By David Weinberg
The day before the NFL Draft, the Eagles’ executives and scouting department gathered at the NovaCare Complex and stared at their player board.
There were hundreds of players on it. But only a select few had red stars next to their names.
“We go around the room and we give every scout a chance to stamp their red star on guys,” Eagles general manager Howie Roseman said. “It goes back a long time. It’s a long tradition.”
“A red star player is a guy who kind of exemplifies what it means to be an Eagle. So, it’s (someone with) great character, testing numbers, intelligence, plays the (game) the way it should be played. And they are on all different levels of the draft.”
Sydney Brown, whom the Eagles drafted in the third round, had a red star.
The former University of Illinois standout has all the intangibles and skills to become an immediate starter for the Eagles this season.
Considering his inspiring back story, he’s also likely to become a fan favorite.
Brown and his twin brother, Chase, a running back who was drafted by the Bengals in the fifth round, took an unusual route to the NFL. They grew up in Canada, which is known more as a hockey hotbed than a breeding ground for football players.
Sydney is a big hockey fan – he grew up rooting for the Toronto Maple Leafs – but grew up wearing cleats instead of skates, partly because football was a less expensive alternative for their mother, Raechel, who was a single mother at age 18.
According to SI.com and NFL’s 360 special, Raechel and the boys were forced to live in a homeless shelter after an illness kept her from working for a few months. In 2016, searching for a way to improve their situation as students, athletes and kids, a Canadian football talent scout put them in touch with Saint Stephen’s Episopal School in Bradenton, Florida. Soon, they were going to classes in flip flops instead of snow boots.
The Browns lived with a host family in Florida while Raechel remained in Canada with her daughter, Mya. Because it was a partial scholarship, money became tight, and Raechel wound up moving back into a homeless shelter to help make ends meet.
“Tuition or paying the rent was the choice,” Raechel told SI.com. “So, we paid tuition.”
The sacrifices paid off.
Sydney earned a scholarship to the University of Illinois. Chase started his college career at Western Michigan, but transferred the following year to join his brother with the Fighting Illini.
Now they get the chance to continue their dream in the NFL.
“I think the relationship that my brother and I shared really propelled us into the position I’m in now,” Sydney said last week. “And definitely coming from the background we did, it definitely gave us a reason to push harder, especially with a family that I’m coming from and what they did to sacrifice to put me in the position that I am now.”
No wonder he had a red star next to his name.
1-2-3-4-5-Sixers …
By the time you read this, the 76ers will either be a game up or a game down in their second-round playoff series against the Celtics.
Their success or failure is primarily tied to James Harden. Although Joel Embiid is the NBA’s MVP, Harden is the key to whether advance to the Eastern Conference Finals or head home for the summer.
Harden dropped 45 in a Sixers’ win in Game 1 while Embiid sat out with a knee injury, scored just 28 combined points in two losses, then poured in 42 – and hit the game-winning three-pointer in overtime – in Game 4.
Perhaps his most memorable performance came after Game 4, when he signed his shoes for John Hao, a student who was paralyzed after a shooting at Michigan State University in February.
Harden became friends with Hao over Facetime calls and fulfilled a promise by inviting Hao and his family to Sunday’s game.
“He’s my good-luck charm,” Harden told NBC Sports Philadelphia. “I feel like it’s my job to give him that light and that smile that he deserves and needs.”
From CAL to FDU
Middle Township High School basketball standout Jada Elston led the Panthers to the South Jersey Group II championship this past season.
Ocean City won the South Jersey Group III title, thanks in large part to coach Stephanie Gaitley.
Now the two will be joining forces on the college level.
Gaitley accepted the position of head coach at NCAA Division I Farleigh Dickinson University last month. One of her first moves was to offer a scholarship to Elston.
Kentucky Derby
Kudos to longtime Cape May resident Ralph Riggitano for his spot-on predictions for the Kentucky Derby.
Ralph, former manager of the Cape May/Lower Township Whalers of the Atlantic County Baseball League, is an avid horse player. Every year at this time, he sends me his choices for the Derby.
Two weeks ago, he picked Magi and Two Phil’s, which finished one-two.
