Jerome Brown Willie Jerome Brown , III ( February 4 , 1965 – June 25 , 1992 ) was an American football defensive tackle for the Philadelphia Eagles of the National Football League . He played his entire five - year NFL career with the Eagles from 1987 to 1991 , before his death just before the 1992 season . He was selected to two Pro Bowls in 1990 and 1991 . He played college football at the University of Miami . College career . Brown played college football at the University of Miami , where he was a standout player for one of college football ' s most successful and perhaps its most dominant program . He graduated from the university in 1987 . Among his more notable moments as a Miami player , five days before the 1987 Fiesta Bowl , at a promotional Fiesta Bowl dinner with the Penn State team , Brown led a walkout by the Miami players . Leading the walkout , he asked : " Did the Japan ese go sit down and have dinner with Pearl Harbor before they bombed them ? " Brown and his teammates felt that the Penn State players had disrespected them by openly mocking Miami ' s coach , Jimmy Johnson , at a pre - game banquet . Penn State beat the heavily favored Hurricanes 14 - 10 , and were declared National Champions . Days earlier , Brown and fellow University of Miami players drew even greater national controversy when each were seen deplaning a chartered University of Miami plane at Phoenix ' s Sky Harbor International Airport , wearing Battle Dress Uniform s . Professional career . Brown was drafted in the first round ( ninth overall ) of the 1987 NFL Draft by the Philadelphia Eagles . During his five - year professional career with the Eagles , he was twice selected to the Pro Bowl ( in 1990 and 1991 ) . Brooksville . Jerome Brown graduated from Hernando High School in Brooksville , where he was often seen in the off season running laps around the track . In June 1988 , Jerome Brown received praise for his calm demeanor as he helped disperse a group of Ku Klux Klan protesters in his hometown of Brooksville , Florida . Death and legacy . Brown died on June 25 , 1992 , at the age of 27 , following an automobile accident in Brooksville , in which both he and his 12 - year - old nephew Gus were killed when Brown lost control of his ZR1 Chevrolet Corvette at high speed and crashed into a utility pole . Brown was buried in his hometown of Brooksville . In 2000 , the Jerome Brown Community Center was opened in Brooksville in memory of Brown . Brown ' s son Dee Brown ( born 1982 ) plays professional baseball as an outfielder for the Winnipeg Goldeyes . Brown and former teammate Reggie White were documented in " A Football Life " . It was White who broke the news to many Philadelphians the day of Brown ' s death , as he was informed moments before he was to speak at a Billy Graham Crusade at Veterans Stadium that night and relayed the information to the crowd . Legacy . Brown ' s jersey number ( # 99 ) was retired by the Eagles on September 6 , 1992 in an emotional pre - game ceremony at Veterans Stadium , prior to the Eagles ' first game of the 1992 season . After his death , Eagles players and fans started the unofficial motto " Bring it home for Jerome , " an indirect reference among Eagles fans to bringing a Super Bowl title to the city in Brown ' s honor . Brown is mentioned in The Wonder Years ( band ) track " We Could Die Like This " off their 4th album " The Greatest Generation " with the lyrics : " We watched the 92 ' Birds take to the field without Jerome Brown " .