Bill Devrow (1985) - Southern Miss M-Club Hall of Fame

Bill Devrow

Induction:
1985

Billy Devrow was one of the outstanding safeties on some of the finest Southern Miss defenses the school has ever had. Offering credence to that fact is the statistic that shows those defenses from 1964 to 1966 shutout eight of their 28 opponents and held eight others to one touchdown or less. Only four opponents put more than two touchdowns on the boards against them.
   Devrow was a Hattiesburg native who left behind a string of tremendous performances in three sports for Hattiesburg (Miss.) High and when he joined Southern Miss carved himself a niche in two sports, baseball and football. He was inducted primarily for his football prowess, but his baseball skills were magnificent as well.
In football Devrow was outstanding on defense against the pass and also a devastating tackler against the rushing game.
Devrow made an immediate impact on the Golden Eagle defense in 1964 and he was utilized as a safety and on the kicking teams as well. That year he was second on the team in interceptions with two and he also returned a couple of punts for a 16.5-yard average. That team would finish with a 6-3 record.
In 1965 Devrow would begin a two-year run with a couple of the school’s great defenses. Defense that would lead the country in total defense in both 1965 and 1966.
The 1965 unit allowed just 161.8 yards per game to rank first and just 14.1 points to rank second in the country and intercepted 20 passes and Devrow snatched eight of those to tie for second in the country and to tie a Southern Miss record for most interceptions in a season.
   In 1966 the Devrow led defense again led the nation in total defense allowing just 163.7 yards per game and even though they allowed fewer points per game (10.3) they ranked 16th in the country that year. Devrow led the team once more in interceptions with five, although fewer teams were brave enough to throw in his direction, and the team picked off 17 that year.
   Devrow still ranks third in Southern Miss history with 15 interceptions and he returned those 166 yards. Only Bubba Phillips (25) and Ray Guy (18) have more career interceptions.
   Following his career at Southern Miss Devrow was an eight round pick in the NFL draft by the Cleveland Browns and played a year with them before being drafted into the United States Army.
   His best of three years as a Southern Miss baseball letterman was in 1965 when he had a .321 batting average with 26 hits and 20 runs batted in19 games. Ten of those 26 hits were for extra bases, three doubles, three triples and four home runs.
   His skill and daring in the defensive secondary have been matched by a select few in the history of Southern Miss football and that’s why Devrow will always rank among the Who’s Who among the Best Defenders in Golden Eagle history.