Bearcats honor Nature Brown’s memory on new helmets

By Ethan Nahté

The Mena Bearcats football team has a new design for their helmets for the 2023 season, and it has something extra along with the bearcat mascot and paw. According to the team’s Facebook post: “This season we will also honor Nature Brown with ‘NB’ stickers on the back of our helmet. We will also carry his jersey to all of our games. 2023 would have been Nature’s Senior Season!”

Nature Alexander Brown, Sept. 30, 2005 – Apr. 15, 2020, died in an automobile accident. The young teen enjoyed hunting, fishing and the outdoors, in addition to football.

His parents, Rodney and Paula Brown, said, “Nature first started playing in fourth grade. The [Arkansas] Razorbacks was his favorite team. He wanted to be a linebacker and was trying to work up to that.”

Coach Craig Bentley was in his first year of coaching at Mena when the accident happened. “I coached him that junior high football season. He was a lineman, offense and defense. Nature had a great attitude every day and always wore a smile on his face. He was just very coachable and did everything you asked him to do.”

The team announced the new helmet design and announced the NB sticker would be a part of the helmets in 2023. Bentley said, “As far as overall helmet design, after four years, we wanted to mix it up and it felt like it was a good time for a change. With the new design we use our secondary logo on the sides of the helmet while still using our primary logo on the front with a little more overall modern design.

“I reached out to Nature’s dad prior to publicly releasing the NB decals and he was very appreciative and honored that his son would be remembered in that way.”

Rodney and Paula were honored when Bentley sent a message to the family. Rodney said, “I started crying when I first read it. I couldn’t even finish it and I had to hand it to my wife to read. It’s an honor that people still remember him.

“When the accident first happened, they had a drive-thru at the school in Nature’s honor and they retired his jersey and have it in a case.”

“Losing a member of our team was very hard on everyone,” Bentley said, “especially the teammates in his class. He was a great kid with an infectious attitude and his memory and legacy still lives on within our program. The 2023 season, which would have been his senior season, is dedicated to Nature.”

“We’re very honored and thankful for the football Bearcat Foundation honoring Nature and keeping his memory alive. I feel like it’s for Nature and us,” his father said.

“This is something I’ve had on my mind for a while,” Bentley said, “leading up to what would have been his senior season, was a couple of different ways to honor him. The decal represents that he is a part of every member of our team and that every member of our team can actively represent him. We will also carry his jersey out to the sideline for each game.”

“He definitely would be smiling down from heaven if he could see it,” Rodney said.

“We feel blessed,” Nature’s parents said. “He loved God and his family and his teammates. He was proud of being a Bearcat.”