The University of Texas at Austin Athletics
Hall of Honor
- Induction:
- 2012
A three-time National Diving Coach of the Year honoree, Brown was a part of 14 National Championship and 31 conference championship teams in his 18 seasons (1976-94) at the helm of the Texas men’s and women’s diving programs. During his tenure in Austin, Brown coached 28 All-Americans, 18 U.S. National Team members and five Olympians. His Texas divers captured a total of seven NCAA individual titles and 26 conference individual championships. Prior to beginning his coaching career, Brown was a successful diver in his own right. During his collegiate career at Dartmouth College, he earned three NCAA All-America honors and was a three-time EISL (Eastern Intercollegiate Swim League) Conference champion. Brown was an AAU National Champion in 1971 and competed internationally for the U.S. National Diving Team from 1972-76. After the completion of his competitive diving career, he moved into the role of head men’s and women’s diving coach at Texas. On the women’s side, Brown helped UT claim one AIAW (Association for Intercollegiate Athletics for Women) National title (1981) and eight NCAA Championships (1982, 1984, 1985, 1986, 1987, 1988, 1990 and 1991) in addition to a combined 16 conference titles (four Texas AIAW and 12 Southwest Conference). He developed one AIAW individual national champion (Denise Christensen, three-meter in 1980), two NCAA individual champions (Kelly Jenkins, three-meter in 1989; Robin Carter, three-meter in 1994) and one NCAA Diver of the Year (Robin Carter in 1994). Brown was honored as the National Coach of the Year by the College Swimming Coaches Association (CSCA) in 1983, 1991 and 1994. On the men’s side, Brown helped UT win five NCAA Championships (1981, 1988, 1989, 1990 and 1991) and 15 Southwest Conference titles. He tutored four NCAA individual champions (Matt Scoggin, one-meter in 1983 and 1984; Jason Rhodes, three-meter in 1991 and 1992). Following his time at Texas, Brown spent six years with his family in Victoria, British Columbia, and one of those coaching with Pacific Coast Diving. Since 2000, Brown has coached both the men’s and women’s diving teams at the University of Hawai’i alongside his wife, Anita Rossing. Under Brown and Rossing’s guidance, Hawai’i divers have earned 28 NCAA All-America honors and two NCAA individual titles. QiongJie Huang claimed the 2005 NCAA crown on the one-meter springboard, while Emma Friesen won the 2008 NCAA title on the one-meter springboard. In addition, the 2005-06 Hawai’i women’s squad was the top point-scoring diving team at the NCAA Championships. A seven-time selection as Western Athletic Conference (WAC) Diving Coach of the Year while at Hawai’i, Brown just completed his fourth year on the NCAA Swimming and Diving Committee, where he is co-chair of the NCAA Diving Rules Subcommittee. Brown also has had extensive coaching experience at the international level. The 1992 U.S. Olympic Team coach and a four-time coach for Team USA at the World University Games (1979, 1981, 1985 and 1987), he served as a U.S. National Team coach for a 17-year period (1979-96). Brown earned a Bachelor’s degree in Mathematics from Dartmouth in 1970 and went on to receive a Master’s degree in Secondary Education from Indiana University in 1973. He and Rossing live in Honolulu, Hawai’i, with their daughter, Rika Rossing. A two-time All-American diver at Texas who graduated in 1985, Anita Rossing competed for Sweden in the 1984 and 1988 Olympic Games. Rika recently earned her Bachelor’s degree in Performance from Naropa University in Boulder, Colo.