Robert Brown ( American football ) Robert Lee Brown ( born May 21 , 1960 ) is a former American football defensive end who played for the Green Bay Packers in an eleven - year career that lasted from 1982 to 1992 , in the National Football League . He ranks twelfth in team history in sacks with 25 . 5 , and played in more games than any Packer defensive lineman in the team ' s history . Early years . Brown attended John A . Holmes High School in Edenton , North Carolina . Brown was a standout in basketball and football for the Aces from 1974 - 1978 . He earned All - Conference and All - Albemarble as a tight end in 1976 . He also lettered in basketball that year where he excelled in rebounding and shot blocking . Before his senior year in 1977 , he was asked to switch his position from tight end to offensive tackle due to a lack of size on the squad . He was the captain of his team . He also earned All - Conference and All - Albemarble for the second time . He received Honorable mention All - East . He was voted by his high school most outstanding offensive lineman on the team . In basketball that year he was also voted the Sportsmanship Award by his team for his hard work and discipline . In an 1989 ceremony at his high school his jersey number 73 was retired . College career . Chowan College . In the fall of 1978 Brown attended Chowan College ( now Chowan University ) to play football for legendary coach Jim Garrison . He became a starter immediately during his freshman year . During the season he earned All - Coastal Conference , All Region X and Most Valuable Defensive Lineman on the squad . In 1979 , his final season at Chowan College , Brown was Captain of the nationally ranked Chowan defense . He again earned first - team All - Coastal Conference , All Region X and All - America . In 1996 Brown was inducted to the Chowan University Athletic Hall of Fame . Virginia Tech . In 1980 Brown transferred to Virginia Tech in Blacksburg , Virginia to play for coach Bill Dooley . During his junior year he earned All - South Independent along with teammates Cyrus Lawrence and Sidney Snell . Brown was MVP in the Oyster Bowl game in Norfolk , Virginia against VMI . He was also voted team MVP and earned such honors as Roanoke Valley Sports Club Outstanding College Defensive player of the year in the state of Virginia . The Touchdown Club of Richmond , Virginia chose Brown as Big Five Defensive player of the year . During Brown ' s junior season under the tutelage of his position coach John Gutekunst his first game as a Hokie a 16 - 7 victory against Wake Forest on September 6 , 1980 . Brown recorded four sacks and led the nationally ranked Virginia Tech defense that season with 61 tackles including 15 of them for losses totaling 105 yards . The Hokies earn a birth after the 1980 season to play in the Peach Bowl against Miami of Florida . In 1981 , Brown was captain of Virginia Tech ' s nationally ranked defensive squad . He earned numerous honors that year including All - South Independent first team , second team , and Newspaper Enterprise Association ( NEA ) All - American . Brown played in the 1982 Hula Bowl and Olympia Gold Bowl All Star Games . In 1992 Brown was voted to Virginia Tech Football All - Century team celebrating 100 years of Hokie football . In 1998 he was inducted in the Virginia Tech Sports Hall of Fame .