Model-turned-actor Mehcad Brooks received the break of a lifetime when he joined the cast of ABC’s monster hit show, "Desperate Housewives" (2004- ). With a one-two punch, Brooks also landed a major role in the critically lauded basketball flick, “Glory Road” (2006).

The son of Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver Billy Brooks and Alberta Phillips, an editor and columnist, Brooks was born Oct. 25, 1980 in Austin, TX. (Ironically, his brother Billy would be one of two other candidates for his later role on “Desperate Housewives”). Brooks attended L.C. Anderson High School, where he played football,