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The 23rd class in the Gordon Wood Hall of Champions – comprised of Jan Brown, Mike Davis, Chance Pearce, Sydnie Darden and Coach Steve Freeman – was inducted Friday at the First Methodist Church Christian Life Center.
The following is a bit of background information and comments made by each inductee during Friday’s ceremony, which has become an annual tradition on Homecoming Friday.
CHANCE PEARCE
Chance Pearce is a 1999 graduate of Brownwood High School. After high school, Chance was invited to walk on to the Texas A&M football as a long snapper.
At the beginning of his sophomore year, Chance was awarded a full athletic scholarship and went on to start 46 straight games from 1999-2002 for the Aggies earning a spot on Texas A&M’s All Time special teams depth chart. In 2003, Chance was selected by Houston Texans with the 233rd pick in the 7th round of the NFL draft. After a short stint in Houston, Chance joined the Pittsburgh Steelers in 2004 for the off season and training camps before being released. In 2004, Chance returned to Texas A&M to complete his degree in Agriculture Leadership and Development.
He is now in the medical sales industry specializing in orthopedic implant and devices and has worked with Smith & Nephew as an Orthopedic Trauma consultant since 2005.
Pearce reflected on a paper Coach Freeman presented to the Lions prior to a football game that he felt encapsulated Friday’s moment.
“It said every once in a while a group of special people are somehow placed around each other,” Pearce said. “These special people all share a common goal, direction, morals and a need to pursue something few people can ever reach. The hunger inside these people to reach that pinnacle of success is so intense that literally no thing or person will stand long in their path. These special people share special emotions and moments with each other that most people can neither experience nor understand. The drive and desire to be the best is bred in every facet of the organization so no one individual would dare be the reason these special people failed. When there is enough of these special within the same organization, people call them champions.”
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MIKE DAVIS
Mike Davis was a member of the 1981 state champion football team at Brownwood High and went on to play football at Baylor before transferring back home to Howard Payne and earned a BS degree in history.
In 1981 he was first team All-State defense, first team All-District defense, All Central Texas first team defense, and All West Texas first team defense, all in football; All-District basketball; and lettered in track.
In 1982 he was first team Parade All American defense, first team All-State defense, first team All-District defense, All Central Texas, first team defense, and All West Texas, and first team defense, all in football.
He earned a master’s in criminal justice at Tarleton. He attended the Texas Commission on Law Enforcement Officer Standards and Education to be a Texas Peace Officer.
He retired after 28 years with the state of Texas, serving as superintendent at over 5 different Texas Youth Commission facilities.
Davis reflected on his parents move from Bangs Hill to Thrifty, and how he drove 30 minutes to high school his sophomore, junior and senior years to fulfill his greatest passion.
“All I wanted to be was a Brownwood Lion,” Davis said. “Some nights I would stay in town with Kevin Howard and his parents, so I had an adopted family here and I very much love them.”
Addressed the current Brownwood football team in attendance, Davis said, “And to these Lions here now, remember these days in high school. 1981’s been a long time since the last state championship so go ahead and start a new tradition.”
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SYDNIE DARDEN
Sydnie Darden, a 2012 Brownwood High graduate, was a four-sport athlete including a three-year letterman for varsity basketball and cross county, and a four-year letterman for varsity softball and track.
She was a four-year starter in softball at Hardin-Simmons and still holds the school record for career stolen bases. She still ranks first in most sacrifice hits and stolen bases, fourth in most hits, and fifth in most at bats.
She graduated with her Bachelor’s in Behavioral Sciences, then went on to get her Master’s in Kinesiology. After achieving her master’s, Sydnie achieved her Doctorate in Physical Therapy where she graduated in 2020 from University of Mary-Hardin Baylor. She is now a Clinical Director and help SporTherapy open a new clinic in Mansfield, TX which opened its doors December 5, 2022.
Darden, who thanked her family for their unwavering support, also reflected on her time as a ball girl in elementary school on the sidelines for Coach Freeman’s Lions, as well as the tutelage she received in high school from coaches Don Hood and Heather Hohertz, among others.
“This is a full circle moment with Coach Freeman from following him around every game, carrying play cards, doing anything he asked, and that’s where I learned what it meant to be a Brownwod Lady Lion,” Darden said. “Coach Hood was a great mentor and taught us it was better to be a great person than a great athlete. And Heather Hohertz, I definitely wouldn’t be up here today without her guidance and support. She’s basically been family since day one. I don’t know what it was, we just clicked and her family became my family. I can’t say enough good things about her.”
As for her Lady Lion career, Darden said, “I look back on this incredible journey and it’s more than just sports and winning and losing, it’s about relationships and friendships and the lessons you learn. I plan to carry those on for the rest of my life and my career. I wouldn’t be here without all the support.”
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JAN BROWN
Jan Brown was a member of the 1969 Brownwood Lions state champion football team.
He played football at Abilene Christian on a full scholarship, winning the national championship in 1973. He was first team Lone Star Conference and honorable mention All-American as a defensive back, and signed a contract with the newly formed Houston Texans.
At Hardin Elementary, he played against Hall of Champions inductees James Harris, Rollin Hunter, James (Squirt) Thompson, and Gary Barron along with Richard Griffen. That helped prepare him to play football at the highest level. His accomplishments include All-State football special teams, 1967; All-District defensive end, 1968; All-District, All West Texas, first team All-State, second team Super All-State in football; and MVP in Senior League baseball, 1969; district champion in the 220 with a time of 21.9, and honorable mention All-District baseball, 1970.
Brown, who reminisced about teammates and his time growing up in Brownwood, was scheduled to be inducted into the Abilene Christian University Sports Hall of Fame Friday night. Brown spoke of how his athletic achievements paved his way to receive a college scholarship, and how we would not have been able to attend college any other way.
“I’m so deeply honored for this selection into the Gordon Wood Hall of Champions,” Brown said during his comments. “This award is a recognition of hard work and achievements, and you can only imagine how important this is. Playing football under the direction of Gordon Wood was full of challenges but in the end it was all worth it to get to where we are today. As a team we experienced a feeling of strength, power and the understanding of the fight being won, still principles I use in my life today that I learned as a youngster under the guidance of the coaching team at Brownwood High.”
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STEVE FREEMAN
Steve Freeman, a 1977 graduate of Roscoe High School and 1981 graduate of Abilene Christian University, began his coaching career at 27 years of age. Over the years, he would go on to coach at various schools, including Stephenville, Hamlin, Brownwood, Odessa Permian, and Breckenridge. His coaching career was marked by influential mentors, particularly Coach W.T. Stapler and Coach Tom Ritchey, who guided and supported him in his early years
In 1994, a significant turning point occurred when Coach Stapler was approached about a head coaching position in Brownwood, Texas, and he expressed interest in having Steve join him. This decision had personal significance for Steve as his oldest son, Colby, was about to enter Brownwood High School. The Freeman family, along with the Brownwood ISD, was committed to making a positive difference in the Brownwood Lion program, which needed a turnaround.
During Steve’s tenure as head coach, the Brownwood Lions achieved four 10-win seasons and advanced to the 4A semifinals once, the quarterfinals twice, and the area game five times. The program’s success was built on the commitment to instilling life skills in the players, not just on-field victories.
Reflecting on his time in Brownwood, Freema said, “Our job as coaches is make the gap as small as we can possibly make it so players can fulfill their responsibilities and accountabilities and that’s not to go win state, it’s to do the very best you can and if it involves playing 16 games and winning state, so be it. If you can walk away knowing you did the very best that you can, then you are a champion. I never won a state championship, we sniffed it, but I’m not envious of people who did. People ask me if I miss coaching and I tell them I miss some parts of it, but the reason I don’t miss it is because I don’t have any regrets. If you go back and throw a dart on a calendar any day of the year, it was a good day to be a Brownwood Lion and that’s a promise. There were no days off.”
More information on each inductee can be found here
