As a Baltimore Raven defensive back, number 23 is preparing for the Super Bowl this Sunday. As a Houston native from eastside, he is also known as a Mustang and a Tiger. His fifth grade teacher at Tice Elementary remembers Chykie Brown couldn't sit still.
"He just moved around," recalled Deborah McGowan-Guillory. "He was either at the trash can, or he was at the desk, or he was getting a book. I would say, 'Chykie, where you going?' He would say, 'Oh, I'm just going to get a book.' I'd say, 'Chykie, take a seat.'"
His photo is displayed on North Shore High School's wall of fame, in his college uniform. But you could say his roots go back to the field at Tice Elementary, where his old PE coach still has visions of him.
"He was just a leader," recalled Steve Alley. "He would take the ball. And like you can see from some of these kids, you can see who is going to be the leader, who is not. They always want to be the quarterback, they always want the ball. That was Chykie. He was always in the middle."
He's definitely in the middle again, with a Super Bowl appearance. Students at his old elementary are rallying behind their alumnus with a huge sign to cheer him, from the home of the Tice Tigers.
Fourth grader Kaleigh Salge said, "He feels like a legend to me because he actually went to the same class, the same school."
So come Sunday, it's not hard to figure out who the Tice Elementary student body will be cheering on -- the current shining example of Galena Park ISD.
"We are striving to make them in this district very productive and being successful," said McGowan-Guillory. "I think we did a great job."
School officials are overnighting the poster to Brown's hotel room in New Orleans for him to have this weekend. Galena Park ISD currently has five players in the NFL -- one with the Jacksonville Jaguars, two players on the Ravens, and others on the Colts and Texans.
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