John T. Russell (1972) - Southern Miss M-Club Hall of Fame

John T. Russell

Induction:
1972

Some players they say are underrated. That they never get the attention or the publicity that they deserve. And while that is probably true to some extent, the players that seem to be able to rise from obscurity to gain a spot in the Hall of Fame, are some of the most special players of all.
   John T. Russell was that kind of player. As a lineman he wasn’t very tall, only 5-10, but he carried around 235 pounds. Now some might have looked at his lack of height and thought that might be a disadvantage, but Russell never looked at that way, and in fact used that lack of height to gain an edge on the players he went up against.
   He was able to wedge himself up underneath the linemen that he faced and with surprising speed and quickness was able to whip his opponent more times than not.
   Russell came to Southern Miss from Monticello, Mississippi, and if not for an elbow injury might have seen a lot more action during the 1955 season. He had been red-shirted in 1954 and was one of the leaders of the scout team, the unit that helped the varsity get ready each week by painting a “picture” of the opposition. It was there that Russell first displayed the type of heart and determination that Coach Pie Vann was looking for.
   Although his play was limited by that elbow injury in 1955, Russell was ready to burst onto the scene in 1956. His role on that squad was as a reserve on both offense and defense, but he had a hand in leading the team to a 7-2-1 record that season. His hustle and heart was really on display that year and the coaching staff and Southern Miss fans started to take notice of his play at tackle.
   Russell’s playing time increased considerably during the 1957 campaign and he was one of the stars on a team that would finish 8-3. The team was exceptionally good on defense that year holding opponents to 62 points and only 207.9 yards per game. Thanks to great pressure on the quarterback by Russell and others, Southern opponents that year managed only 67.7 yards per game through the air.
   He would move back to guard for the 1958 season and was a part of one of the greatest seasons in school history. The 1958 team went undefeated with a 9-0 record and captured the UPI College Division National Championship. The offense with Russell upfront blocking was steady all year long, averaging 341.4 yards a game, while the defense might have been as good as the school has ever had. They held opponents to just 5.5 points a game and shutout five of them and allowed only 150.3 yards a game.
   It was during that 1958 championship season that Russell moved out of the shadows and established himself as one of the best linemen in the South. He was no longer a player that was in the background and in the process he had become a crowd favorite.
   As the one of the school’s most dominating linemen, Russell is still remembered today for his love of the game, his determination to succeed and his heart of the a champion, earned him a spot in the Southern Miss Sports Hall of Fame.