Callie Brownson (born October 15, 1989) is an

American football American football, referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada and also known as gridiron football, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular American football field, field with goalposts at e ...

coach and player who last served as the assistant wide receivers coach for the

Cleveland Browns The Cleveland Browns are a professional American football team based in Cleveland. The Browns compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC North, North division. The team is named after ...

of the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a Professional gridiron football, professional American football league in the United States. Composed of 32 teams, it is divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National ...

(NFL). In September 2018, she became the first woman hired as a full-time

NCAA Division I NCAA Division I (D-I) is the highest division of intercollegiate athletics sanctioned by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) in the United States, which accepts players globally. D-I schools include the major collegiate athlet ...

coach, when she was promoted by Dartmouth, after briefly working as an intern for the team. Brownson played for the

D.C. Divas The D.C. Divas are a women's gridiron football team that plays in the Women's Football Alliance. Based in the Washington metropolitan area, the Divas play their home games at Annandale High School in Annandale, Virginia. Formerly, the Divas p ...

in the

Women's Football Alliance The Women's Football Alliance (WFA) is a semi-pro full-contact women's American football league in the United States. Founded in 2009, it is the largest 11-on-11 football league for women in the world, and the longest running active women's ...

(WFA) from 2010 to 2017 as a free safety and running back, winning two championships. She also won two gold medals with the

United States women's national American football team United may refer to: Places * United, Pennsylvania, an unincorporated community * United, West Virginia, an unincorporated community Arts and entertainment Films * ''United'' (2003 film), a Norwegian film * ''United'' (2011 film), a BBC Two fi ...

Early life

Born in

Mount Vernon, Virginia Mount Vernon is a census-designated place (CDP) and unincorporated community in Fairfax County, Virginia, United States. The population was 12,914 at the 2020 census. Primarily due to its historical significance and natural recreation and beauty ...

, Brownson was raised by her father, Bruce B. Brownson. She attended Mount Vernon High School, where she played softball, as the football team would not allow girls.

Playing career

While attending

George Mason University George Mason University (GMU) is a Public university, public research university in Fairfax County, Virginia, United States. Located in Northern Virginia near Washington, D.C., the university is named in honor of George Mason, a Founding Father ...

, Brownson tried out for the D.C. Divas in the Women's Football Alliance (WFA) at age 19. She played with the team for eight seasons, five of which she served as a team captain and four of which she was named All-American. Brownson was also a member of the United States women's national American football team when it won the

IFAF Women's World Championship The IFAF Women's World Championship is the international championship for women in American football. The first event was held in 2010, in Stockholm, Sweden, with six countries competing. The United States took home the gold while not letting any ...

2013 2013 was the first year since 1987 to contain four unique digits (a span of 26 years). 2013 was designated as: *International Year of Water Cooperation *International Year of Quinoa Events January * January 5 – 2013 Craig, Alask ...

and

2017 2017 was designated as the International Year of Sustainable Tourism for Development by the United Nations General Assembly. Events January * January 1 – Istanbul nightclub shooting: A gunman dressed as Santa Claus opens fire at the ...

Coaching career

Brownson was an assistant football coach at her alma mater, Mount Vernon High School, for three seasons, beginning at age 21. In 2017, she served as a scouting intern for the

New York Jets The New York Jets are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Jets compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East division. The team p ...

. In 2019, she was hired by the

Buffalo Bills The Buffalo Bills are a professional American football team based in the Buffalo–Niagara Falls metropolitan area. The Bills compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East div ...

to serve as a coaching intern. She became the first woman to coach an NFL position group in a regular-season game when she filled in for the

tight ends coach Drew Petzing in a week 12 game against the

Jacksonville Jaguars The Jacksonville Jaguars are a professional American football team based in Jacksonville, Florida. The Jaguars compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC South, South division. The team ...

on November 29, 2020. She filled in for passing game coordinator and wide receivers coach

Chad O'Shea Chad O'Shea (born December 18, 1972) is an American football coach and former player who is the wide receivers coach and passing game coordinator for the Cleveland Browns of the National Football League (NFL). He previously was an assistant coac ...

during the week 17 game against the

Pittsburgh Steelers The Pittsburgh Steelers are a professional American football team based in Pittsburgh. The Steelers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC North, North division. Founded in 1933 P ...

, and for Petzing again during the Browns' first game of the

2020–21 NFL playoffs The National Football League playoffs for the 2020 season began with the Wildcard Round on January 9, 2021, and concluded with Super Bowl LV at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Florida, on February 7, when the Tampa Bay Buccaneers beat the Kansa ...

. On March 3, 2023, Brownson was promoted to assistant wide receivers coach. On January 10, 2025, it was announced that Brownson would be leaving the Browns to join

USA Football USA Football is the National Governing Body (NGB) of American football in the United States, having received formal certification from the U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Committee on April 17, 2025, becoming the 38th Summer Olympics National Govern ...

as the senior director of high performance & national team operations.

Arrest

On May 27, 2021, Brownson was arrested in

Brunswick, Ohio Brunswick ( or ) is the largest city in Medina County, Ohio, United States. The population was 35,426 at the 2020 census. It is approximately southwest of Cleveland and part of the Cleveland metropolitan area. History Brunswick was founded ...

after she was observed driving 20 miles per hour above the speed limit. Her

blood alcohol content Blood alcohol content (BAC), also called blood alcohol concentration or blood alcohol level, is a measurement of alcohol intoxication used for legal or medical purposes. BAC is expressed as mass of alcohol per volume of blood. In US and many i ...

was .215, over twice the legal limit of .08. On June 8, 2021, Brownson pleaded no contest to a charge of operating a vehicle under the influence. She was fined and ordered to attend a driver intervention program. The Browns announced that she was suspended from team activities and would face discipline.

References

External links

WFA profileDartmouth profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Brownson, Callie 1989 births Living people American football running backs American football safeties Female players of American football Dartmouth Big Green football coaches People from Mount Vernon, Virginia Players of American football from Fairfax County, Virginia George Mason University alumni Cleveland Browns coaches Coaches of American football from Virginia Female coaches of American football