Roughly three years ago, Penn State running back Journey Brown had to retire from football due to hypertrophic cardiomyopathy. He finished his college career with 934 rushing yards, 143 receiving yards and 14 total touchdowns.
Fast forward to the present day, and Brown is now a pit crew member. Trackhouse Racing reached out to him about this career path in 2022.
On Sunday, Brown will have a chance to showcase his new set of skills during the YellaWood 500 at Talladega Superspeedway.
Brown will be the front tire changer for Kaulig Racing’s No. 31 car.
Former Penn State running back Journey Brown, who had to retire from football because of a heart condition, will be the front tire changer on the Kaulig No. 31 Cup car this weekend and plan is for him to be in that role the rest of the year. Trackhouse provides crews for Kaulig.
— Bob Pockrass (@bobpockrass) September 26, 2023
Shaun Peet, pit coach at Trackhouse Racing, trained Brown for a year. He raved about the Penn State product’s commitment to helping out the pit crew.
“So he should be a millionaire and is not,” Peet said, via NBC Sports. “He could look at the deck of cards that life handed him and be miserable and think ‘Oh, I should have been this, or I could have done this.’ And he dances through the front door every day. That is an amazing amount of perspective for a young man.
“When he came down and you saw his energy, you were like, ‘Yeah, we can win with someone like this.’”