Dave Feit’s Greatest Huskers by the Numbers: 41

Dave Feit is counting down the days until the start of the 2025 season by naming the best Husker to wear each uniform number, as well as one of his personal favorites at that number. For more information about the series, click here. To see more entries, click here.

Greatest Husker to wear 41: Marc Munford, Linebacker, 1983-1986

Honorable Mention: William Mueller, Bob Smith, Dane Todd

Also worn by: Kim Baker, Elliott Brown, Phil Ellis, Jared Franzluebbers, Thomas Grove, Tim Johnk, Jake Long, Luke McNitt, David Santos, Dane Todd

Dave's Fave: Elliott Brown, Wide Receiver, 2020-2024

Nebraska has long been a pioneer in athletic performance. The core philosophy has always been about helping student athletes maximize their physical potential.

Most people think of that simply as lifting weights and running sprints. But there is more to making sure an athlete is in peak condition. If we think of a college football player as a vehicle - backs and receivers as sports cars, linemen as large trucks, etc. - the fuel that goes into them plays a tremendous role in their performance.

As fundamentally basic as that is, there are inherent challenges as well. Often, young men in the 18-22 range, away from home for the first time, aren't skilled in the kitchen. Even if they know the difference between roux and stew, time is the next hurdle. Between workouts, practices, classes, study hours, meetings, film study and more, it is easy to run out of hours in the day. And finally, players may lack the knowledge of what is good fuel and what is not. Fast food might be an "extra value meal," but it's not ideal nourishment for a college athlete with demanding caloric needs.

The Cornhuskers have long provided food options for their players. The Big Six conference approved "training table" meals in 1938. Early versions of Nebraska's training table - available only to male athletes - were located in the Student Union and the Selleck Quadrangle.

In the 1960s, the origins of the Husker Beef Club started. Nebraska ranchers would donate cattle to be served at the training table, often with Nebraska farmers donating the corn the cows ate. Nebraska football was a field-to-farm-to-field operation.

Nebraska's 1978 summer conditioning guide - given to players to conduct their own offseason workouts - had a nutrition section that stressed the importance of vitamins, minerals and proteins. It provided some sample menus for gaining weight using a six-meals-a-day plan.

In 1985, Nebraska's modern training table - in the west side of Memorial Stadium - opened. In addition to the expanded capacity (it held 220 people and served 330 meals a day in 1985), it was overseen by a registered dietitian. This allowed the staff to begin educating players on nutrition and making sure they were properly fueling themselves.

Marc Munford goes high to defend against a Missouri pass. | Nebraska Football Media Guide

Linebacker Marc Munford was a part of the first group of Huskers to benefit from the training table.

If you’re compiling a list of the best linebackers in school history, Marc Munford’s name should be on that list. A strong tackler, he led the team in tackles in each of his final three seasons. He is in an elite group of Huskers to win all-conference honors in three seasons.

As a sophomore, he had a breakout performance against Missouri with a career-high 16 tackles and a 57-yard interception return for a touchdown. A devasting knee injury cost Munford the final two games of his junior season, but he still led the team in tackles and repeated as an All-Big Eight pick. In his senior season, he was a captain of a Blackshirt defense that held Kansas to minus-21 yards on 22 carries.

Munford was an excellent prep baseball player with offers to the some of the top college programs of the day. He wanted to moonlight with the Nebraska baseball team, but the coaches wouldn't allow it. He was inducted into the Nebraska Football Hall of Fame in 1997.

Marc Munford takes down a ball carrier. | Nebraska Football Media Guide

By 1997, Nebraska's sports nutrition program had gone to another level. Dave Ellis - who had started on Boyd Epley's strength and conditioning staff - was hired in 1994 as the first full-time nutritionist in a college athletic department. He elevated Nebraska's program by customizing meal plans based on the different positional needs of football players. In addition, Ellis' staff would educate and coach players on food choices, portions, and more.

Nebraska's dedication to athletic performance - on and off the field - was a major factor in the Huskers' success.

Today, Nebraska's training table in the new Osborne Legacy Complex is led by Kristin Coggin, assistant athletic director for performance nutrition. It is a state-of-the-art facility that has an executive chef serving hundreds of meals every day. There is also a demo kitchen where student-athletes learn how to make their own healthy meals - an important life skill for everyone, especially elite athletes.

The nutrition staff works with the strength and conditioning team to help players meet their goals - weight loss, gain, or maintain. It's all part of a holistic approach to player performance and recovery intended to help players maximize their ability.

Marc Munford as a Denver Bronco in 1989. | Rod Hanna-Imagn Images

***

I'll be honest: My first impressions of Elliott Brown weren't great.

The first time I heard his name was probably in 2020, his first year at Nebraska. I heard his name because he was - supposedly - dating JoJo Siwa, a dancer/pop star/YouTube sensation that my that my young kids were obsessed with. My very simplistic rationale went something like this: I find JoJo annoying, therefore anybody who dates* her is likely somebody that I'll find annoying too.

*According to various celebrity websites, the two were platonic friends who never dated. As somebody who doesn't give a rip about the world of celebrity gossip, this might have been the least enjoyable thing to research in the entire series. But I do strive for accuracy.

Admittedly, that perception did not soften when I learned that Elliott's dad is Lance Brown, a wingback on the 1990s championship teams. Let's recap a notorious on-field moment* from Lance Brown's Husker career:

*The "on-field moment" descriptor is necessary for those who remember the rather infamous run of the Studio 14 night club in downtown Lincoln, which Lance owned and operated after his playing career.

With 38 seconds left in the 1995 Arizona State game, the Huskers were clinging to a 70-28 lead. Quarterback Matt Turman threw a 39-yard touchdown to Lance Brown. The Sun Devils did not appreciate Nebraska running up the score,* and they especially did not like it when Brown celebrated by doing a backflip.

*Personally, I don't think it is a coincidence that when the two teams met the following season in Tempe, the Sun Devils had laser focus in handing the Huskers a 19-0 loss, the most recent shutout in NU history.

Elliott Brown during a Red-White spring game. | Nebraska Athletics

When Elliott Brown arrived on campus, some players in the locker room may have been skeptical of the walk-on often referred to as a "social media influencer." As Brown told The Athletic's Mitch Sherman in 2023:

"Some teammates didn’t receive me as well as others," he said. "It was pretty much what you’d expect to see, like, 'Who is this kid and what is he doing?' I was ready for it. I just kept my head down and knew once they got to see me and see who I was, that’s not really what I’m about."

That's the problem with judging people off first impressions. More often than not, you end up wrong.

I know I was wrong.

During his Nebraska career, I grew to appreciate, like and respect Elliott Brown.

In his five seasons, he played in seven games but did not record statistics. But he was a four-time Academic All-Big Ten honoree and was named to the Tom Osborne and Brook Berringer Citizenship Teams three times. In 2022, he won the Sam Foltz 27 Hero Leadership Award.

In 2023, (then) receivers coach Garret McGuire moved up to the coaches' box, leaving a vacuum on the sidelines for a young and inexperienced receiver corps. Brown grabbed a headset and helped - signaling plays and serving as McGuire's eyes and ears on the sidelines. He was essentially a walk-on player/coach.

His unselfish, team-first attitude is commendable. Late in the 2023 season, Brown tore his ACL in practice. A few days later, he was on the sidelines at Michigan State - wearing a knee brace - signaling plays. With just three games left in the regular season, Brown wanted to delay his surgery so he could continue helping the team. Head coach Matt Rhule appreciated the gesture but denied his request. Brown's health and recovery came first - even if it meant readjusting their coaching assignments.

In 2024, Brown was back on the sidelines. His blue Nebraska hat - used to allow players in the huddle to easily pick him out in a sea of red - turned backwards and under his headset. Even though the NCAA allowed quarterbacks to receive radio communication from the offensive coordinator, Elliott Brown was still there as a player… and a coach.

In both roles, he did whatever was asked of him to make the team better.

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