Vernell Brown details leaving UF to work with Anthony Richardson in NFL

GAINESVILLE, Fla. — In 2021, Florida quarterback Anthony Richardson began meeting on a weekly basis with his mentor Vernell Brown Jr., UF’s senior director of player development. 

It became a regular routine for the two Gainesville natives, both of whom grew up on the east side of town. Their conversations are often football-related, but they also talk about life. 

“It was just an opportunity for him to come in and talk free,” Brown told Gators Online. “To ask questions or voice concerns about anything that he had going on, or something he just wanted to know.” 

During one of their meetings in early 2022, Richardson asked Brown a question that floored him. He didn’t need an immediate response, but just wanted to inquire about the possibility.  

“He said, ‘Hey coach VB, would you consider coming with me when I get ready to go to the NFL?’ And I was like, ‘Man.’ It kind of caught me off guard,” Brown said. “That day when he left my office, my wheels went to turning.” 

Fast forward to April 2023, those wheels are on the move and that office is packed up. Friday marked the last day at Florida for Brown, who is now working full-time with Richardson after serving as a mentor and father figure to him for years. 

When Richardson decided to declare for the NFL Draft after the regular season finale at Florida State, he sat down with Brown to inform him. In that meeting, Richardson also reiterated his desire for Brown to become his Manager/Mentor/Chief of Staff. 

“He was really clear about, ‘Hey, I want you to come with me.’ And so now, my wheels started turning for real,” said Brown, who consulted with his wife and their five children. “The biggest thing for me is obviously I love Florida. I love my job at Florida, but I also love Anthony. And I think there’s nothing that can stop that kid if he has a team to help him navigate the next level. 

“I had a whole career at Florida and probably could have stayed there as long as I wanted and worked up. So, there’s no way I would have left that job if I didn’t seriously believe in this kid. And not just who he is as a player, but who he is as a person. And if there’s anything that was the biggest deciding factor for me, that’s what it was.” 

Brown met with Florida coach Billy Napier in December to let him know his plans. Napier was not only supportive and understanding, but provided Brown with some schedule flexibility so he could finish his last few months while also managing Richardson’s draft process.

Brown added that Napier wasn’t surprised by the news based on the relationship he saw between them behind closed doors. 

“I think Coach Napier kind of expected it to be totally honest,” Brown said. “People outside of the building obviously knew me and Anthony were pretty close, but they didn’t know how close. But everybody in that building knew how much time we spent together, the different things we did, our weekly meetings and routine. So, Coach Napier understood and thought it would be great for Anthony and his success.

“At that point he told me, I want you to be around here just to kind of help everybody get acclimated to your roles and responsibilities and help us get somebody hired and hopefully train them. But I also want you to be free to move how you need to move as it pertains to Anthony and his process. So, he’s been very supportive of Anthony, very supportive of me and everything that we have going on.” 

Brown, a Gators cornerback from 2001-05 who also worked as UF’s pro liaison and senior director of alumni relations, added that Napier wants to keep him involved in some capacity with alumni in the future. For the time being, his focus is on the next chapter of his career. 

After his playing days, Brown worked with various youth sports programs in Gainesville and established a non-profit organization (Elite Athletic Performance) aimed at helping kids through athletics. He was hired in 2015 as the director of operations/football for The Villages Youth Sports Club. 

Brown spent the past five years at his alma mater, where he served hundreds of student-athletes and wore many hats for the Florida football program. Former UF coach Dan Mullen called him one of the most valuable people in the entire organization, and Brown was the first staff member retained by Napier. 

“VB’s reputation speaks for itself amongst the administration, amongst former players, amongst current players,” Napier said of Brown. “He’s the jack-of-all-trades. He knows not only how things are done, but the history behind why they were done that way. He’s really helped us solve a lot of problems so far. And probably the most important thing here is this guy really cares about the University of Florida. He cares about doing things the right way and I think he’s objective enough to give his good, bad, ugly, all of the things he’s observed over time.” 

After more than a decade of dedicating himself to youth sports and college athletics, Brown now gets to pour all of his energy and expertise into one player. His weekly meetings with Richardson will continue for years to come. 

“My whole life, I’ve always wanted to help people,” Brown said. “My childhood dream was to have a family and obviously I got a wife and a lot of beautiful kids. And then I got extended kids, some godchildren and then obviously a slew of other kids that I’ve been involved with in some capacity throughout their childhood because of my youth organization. So to be able to pour into kids and parents, helping them see things from a perspective of development both on and off the field is obviously heartwarming and something that I’ll forever be grateful for. And then to translate that to the University of Florida and continue to help a different crew of 120 in some capacity. 

“I’ve always taken pride in meeting guys where they are. So, you take a kid who has it all together, comes from a good family and is pretty responsible, that kid’s still going to need some help getting to the next level. And then you take a kid who didn’t have any of that and has a lot of development to go, and to be able to give them that development, to me, that’s what life is about. I feel like that’s my true calling. And I think that’s part of the reason why things have materialized for me all the way from youth football to now helping an individual who’s a really, really great human being go accomplish the ultimate goal, and that’s being an NFL Hall of Famer and a legendary player.”