Sports Broadcasting Legend Tells RULS Crowd to “Break the Huddle and Run the Play”
James Brown, known to many as JB, is no stranger to Kansas City.
He said he has visited the city many times as a longtime broadcaster on “The NFL Today” on CBS and elsewhere. He knows the Chiefs, obviously, but also local landmarks like the Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts and has opinions on barbecue (but also knows enough not to pick a favorite).
On JB was once again welcomed to KC, trading the gridiron for the grand stage April 2 as the guest of the Rockhurst University Leadership Series at the Kauffman Center.
Brown’s presentation drew on his observations of leaders around him as well as his own experience, giving the crowd of Kansas City’s business leaders advice on how to overcome obstacles and think big.
As a person of deep faith himself, Brown said the Jesuits had done some of the work for him.
“The Jesuit education encourages students to see the world as a reflection of God's creation and to seek meaning and purpose in everything that they do in their lives and work,” he said.
Another natural lens, of course, is sports. As a former Harvard basketball standout, Brown said much of his formation as a young person — outside of his family — came from his experience on the court. His high school coach, Morgan Wootten, set the tone and taught his players to embrace every opportunity they had and, importantly, to “master the fundamentals” — advice that he says has served him well beyond the court.
“It’s just like football players who go through walkthroughs to make sure that they understand exactly what they're going to be running into and the things that they've practiced and have prepared for so they can deal with It,” he said.
Running with the football-faith analogy, Brown said there are four essential reasons why those in the audience need to do both parts of the Jesuit core value of “contemplation in action”: no progress is made in the huddle; everyone is on the clock; you can trust the play being given from above; and you can trust your teammates (divine and otherwise) to make the block.
Following his keynote address, Brown joined Mark Donovan, president of the Kansas City Chiefs, and Tera Reberry, a Rockhurst University volleyball player and two-time All-American, for a roundtable discussion moderated by Kathy Nelson, president and CEO of VisitKC and the Kansas City Sports Commission.
Also during the event, the University awarded its Rashford-Lyon Award for Ethics and Leadership to Denny Thum, ’74, who spent 36 years with the Kansas City Chiefs, starting as an accountant upon his graduation and working his way up to the club’s president. He thanked his family, those who helped him on his way up, and Rockhurst for instilling in him the values that
“Rockhurst is a family, and we are very fortunate to continue to have this university be a big part of our lives,” he said. “Thank you again for this honor. I appreciate it.”
