailing Robert Smith

Robert Smith (football)

Robert Scott Smith is a former American football running back who played with the Ohio State Buckeyes and later with the Minnesota Vikings of the NFL. While in college, he openly criticized the Ohio State football staff for not allowing him to concentrate on academics as he wanted to go to medical...

 (6,818), Adrian Peterson, and Chuck Foreman

Chuck Foreman

Chuck Foreman is a retired NFL football player.He was a running back during his NFL career, although he often caught passes out of the backfield.-Early career:...

 (5,887). Brown holds the team record for career rushing attempts (1627), and is tied for third in team history in rushing touchdowns (52). He ranks fourth in career points scored (456), behind Fred Cox

Fred Cox

Frederick William Cox is a former National Football League kicker who played for the Minnesota Vikings throughout his career . Fred was raised in Monongahela, PA, where his family owned a grocery store...

, Fuad Reveiz

Fuad Reveiz

Fuad Reveiz is a former placekicker for the Miami Dolphins, the San Diego Chargers, and the Minnesota Vikings. He played for Miami Sunset Senior High and was voted one of the top high school football players from Miami of all time by the Miami Herald...

, and Cris Carter

Cris Carter

Cristopher D. Carter is a former American football player in the National Football League. He played wide receiver for the Philadelphia Eagles , the Minnesota Vikings and the Miami Dolphins ....

. Brown's combined rushing and receiving yards (9237) ranks third, behind Darrin Nelson

Darrin Nelson

Darren Milo Nelson is a former professional American football player in the National Football League....

 and Cris Carter.

Personal

Rich Gannon

Rich Gannon

Richard Joseph Gannon is a former football quarterback, who achieved most of his success late in his career with the Oakland Raiders in the National Football League...

, former Oakland Raiders

Oakland Raiders

The Oakland Raiders are a professional American football team based in Oakland, California. They currently play in the Western Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League...

 quarterback

Quarterback

Quarterback is a position in American and Canadian football. Quarterbacks are members of the offensive team and line up directly behind the offensive line...

, is his son-in-law.