HIGH-PROFILE RECOMMENDATION
Equanimeous St. Brown was in the eighth grade when his father, John Brown, first felt a creeping sense of anxiety about his son’s recruitment. “I was like a deer in the headlights,” says Brown, a former bodybuilder who was twice named Mr. Universe. But a friend he’d met years ago through Pop Warner offered to show him the ropes.
Since, Greg Hoyd has worked with each of Brown’s three sons, Equanimeous, Osiris, and Amon-Ra St. Brown — all of whom are now elite receiver recruits, with piles of high-profile offers and an evergreen presence on Playing for Envelopes’ social media feeds.
The St. Browns, it seems, are exactly the type of prospects who wouldn’t need a recruiting service. They are household names, coveted by powerhouse football programs. Brown’s phone has “every coach in America’s cell number,” he says.
So why affiliate themselves with any recruiting service?
“People tell me now, ‘You don’t need Greg,’” Brown says. “He got the ball rolling for all three of my sons. When Equanimeous was a junior, did he need Greg? No. When Osiris was a junior, did he need Greg? No. When Amon was a junior, did he need Greg? No. Because the ball was rolling. But who got the ball rolling?”
In return, Brown has played a supporting role in Playing for Envelopes’ rise in Orange County. The majority of parents who spoke to the Register said they were either directly referred by Brown or signed up only after Brown offered his support of Hoyd. On a few occasions, Brown tagged along while Hoyd gave his sales pitch. “I took what (Hoyd) said as legitimate because of John,” Eli Ginnis says.
Several parents have since approached Brown to voice their dissatisfaction.
“Take my word for it: These parents are crazy,” Brown says. “Now, is Greg doing something wrong? I mean, I’m not there. I’m sure he’s not perfect. But at the end of the day, this is what it comes down to: They didn’t get scholarships. If they got scholarships, they wouldn’t be unhappy.”
