Hall of Fame
A three year starter and a first-team All-America offensive guard and football team captain, Terrance Brooks led the Tigers to consecutive NCAA postseason appearances during Towson’s nationally ranked Division II glory days.
Arguably one of the finest offensive linemen ever to wear a Tiger uniform, Brooks was a starter in 36 games. In 1983, he helped the Tigers to a 10-1 regular season record and their first-ever appearance in the NCAA Division II playoffs. Towson dropped a 24-17 quarterfinal round game at North Dakota State in the playoffs as the Bison went on to win the national championship. Other postseason team accolades included earning the Lambert/Meadowlands Award as the top Division II team in the East and being recognized as the Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) Division II “Team of the Year.” Towson repeated both honors the following year.
The 1984 Tigers had an 8-3 regular season record and advanced to the semifinals of the NCAA playoffs, defeating Norfolk State in the quarterfinals, 31-21. But for the second year in a row, Towson was beaten by the eventual national champion, falling to Troy State in the semifinals.
A native of Union Bridge, Md., Brooks earned All-American honors as a junior and senior. A two-time All-ECAC Division II first team selection, he was an honorable mention All-American as a junior in 1983. In his senior season, he was named first team All-American by Kodak. He is one of only five players in Towson’s program history to earn Division II first team All-America honors.
A two-sport athlete, Brooks excelled as a member of Towson’s track and field team. In his senior year he was the East Coast Conference discus champion, setting a school record. He was honored as Towson’s 1985 Male Athlete of the Year.
Brooks was signed as a free agent by the National Football League’s Cleveland Browns and spent the 1985 season on the Browns’ roster. However, he never played in an NFL game due to a career-ending knee injury.
He began his coaching career as the head football coach, assistant track coach and physical education teacher at Lansdowne High School in Baltimore County, earning the school's Coach of the Year award in 1996. He then embarked on his college coaching career. He was the football coach and strength and conditioning coach at Kalamazoo College in Michigan, Shenandoah University in Winchester, Va. and Bridgewater College in Virginia. In 2008 he returned to Towson as a strength coach before assuming his final post in February, 2009 as the head strength and conditioning coach at Sacramento (Calif.) State.
Brooks was an accomplished weightlifter who was a three-time Virginia AAU champion. As a world-class, drug-free power lifter, he was the five-time national champion as well as a four-time world champion. He set numerous national records.
Terrance passed away suddenly June 13, 2011 during surgery at the UC David Medical Center in Sacramento, Calif. He was 47-years-old.
