Norris Brown, who played tight end for the University of Georgia’s national championship squad in 1980, died on July 31, according to his obituary. He was 65.
No cause of death was listed in his obituary.
Brown, who was born on July 10, 1961, in Laurens, South Carolina, excelled in high school football at Laurens District 55 High School, according to GoLaurens.com.
Heavy heart this weekend hearing about the passing of former UGA teammate TE Norris Brown. Talented & skilled athlete & a wonderful teammate. I will miss him! @UGAAthletics @680TheFan
— buck belue (@buckbelue8) August 2, 2026
He was recruited by Georgia and played at tight end from 1979 through 1982.
During his four seasons between the hedges, Brown caught 44 passes for 832 yards and 10 touchdowns.
In 1980, during a season dominated by the rushing of running back Herschel Walker, Brown gave the Bulldogs some balance, catching 12 passes for 253 yards -- an average of 21.1 yards per catch -- and scoring two touchdowns.
Buck Belue, who was the Bulldogs’ quarterback during Georgia’s 12-0 season, said he had a “heavy heart” after hearing about Brown’s passing.
“Talented & skilled athlete & a wonderful teammate,” Belue tweeted. “I will miss him!”
Belue added that his favorite memory of Brown during a game came against Auburn in 1980. Georgia was coming off a miracle 26-21 victory against Florida when Belue connected with Lindsay Scott for a 93-yard touchdown with 1:02 to play.
Against Auburn, time was running out in the first half when Georgia reached the Tigers’ 1-yard line with no timeouts remaining and the Bulldogs ahead 10-7.
“Clock play is for stopping the clock. No time for that. Got to get a play off quick or time runs out,” Belue tweeted. “Must improvise: Norris Brown looks at me from his TE spot. I tell him, ‘run a fade.’
“He elevates above Auburn CB & makes the TD catch! The other 9 players on offense are wondering how that just happened,” Belue wrote.
Georgia took a 17-7 lead at the half and went on to win 31-21, clinching the Southeastern Conference title.
“Norris Brown was smiling all the way home,” Belue tweeted. “RIP Norris Brown.”
Brown was chosen in the eighth round of the 1983 NFL draft by the Minnesota Vikings and played two games that season.
He would switch to the USFL in 1984, playing for the New Jersey Generals before moving to the Jacksonville Bulls for the 1985 season.
He caught three passes for 60 yards across two seasons in the USFL.
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