FROM LAST TO FIRST BY FAITH

    This is a true story about the Grambling College Football Team who went from dead last to first place and ended the season as SWAC 2011 Football Champions. I am an eye witness of watching the hand of God at work through this team. This letter is written to expose the work of God’s Holy Word in this present day and time. If Drum Line was based on a true story and was made into a great movie for entertainment, this short letter of testimony too can be converted into a great movie of faith giving God his glory. There is no doubt in mine mind the hand of God shinned down on Coach Doug Williams and his silent warriors. The fact that my son Vyron Brown is the Offensive Coordinator and a speaker at the weekly F.C.A. (Fellowship of Christian Athletes) team meetings on Thursday nights at 7:00 p.m., has given me greater insight to see the all mighty hand of God move for this team. I asked the Lord in my prayer as I write, who or what was the center of this blessing, who had planted this seed, who’s dream come true was this?, it had to be someone’s, because that’s the way God works. If we know anything about God you know from his word he works with man through dreams and visions. I could be wrong, but I think who ever planted that seed had to be on the field of play and one of the key players in the SWAC Championship win.  I remember how young Doug Williams Jr. aka D.J. at the age of about 7-12 would lead the Grambling Tigers on the field, now back from high school he is again leading the tigers on the field this time fully dressed out in pads with that look in his eye that warriors have, he possibly got that from his dad that hand raised him, hats off to true fathers who put their lives and alter their career to raise their sons. If more black men had this attitude of stepping up and accepting that responsibility, as God has commanded not leaving it to mom, we would not have so many of our youth in jail or on the road to jail, selling drugs, no education, pants hanging off their butts, looking like Reggie the comedian on the Nutty Professor.

     Let’s take this paper as a canvas and use the English language to paint a picture that will not only show the hand of God but prove his word to be true. When D.J. signed to attend Grambling College to play Football the seed of the dream had been planted so we move from dream world to reality, the seed begins to grow roots, Doug Sr. is hired as head Football Coach. Next Coach Williams hired Vyron Brown as offensive Coordinator who had been very heavily sorted and signed by several other SWAC teams within months. In 2010 Brown team back up with Coach Spears at Alabama State and fail short of the SWAC Championship by only a few points. Spears and Williams share two sisters as their mothers yes they are true first cousins. Spears  was invaluable to Browns college football playing as well his coaching career at GSU. In June 2011 Brown was hired by head coach Northern at Prairie View A & M as Running  Back Coach, leaving Alabama State, and his great friend Coach Spears. But a few weeks later Spears was hired as Head coach for Alcorn College his alma mater, and what you know, Spears hire Brown as Offensive Coordinator. Just a few weeks later Doug Williams was hired as head football coach for GSU, he offers Brown a job as offensive coordinator which was an open door back home to again coach for his alma mater which he accepted. This would be another root of the germinating seed with Coach White being the main silent Godfather type root that had survived all the changes and all the head coaches and is showing no signs of leaving, hats off to Coach White for all he bring to the table. Coach Williams had done well with building a coaching staff with very little time. GSU was picked to win the west in SWAC   2011.

     Quickly let’s get into the season to see where faith stepped in and began to work.  Game 1 was here in Shreveport, against Spear’s Alcorn Braves the two sisters, head coaches Williams and Spears mothers meet at center field.

Sept. 3 Game 1 Alcorn Braves close game GSU win 21-14…record..1-0

Sept. 10 Game 2 was ULM much bigger school GSU loss 35-7  ….record..1-1

Sept. 17 Game 3 Alabama State close for 3 quarters GSU loss 13-17 record..1-2

Sept. 24 Game 4 Alabama A. & M. turnovers cost a 14-20 loss at home .record.1-3

Oct. 1    Game 5 Prairie View A. & M. poor defense 23-31 loss in Dallas.record.1-4

Time out...

     It appeared that GSU would not win another game. My son called we talked he had some questions and concerns, being a Minister I had all ways taught him when all fails to go to the higher power his heavenly father even when he was in college that was the rule. We talked about, attitude, reality, his job and what he was hired to do, going into the play off mode, loser go home, all hands on deck, either headed for a very bad season, or SWAC Champions, but must run the table. We talked again that week this time he had biblical questions at that time I knew all would be well, he asked about Gods left hand army Judges 20: 15-16, as written in scripture. He told me he had to fill in and speak to the team at the F.C.A. meeting and was studying and preparing himself to stand before the team and represent the Lord. He later told me the message he had prepared was not what he spoke about, he said the Lord woke him up fore day in the morning like I know God will do and gave him a different message which was on faith. Months later after winning the championship I talked to him and told him my thoughts on a letter to give God his glory and asked him to give me some more insight to include in the letter and this is what he gave me. Coach Brown wrote,

• “ After going 1-4 to start the 2011 football season, the team was down, the coaches were down, and our fan was hurt. The players kept coming to practice and meetings, the coaches kept coaching, everyone was giving it their all. If anyone would have come to practice they would  have seen a team working like we were undefeated. But something was missing besides the wins. Traditional we would have F.C.A. ( Fellowship of Christian Athletics ) on Thursday night and would have a great turn out every week. This had not been the case leading up to the 1-4 start, the number of players coming on Thursday night was not that good. So the Lord moved in my heart to put some teeth in the announcement about the F.C.A. meeting and how we as a team had not been showing up. I also told them that this was voluntary and not mandatory, also added that faith without works is dead. We had one part right which was the work now we as a team had to work on faith.” Remember the message the Lord had gave him for that night was on faith. I remember teaching at prayer meeting on group faith years ago. “ Prior to this off week we could count the number of players on your fingers; but the Lord move in his own way and the F.C.A meeting began to be packed week in and week out for the rest of the season.” Coach Brown continued to teach on being Equipped for Success, having faith and believing in yourself, your coaches, your team mates. 
• 1Cor. 9:24 taught about Running the Race to Obtain the Prize ( SWAC Championship)…
• Psalms 37:4 Desires of Your Heart (team goal SWAC Championship )
• Commitment;  keep showing up when it doesn’t  look good.
• Trust; in the Lord and he shall bring it to pass.
• Working hard don’t quiet just get better.
• Patiently wait on the Lord (our season)
• Ecc. 3:1 To everything there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven.
• Add finally a must, we as a team must speak faith filled words and stay positive.

So you see as the team began to be taught on faith and began to speak faith filled words the Lord promised us that we can have what we say, that we had the power to call those things which be not as though they were. The team began to speak and exercise a spiritual principle a lesson taught by Paul the Apostle about group faith which is very powerful.

The team became as one and was able to do the impossible, let’s see how the season changed after the players began to put faith with their works, and having a team goal, having patience, commitment, hard work, with trust in each other.

Oct. 15 Game 6 Concordia, quarterback change D. J. turf toe injury, Rivers  starts, goes 7 for 16 and 169 passing yard a blowout..Coach Williams stated that there was plenty of season left, and a lot of work to do GSU win 44-0..record  2-4

Oct. 22 Game 7 homecoming MVSU game went into overtime Roberts name SWAC player of the week, 18 carries for 136 yards avg. 7.6 per carry, with longest run in SWAC for 87 yds. & 3 of 4 games with 100 yds GSU win 30-24..record 3-4

Oct. 29 Game 8 Pine Bluff Ark. Thriller up for grabs  down to last minutes.. GSU was lead by Patterson, Rivers and Jefferson who had 2 t.d., 6 for 108 yds. ..Rivers was 12 for 140 yds…Roberts added a t.d. with 23 for 73 yds. Coach Williams credited the whole team for the win GSU 27-20..record  ..4-4

Nov. 5 Game 9 Jackson State the number one ranked team in SWAC and Black football,. This game could have been called the championship, Jackson State had beaten up everybody in SWAC and possible took GSU a little light, they had a great quarterback, but GSU scored with a little time left before the half, a patterned screen to super Mario Louis and J. State never recovered from that plus, Roberts, Marice, Rivers all had great games, D. J. a woke from his dream, came in the bottom half of the fourth quarter and help seal the great win. Roberts 76 yard run was the highlight play of game. With time running out J. State selected to throw  for the win rather than kick for a tie, which prove to have been the wrong decision also the time at the end of the game appeared to have been miss managed by J. State and it ran out ..GSU crowd broke out with its patterned song.( GS, GS, GSU.. I thought you knew). GSU Win 26-23..record… 5-4

Nov. 12 Game 10 Texas Southern this was a great game for D.J. Williams after getting his feet wet at the end of Jackson State victory, he had a career high 14 of 19 for 253 yds…211 of that was to Super Mario Louis, including a 34 yd screen, he hit Van Phillips with a 8 yd pass for 6 points, and after changing the play at the line hit Super Mario Louis for 6 more points..on defense Exama and Hollis had some great work down on the goal line for GSU…win 29-25 ..record 6-4.. GSU is now tied with Prairie View for first place but PV still hold the advantage with their win over GSU; to get to the championship game the tigers need a win over rival Southern University and a loss by Prairie View..the tigers needed faith and patience to reach their impossible goal.

Nov. 26 Game 11 Bayou Classic Southern University after a week off to pray, heal, meditate..D.J. Williams and Super Mario Louis these two again rose to the occasion and had great games with Super Mario Louis being name co- MVP with Payton from Southern, but I have to say D. J. could have very easily also been selected co-MVP …Leonard, had an outstanding game along with the rest of the tigers…news flash Prairie View has been defeated, Grambling State University is officially the outright winner of the SWAC’s  west and on their way to play for the SWAC Championship.  GSU Win 36-12 record ..7-4

Dec. 12 Game 12 SWAC Championship Alabama A & M..GSU who can play Cinderella and win SWAC  also avenge an earlier 14-20 at  home  loss to Alabama A & M…could GSU come from dead last go to Alabama and beat the best in the east at home and bring the 2011 SWAC trophy back to Louisiana wearing the golden slippers? Through hind sight I must say yes, a combination of patience, and an 80 yard bomb from the dreamer D.J. Williams to Super Mario Louis sealed the deal. GSU win 17-16..record .. 8-4 =# 1 in SouthWestern Athletic Conference

     You can say what you want but it is very hard not to see the hand of God in this 2011 GSU football season. In closing I know for a fact God will honor his word, he took a great group of young black men and gave them a great lesson of faith which they in term and time will teach other young men how to study and believe the word of God. How great was this lesson it was taught exponentially through a whole team of young black men. I pray that someone in position will see what I see and make a movie to give God greater Glory. Hat’s off to Head Coach Doug Williams who showed great faith in his son D.J. putting him back in on the firing line in the heat of battle. Congratulation  to the F.C.A. for teaching faith, and may it grow and continue to be strong in numbers. We must remember the scripture teaches that, Wisdom is better than strength, Ecclesiastes 11:16, also that, Wisdom is better than weapons of war, Ecclesiastes 11:18. Proverbs 11:30, tells us, he that winneth win souls is wise. Hebrews 11:1 Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. By faith Abel offered unto God a more excellent sacrifice than Cain. By faith Enoch was translated that he should not see death. By faith Noah being warned of God of things not seen as yet, moved with fear, and prepared an Ark. By faith Sarah herself received strength to conceive seed. By faith Moses when he was come to years, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh’s daughter. By faith GSU went from last place to first place and won 2011 SWAC Football Champions. ( I thought you knew )

www.vyronbrownministry.highpowersites.net       Tuesday, May 22, 2012