Chicago Bears Countdown to Kickoff: 19 Days with Equanimeous St. Brown

Today marks just 19 days away from the first Sunday of the NFL season, meaning that we are just a little over two weeks from the Chicago Bears' home opener versus the Green Bay Packers. Fittingly, today's installment of Chicago Bears Countdown to Kickoff brings us to the fascinating life and career of the best player in franchise history to don the number 19, wide receiver Equanimeous St. Brown.

Equanimeous St. Brown's unique upbringing before joining Chicago Bears

Among current NFL players, Equanimeous St. Brown and his brothers had one of the most unique childhoods that you will ever hear about. The father of the family, John Brown, was a world-famous bodybuilder whose career unfortunately never took off at the level of other bodybuilders of the time due to a racist environment that at times clouded the perception of the sport and its athletes.

Nonetheless, John Brown was a very successful athlete and focused on the smallest details of perfecting his body, and this type of work ethic and dedication would soon be handed down to his children. John Brown had three children and decided to name them all after Egyptian jobs. From eldest to youngest, the children were named Equanimeous Tristan Imhotep J St Brown, Osiris Adrian Amon-Ra J. St Brown, and Amon-Ra Julian Heru J St Brown.

All three children were held to high standards, both on the gridiron and in their daily lives and school. John, who won two Mr. Universes and three Mr. World titles, had his children learn German and English, as well as the native language of their mother, Miriam, which was French. All children were tri-lingual, and excelled in school, often being referred to by their father as "4.0 thugs". Outside of taking the SAT in all three languages, the children were also helped by John in their physical development, with the former bodybuilder taking his kids to LA Fitness as often as they could go.

Quickly, all three student-athletes became top of their class both on and off the field, and being the eldest, Equanimeous paved the way for his younger brothers. As a player at Servite High School in Anaheim, California, the oldest was a dominant wide receiver. His best season came as a senior, where he totaled 485 yards and four touchdowns on just 32 receptions.

Following his high school career, the 6'5" receiver fielded a number of offers, but with education being a paramount aspect of the family, Equanimeous elected to attend the University of Notre Dame, both a prestigious institution and a storied football program. The younger brothers would eventually follow suit in their school selections, with Amon-Ra selecting to attend USC and Osiris choosing to attend Stanford.