Tommy Brown didn’t choose to be an underwear model; his destiny chose him.
Brown is a 6-foot-7, 330-pound, mulleted offensive tackle at Colorado, and the unlikely first underwear model in college football. When the Denver-based underwear company Shinesty came calling with an NIL deal, Brown seized the opportunity.
“I knew it was my destiny when I saw that Shinesty DM’ed me and I was like ‘uh I don’t know about this company,'” Brown told The Post. “And then I clicked on their Instagram and saw how many followers they had and was like ‘oh this is a real company. I have to do it.'”
Ben Lauderdale, the creative director at Shinesty, explained that the company actually reached out to several of Brown’s linemates.
Shinesty produces a line of irreverently named “Ball Hammock Pouch” underwear that is designed to protect the nether regions, and sought someone who protects the quarterback as a thematically appropriate marketer.
“We didn’t want a quarterback or running back,” Lauderdale said. “Tommy was one of the biggest guys there, we were coming out with an extended sizing campaign — we didn’t want a model. We wanted a supermodel.”
While Brown was not the only person targeted for the campaign, he was the only one to take Shinesty up on it.
“A lot of my teammates are kicking themselves for not responding like I did,” Brown said.
The women in Brown’s life took the campaign in-stride.
“My girlfriend has been really supportive and has loved it,” Brown said. “She thought it was hilarious. My mom finds it hilarious. My grandma was a little stunned at first, but now she’s on their mailing list. My great aunt is on their mailing list as well, and I was on their Father’s Day card. It’s on everyone’s refrigerator now.”
Brown transferred to Colorado from Alabama. Asked what Nick Saban would’ve said about this campaign, Brown said, “You know, Coach Saban has a good sense of humor. He might not let many people know that, but I think he would’ve gotten a chuckle out of it — and he wouldn’t have wanted to hear any more about it after the first time.”
For the time being, Shinesty is only available online, but they’re working over the next few months to launch a wholesale business to get the underwear into brick and mortar stores.
